Joni Ernst

“Republicans think tax filing should be easier for you, not just the well-connected.”

“I believe that wholeheartedly - that we have to maintain a strong national defense.”

“I am a woman and, second, I have been to war. I am a combat veteran. This is not a war on women, and anytime Democrats use the word 'war,' they need to do it to honor our servicemen and women.”

“Growing up, I had only one good pair of shoes. So on rainy school days, my mom would slip plastic bread bags over them to keep them dry. But I was never embarrassed. Because the school bus would be filled with rows and rows of young Iowans with bread bags slipped over their feet.”

“There's a lot we can achieve if we work together.”

“I don't know the science behind climate change. I can't say one way or another what is the direct impact, whether it's man-made or not.”

“The forces of violence and oppression don't care about the innocent.”

“The state knows best how to protect resources.”

“It's not enough to be a woman. You have to care about women's issues. And women's issues here in Iowa are that we have a strong economy. We have jobs that our sons and daughters can go off to someday. We have a great educational system. And women want strong national defense. We want to know that our families are going to be safe.”

“Our fighters would be nowhere if they didn't have the support coming from folks like those that served with me.”

“I do not support a federal minimum wage. I think every state has a different economy, a different cost of living. I don't believe that's the role of the federal government.”

“Let's shut down the EPA.”

“As a young girl, I plowed the fields of our family farm. I worked construction with my dad. To save for college, I worked the morning biscuit line at Hardees.”

“I have never once claimed that I have a Combat Action Badge. I have never claimed that I have a Purple Heart. What I have claimed is that I have served in a combat zone.”

“It was only by luck and the blessings of God that my soldiers did not encounter an assault, that we did not run over an IED. And to dishonor our service by saying we're not worthy of being called combat veterans is insulting to the majority of men and women who serve their country honorably.”

“Cleaning up the mess in Washington is gonna take a whole lot of Iowa common sense.”

“I think we do have cyclic changes in weather, and I think that's been throughout the course of history.”

“I grew up in southwest Iowa, on a farm north of Stanton, Iowa, which is a tiny little town, a farming community. I went to Iowa State University and joined Army ROTC while I was there and just have had such a phenomenal life. I am a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom.”

“When I get to Washington, I'll know how to cut pork. Washington is full of big spenders. Let's make them squeal.”

“My parents taught us to live within our means. It's time to force Washington to do the same.”