Republican Bill Dix swiftly resigns after video of him kissing lobbyist appears online

In a dramatic day in Iowa politics, Iowa Senate Majority Leader Bill Dix resigned from office Monday, hours after the publication of a video and photographs showing him kissing a female lobbyist in a Des Moines tavern.

Dix, an 18-year veteran of the Legislature who famously pledged Republicans had a mandate to "kick the door in" when they recaptured control of the Senate in 2016, provided no explanation for his abrupt resignation.

But the timing and subsequent statements from fellow lawmakers made clear his decision was linked to the report published Monday morning by the Iowa Starting Line political website.

That report included a 52-second video in which Dix, a Shell Rock Republican, and a woman the Des Moines Register has identified as Lindsey McCune, a registered lobbyist for the Iowa League of Cities, sit next to each other on barstools at the Waveland Tap bar in Des Moines.

The Register on Monday independently obtained the photos and video, which depict Dix and McCune engaging in close conversation at the bar and then show her leaning over to kiss Dix on the mouth. Dix, 55, is married with three children, according to his legislative biography.

MORE ON THE UPHEAVAL: Republicans can't be indifferent any longer | What's next? | The man who recorded the video

The news left lawmakers, lobbyists and Capitol watchers shocked. They were surprised first by the initial story and then by Dix's near-immediate resignation.

His exit from the Capitol leaves Senate Republicans without their most powerful leader just as they begin the final, feverish weeks of the legislative session and look forward to the elections to come.

Friday marks a key deadline for progress on bills in the Legislature, where lawmakers are debating major tax reform legislation, weighing midyear budget cuts and working to craft a budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Friday is also the filing deadline for candidates seeking state and federal offices in the 2018 elections.

And with primary Election Day looming June 5, they're looking to get out of Des Moines sooner than later. Lawmakers are tentatively scheduled to end around April 17, the session’s 100th day.

The initial Starting Line story documenting the incident was published around 10 a.m. Monday. Dix met briefly with his Republican colleagues behind closed doors at 1 p.m.

Minutes later, aides released a copy of a letter in which Dix resigned as majority leader and as senator — “effective at 2 p.m. today, March 12, 2018.”

Sen. Charles Schneider, R-West Des Moines, described a closed-door meeting of the Senate Republican caucus on Monday as “somber” and “sad," but expressed confidence the development would not hinder the Senate's work.

"President Whitver has been at the table negotiating with the House and the governor’s office. He will continue to be there, one way or another," Schneider said, referring to Senate President Jack Whitver, R-Ankeny. "And those of us who are committee chairs and have leadership roles in the caucus, we are all ready to move forward and get to work, too. We know what our jobs are and we will get through them in a timely fashion.”

Asked if lawmakers were angry, Schneider replied, “There is anger as well. Yes.”

Leaders respond to resignation

Without directly commenting on the substance of the video, lawmakers and others quickly and unanimously indicated support for Dix’s decision to resign.

“I believe he made the right decision for himself and for his district,” Whitver said in a statement immediately following Dix’s announcement, “but most importantly, I believe he made the decision in the best interest of his family.”

Whitver, in his statement, said Senate Republicans will hold an internal election to choose a new majority leader on Wednesday.

House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said legislators need to be aware that they are in positions of power and should know to avoid romantic relationships with people who could be seeking to influence their decision-making.

“That’s not the position we want to be in, and it’s not a position we should be in,” she said. “We know better.”

Adding to the chorus, Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, said Dix “made the right decision.”

“After hearing the disappointing news about Senator Dix this morning, I believe he made the right decision in stepping down,” she said. “Iowans hold their elected officials to a high standard, and as elected officials, we have an obligation to lead.”

Likewise, Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann: “I believe Senator Dix took the appropriate course of action this afternoon for his family, his constituents, and the Iowa Senate,” he said. “Senate Republicans will move forward this week to elect new leadership, and I'm confident in their commitment to act on our legislative priorities for the remainder of the 2018 session.”

Because the Legislature is in session, Reynolds must call a special election to fill Dix’s seat. She must set a date for that election within five days.

Woman in video is a lobbyist

The man who took the video said he saw Dix flirting with a woman who did not appear to be his wife.

“I didn’t know it would blow up like this," said Tom Criswell, who said he became interested in politics after serving a felony sentence for drug-related charges.

More: Man who took video of Bill Dix says 'he was on the hunt'

The incident occurred on March 1, according to Criswell.

