Rep. David Young (R-IA) has voted with Donald Trump about 99 percent of the time, including backing the Obamacare repeal legislation known as Trumpcare. That legislation would have destroyed insurance protections for the more than 100 million Americans with pre-existing medical conditions. That vote was hugely unpopular.

Facing a very tough re-election in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, Young launched a new ad this week simply lying to the voters — a tactic several other GOP incumbents have tried to cover for their votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act and its provisions that provide meaningful anti-discrimination protections for people with preexisting conditions.

Young’s latest ad stars Jim and Sharon Omvig, two people who describe themselves as longtime advocates for the blind. The two praise their congressman for having taken the bold step of once calling them on the phone and visiting their house.

After their not-terribly-stirring testimonial, a narrator claims that “David stood up to his party to protect Iowans with disabilities and preexisting conditions.”


While this is a rare tacit admission that the Republican Party writ large is against protecting people with disabilities and preexisting conditions, no text on the screen and no narration even pretends to have a source for the false claim that he bucked the GOP on health care or discrimination.

The ad closes with Ms. Omvig concluding, “David gets it. He keeps promises.”