Dem picks up key endorsement in Iowa

Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) on Sunday received the endorsement of The Des Moines Register in his Senate race against Joni Ernst (R).

{mosads}The newspaper’s editorial board called the race an example of “American politics at its worst.”

“It has been a $28 million parade of dismal attack ads that have reduced the candidates to evil caricatures,” the board wrote.

The board described both candidates as “decent and honorable with strong credentials and compelling biographies.”

But it wrote that despite “comparable individual strengths,” there are “clear differences between the two on important issues.”

“Based on those differences, we believe Braley is clearly better suited to represent Iowa in the U.S. Senate.”

The editorial board said it did not believe Ernst’s positions on issues ranging from the federal minimum wage to gun control were “right for Iowa or the country.”

The newspaper endorsed the state senator earlier this year in the Republican primary, calling her a “smart, well-prepared candidate who can wrestle with the details of public policy from a conservative viewpoint without seeming inflexible.”

In Sunday’s endorsement, the board called Braley’s record of accomplishment in Congress “solid.”

“He has a demonstrated ability to work with Republicans to get legislation passed,” it wrote. “Those legislative achievements range from job training programs at Iowa community colleges to tax credits for families adopting children and helping Iowa military veterans get help with education and housing.”

The board also said it has long been impressed with Braley’s “intelligence, passion and hard work in the House.”

“The nation needs lawmakers like Braley who will work on a long list of unmet challenges this country faces,” it added.

Ernst holds a 2-percentage-point lead over Braley in a Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday.