“If we can solve health care, I think it solves a lot of things,” he said Wednesday evening during a potluck at the Webster County Democrat headquarters, 1605 First Ave. N. About 30 people attended.

“People need that health care security,” Scholten, of Sioux City said. “I have two friends who want to start a company, and they both have little kids and don’t want to leave their health insurance. That’s hurting our economy when people aren’t chasing their dreams. For me it’s a sense of freedom and I feel health care is a right.”

Scholten faces John Paschen, of Ames, and Leann Jacobsen, of Spencer, in the June 5 primary.

The winner will face Steve King, a Republican from Kiron, or his primary opponent, Cyndi Hanson, of Sioux City.

-Messenger photo by Chad Thompson
JD Scholten, D-Sioux City, right, visits with Daryl Beall, of Fort Dodge, during a potluck at the Webster County Democrat headquarters, 1605 First Ave. N, Wednesday evening. Scholten is a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. House of Representatives in the congressional district that includes Webster County.

The Fourth Congressional District now represented by King includes Webster County and all the surrounding counties.

“I would love for health care not to be a government issue,” Scholten added. “For decades health insurance companies haven’t been able to solve affordable health for folks.”

He said he would support a public insurance option to compete with other private health insurance companies.

“We also need to get a handle on prescription drugs and get them at a reasonable rate, like every other country,” he said. “And I would say the third thing is getting Medicare buy-in at 55-plus, to allow people who want to retire early can do so.”

His long-term goal is Medicare for all, he said.

In terms of the economy, Scholten said he’s concerned for the working class.

“Sixty percent of all Americans can’t handle a $500 financial emergency,” he said. “We need an economy that works for everybody.”

He supports raising the minimum wage.

“I am 100 percent for that,” he said. “What we really need to do in this district is talk about $45,000, $50,000, $60,000, $75,000 jobs. Especially in the rural areas, those are hard to come by. Those are jobs we need in Sioux City and Fort Dodge. Des Moines is doing pretty well. Ames is doing OK. Outside of there, there’s some pockets that are really struggling.”

He said raising the minimum wage would bode well for those making slightly more than minimum wage now.

“When you raise the minimum wage, all wages tend to gravitate up,” he said. “More bills are stacking up and we need to start paying for them. Raising the minimum wage is a solution to help the working class folks.”

Tim Gannon, the Democratic candidate for Iowa secretary of agriculture, also spoke during the event.

Gannon, a native of Mingo in Jasper County, will face the winner the Republican nomination in the June 5 primary election.

He said farmers are key to keeping rural Iowa vibrant.

“One of the things we have to do is create more demand for corn and beans and other products we raise,” he said.

He was critical of recent tariffs imposed on the U.S. by China.

“The volatility injected into trade markets because of potential trade tariffs doesn’t help,” Gannon said. “We need to take a page out of the playbook that helped us build the ethanol and biodiesel industry. A lot of that was farmer-led. It helped create a lot of demand for corn and beans and created jobs.”

He added, “What are the next things we can do to create demands for corn and beans or other products? Maybe there will be markets for industrial hemp if the federal law gets changed. Maybe we should look at growing more small grains if we figure out the market. Putting more money in farmers’ pockets, that will be beneficial to the rural economy.”

Jake Thompson, of Rockwell City, and John O’Brien, of Fort Dodge, were also in attendance.

Thompson is unopposed for the Democratic nomination in House District 10, which includes Calhoun, Humboldt and Pocahontas counties, plus western Webster County.

O’Brien will face state Sen. Tim Kraayenbrink, R- Fort Dodge, to represent Senate District 5 in the November general election. District 5 includes Calhoun, Humboldt and Pocahontas counties plus most of Webster County.