McCune did not reply to requests for comment. An official with the Iowa League of Cities on Monday declined to comment in detail.

"We are taking what we believe are appropriate actions, but because this is a personnel matter we cannot comment further,” League of Cities director of government affairs and legislative counsel Robert L. Palmer said in an email.

As a lobbyist, McCune’s professional responsibilities would include attempting to influence Dix and other lawmakers. Until his resignation, Dix was the highest-ranking member of the Senate’s GOP majority on matters of public policy.

Publicly available disclosures show McCune has registered as a lobbyist on nearly 500 bills before the Legislature during the current General Assembly, including more than 200 that originated in the Senate.

Before joining the League of Cities, McCune was a legislative assistant to state Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, and a scheduling director on U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign.

State ethics laws, legislative rules and the Senate’s Code of Ethics do not explicitly prohibit or regulate personal relationships between elected officials and lobbyists.

The Senate Code of Ethics’ preamble, though, speaks of lawmakers’ “duty to uphold the integrity and honor of the general assembly.”

“Members of the senate have a duty to conduct themselves so as to reflect credit on the general assembly, and to inspire the confidence, respect, and trust of the public, and to strive to avoid both unethical and illegal conduct and the appearance of unethical and illegal conduct,” the code reads.

Encounter follows Senate harassment scandal

Whatever the ethical dimensions of the situation, the political reality of engaging in a romantic relationship with a lobbyist was fraught for Dix, who in recent months has become the face of the Republican response to allegations of sexual harassment in the Senate.

Former Senate GOP caucus communications staffer Kirsten Anderson received $1.75 million to settle a sexual harassment and wrongful termination lawsuit last year. Dix faced calls for his resignation over the Senate's handling of that case and saw protesters demonstrate outside his Shell Rock home.

The case led to internal and independent reviews of the Statehouse culture and reporting systems for harassment, leading to the creation of a new human resources manager position to handle workplace complaints. That human resources manager, Kate Murphy, on Monday directed questions about the Dix situation to Secretary of the Senate Charlie Smithson.

OBRADOVICH: Bill Dix's resignation doesn't solve Senate GOP's indifference to sexual misconduct

Following Dix’s resignation, Smithson said he was unaware of any complaints that had been filed against the senator, but added he would not necessarily know of any complaints at this point in the process because complaints or investigations of sexual harassment must be handled confidentially.

Smithson also said he does not believe that under the Senate’s Personnel Guidelines, which include matters involving sexual harassment, the policies would apply to a former senator.

Democrats on Monday were quick to link Dix’s conduct in the video and subsequent resignation with the Anderson scandal.

“With Senator Dix’s resignation, Republican Senators have an opportunity to finally get it right and change a culture at the Iowa Capitol that puts lobbyists, special interests, and political arrogance ahead of the interests of Iowa families,” Senate Minority Leader Janet Petersen said in a statement.

Dix led GOP's 2016 takeover

Dix left the Legislature on Monday having served nearly two full terms in the Senate and more than five years as the leader of the Senate Republican Caucus. He also served five terms in the state House and ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2006.

With Dix as leader, Senate Republicans controlled 29 of 50 Senate seats after the 2016 election, giving them their first majority in over a decade and ushering in a tidal wave of conservative legislation in 2017.

His caucus dramatically limited the state’s collective bargaining laws for public employees, restricted abortions, expanded the rights of gun owners, and nullified minimum-wage increases for workers in five Iowa counties, among several other moves.

Dix opened the 2018 session with a promise to write “Chapter 2” of that Republican agenda. Earlier this year, the Senate passed a bill sharply cutting a wide range of state taxes to lower state revenues by $1.2 billion annually when fully enacted. The bill has been sent to the Republican-led Iowa House, which is writing its own tax reform legislation.

Bill Dix

AGE: 55.

FAMILY: Born and raised on family farm and now resides in Shell Rock. Married to wife, Gerri; they have three children.

EDUCATION: Janesville High School, graduated in 1981; Iowa State University, received bachelor's degree in agribusiness in 1985.

CAREER: Cargill Inc., 1985-1991, feed salesman in central Iowa and regional sales manager in southern Minnesota and northeast Iowa; owner-operator with his wife of 500-acre farm in Bremer County, growing melons, squash and pumpkins, 1991-present.

POLITICS: Served in Iowa House, 1997-2006; unsuccessfully sought Republican nomination in 2006 for Iowa's 1st Congressional District; served in Iowa Senate, 2011-present. Iowa Senate Republican leader starting in 2013.