Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) has doubled down on her dismissive response to worries about GOP legislation that includes huge Medicaid and food assistance cuts.
On Friday, Ernst faced angry constituents at a town hall in Parkersburg, Iowa, with one woman in the crowd yelling, “People will die.”
Ernst replied, “People are not ― well, we all are going to die. So, for heaven’s sakes, folks.”
The retort was met with backlash and mockery. On Saturday afternoon, Ernst addressed the controversy with what may have initially appeared to some to be a genuine apology.
“Hello everyone, I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely apologize for a statement that I made yesterday at my town hall,” Ernst said in a video posted to her Instagram Story.
Ernst’s tone began to shift as the video continued.
“See, I was in the process of answering a question that had been asked by an audience member when a woman who was extremely distraught screamed out, from the back corner of the auditorium, ‘People are going to die!’”
It soon became crystal clear that Ernst had no intention of delivering a real apology.
“And I made an incorrect assumption that everyone in the auditorium understood that yes, we are all going to perish from this earth,” Ernst said. “So I apologize. And I’m really, really glad that I did not have to bring up the subject of the tooth fairy as well.”
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In a second video, she followed up with a pitch for Christianity.
“But for those that would like to see eternal and everlasting life, I encourage you to embrace my lord and savior, Jesus Christ.”
Eagle-eyed observers may also notice both videos were filmed in a cemetery.
The non-apology went viral, with one X user noting that “Against all odds, Joni Ernst has made it worse.”
The Republican legislation that sparked the town hall exchange on Friday includes $1 trillion in cuts to federal health and food programs and would result in an estimated 8 million fewer Americans having access to health insurance. The massive cuts offset the bill’s nearly $4 trillion in tax cuts, which mostly benefit higher earning people.