U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego is being mocked for his plans to visit Iowa, a trip normally reserved for presidential hopefuls.
“Iowa, I’m headed your way. Republicans in Congress slashed your health care and hiked your costs to bankroll billionaires. Join me August 8-9. Let’s fight back,” Gallego posted on X.com.
Kari Lake, U.S. Agency for Global Media Senior Advisor and Iowa native who faced off against Gallego in the 2024 U.S. Senate race in Arizona, immediately slammed Gallego in response, posting on X.com, “This guy has only been in the Senate for about 15 minutes, and he’s already looking for his next position. I love the people of Iowa. I love the people of Arizona. And they both deserve better than @RubenGallego.”
Gallego, dubbed “The Troll” during his tenure in the Arizona Legislature, appears to be signaling to his fellow Democrats that he intends to be on a short list of presidential contenders in 2028 by visiting the Iowa State Fair.
However, consultants in Arizona say that Gallego would have a hard time even carrying Arizona during the Democratic Party’s primary.
“Ruben is not popular with his base in Arizona right now, so he might be heading to Iowa to feel the love he is not getting here,” one Republican consultant told the Arizona Daily Independent.
Gallego will be visiting the “State Fair and holding a town hall in the Quad Cities to speak with Iowans about how Republicans’ big, bad budget-busting bill will impact our communities,” according to the Iowa Democrats X.com account.
According to The Center Square, “In recent months, Gallego has been interacting with Democrats in different states. The senator traveled to Pennsylvania in May to host a town hall in Bucks County. That’s where he said every elected official has thought about running for president, but he wasn’t thinking about doing it currently. Last week, Gallego participated in a virtual town hall event with the Alaska Democratic Party.”
A recent Emerson poll found Gallego out of the running. Pollsters found that “in the 2028 Democratic presidential primary, 16% support former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, 13% former Vice President Kamala Harris, 12% California Governor Gavin Newsom, 7% Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez respectively, 5% Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and 3% New Jersey Senator Cory Booker. Twenty-three percent are undecided.”
“This is a man who couldn’t even unite Arizona Democrats in 2024 — and now he thinks he can unite the country,” one longtime Arizona strategist said.
“It’s actually smart for him to be looking for an out, his race against Lake was remarkably close, so he likely understands that he’s not a great fit for Arizona, which continues to trend increasingly Republican,” said another political consultant. “So, his reelection is far from assured and if he can raise his profile, he may not make it onto the presidential ticket, but maybe he can score a cabinet position if Democrats retake the White House?”