Kaufmann has Iowa City listening post

Credit Where It's Due: Kaufmann plans Iowa City listening post

Regular reader Dave Bradley of West Liberty passes this along:

I was looking at the weekly Jeff Kaufmann newsletter and I see that he will be having a listening post in Iowa City Saturday Feb. 28 at 8AM at the Iowa City Chamber of Commerce - 325 east Washington Street.

Don't know if this is widely disseminated or not. Mr. Kaufmann really needs to be challenged on his stances on unions (especially fair share), health care and many other things. Sure would be nice if a contingent of Johnson County Dems went to hear what he has to say.

Policy views aside, I give Rep. Kaufmann (R-Wilton) credit for coming over to the Johnson County side of the district. With Sandy Greiner's retirement and Larry Marek's election, Kaufmann's the last House Republican representing any part of the People's Republic. It's a small piece of the district -- only about 8 percent -- but it's nice to know he thinks it matters. Especially since they voted Democratic in his race even though the Democrat had dropped out of the race months before Election Day.

I want to turn Johnson County solid blue as much as anyone, but for the moment he's the only State Rep Scott and Lincoln Townships have. So thanks, Jeff; I also see a gap on the listening post schedule that same day that just so happens to coincide with the monthly League of Women Voters legislative forum...

UPDATE: Jeff reads and replies:
I appreciate your fairness. This will be the second Iowa City forum where I appeared in the past year.

This forum is not one of my Listening Posts rather a Chamber forum for Chamber members. I have an extensive Johnson County e-mail list that receives my column weekly, I appear regularly at events in Iowa City, I am a regular fall presenter at a University classroom, I do a lot of constituent work for Johnson County residents, I have co-sponsored legislation with my other Johnson County colleagues across the aisle, and I have been endorsed by the Iowa City Press Citizen three election cycles in a row. In 2006 I actually won some of my precincts in Johnson County in a hotly contested race.

I have 23 forums and Listening Posts in a two-month period this session. I will accept invitations at any event that I believe is not stacked against someone expressing Republican ideas and thoughts. My thoughts on Fair Share and health care should not surprise anyone as I have a reputation of articulating my views clearly and publicly.

I am telling you all of this, not to convince you I am special, but rather to let you know that my appearance in Iowa City next week does not come as surprise to a lot of Johnson County residents. I am proud of my three degrees from the University of Iowa and the one and one-half years I lived in Iowa City. I am proud to represent my two Johnson County townships.