Early in the year we tested messages discussing corporate greed. We kept using and refining it as Iowans told us it worked. One of our first tests proved Iowans think Gov. Reynolds is a corporate sellout. As she took the side of companies like Tyson and cut taxes for corporations and the rich, she only made it more true.
Adding impact to the corporate greed message is the reality that corporate price gouging keeps Iowa families from affording what we need most, and Iowans are fed up. We’ve had enough of the slights dealt by conservatives in Congress: their NO votes on the American Rescue Plan, Inflation Reduction Act, Medicare price negotiations, and caps on insulin costs.
Tangible results are key to our winning message. Iowans know they’re being price-gouged and left behind, but the data matters. Our best messages deliver the receipts and remind folks of the opportunities to support working families, and the fact that certain politicians just aren’t showing up for us.
Iowans keep working hard to care for our families, but Governor Reynolds and Republicans ignore us in favor of corporate greed.
Grassley supported the Trump tax cuts that let wealthy companies like General Mills pay less than us, and Reynolds doubled down giving another state level tax cut to corporations and the richest Iowans. Big companies are making record revenue and buying back their stocks while they jack up prices on the rest of us.
Elected leaders should be looking out for working families, not the richest among us. These tax cuts are doing nothing but hurting our ability to fix roads and bridges, improve our schools, and support emergency responders.
Why not support the small businesses in our small towns that provide good jobs instead of corporations? Homegrown businesses don’t take advantage of Iowa workers like Tyson did, and unlike diaper-makers and meat monopolies, they never price gouge us.
We know we can’t count on Iowa conservatives to look out for us. Rep. Hinson and Sen. Grassley couldn’t even vote to help the more than 200,000 Iowans with diabetes. They sided with greedy pharmaceutical companies when they voted against capping the life-saving drug insulin at $35 per month.
Meanwhile, progressives are delivering. They know wealthy corporations aren’t paying what they owe, so they sent cash straight to our communities and families. From child tax relief to broadband funds and small business loans, Democrats are passing bills that give us the relief we need while rebuilding our economy and keeping us healthy and safe. They’re proof that if we turn out and vote, we can all thrive.
We’ve conducted a series of message tests and created a great summary of them above. But, you can find much more information at www.IowaVoices.org. We have guides describing how to deliver a winning message about price gouging, Gov. Reynolds, Rep. Hinson and Sen. Grassley. The corporate greed framework even helps us talk about how President Biden’s historic legislation works for working families.
From Corporate Kim to Representative Hinson and Senator Grassley, we know our corporate greed message works and we encourage you to keep using it!