Hollywood may have thought it plausible fifty years ago, but, to date, fictional Iowa Congresswoman Phoebe Frost continues to stand alone.
“It was a couple of years ago when I got up and turned on the television,” remembered Becky Greenwald, Democratic candidate for Iowa’s 4th Congressional District. “The set was on one of those old movie stations and I began to watch this movie, directed by Billy Wilder, from the late 1940s — “A Foreign Affair” — that featured a young Iowa congresswoman who goes to Berlin to investigate something just after World War II. I just thought, ‘Oh, my gosh!’ If Hollywood thought it was possible in the late 40s, I guess we better get with it.”
While there is no doubt that being the first women elected to congress by the state of Iowa would be an honor, Greenwald is also quick to point out that changing public perception of the state isn’t her primary reason for running.
“I actually see myself as the Congressional candidate who just happens to be a woman,” she said. “But, even I have to admit, that it would sure be nice get us off that list with Mississippi as being the only state that hasn’t elected a woman to Congress or to the governorship. That being said, it’s obvious when I’m out there on the campaign trail that I am a woman and, as such, I bring a different point of view. That’s a good thing, however, because I believe that’s exactly what this district needs.”
Greenwald, a native of Marshalltown and long-time political activist, said she will use the values she grew up with as the foundation of her term in Washington.
“In particular, I think, I have a very strong listening ability,” she said. “I pay attention to what people tell me and I act on it. I definitely understand the needs of the 4th District. I grew up here. I raised my family here. I made my career here. I have that Iowa ethic of working hard, listening and reacting with wisdom.”
She grew up in State Center and did her undergraduate work at Iowa State University before earning a master’s degree in business administration from Drake University. Her first job was as a medical case worker for the Red cross at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, the largest Air Force medical facility in the nation. It was that experience, she said, that prompted her strong commitment to veterans’ issues.
In the recent past, she has served as the Dallas County Democratic Central Committee treasurer and, currently, as the group’s chairwoman. Greenwald, 55, has worked in sales and marketing for Pioneer Hi-Bred for the past 12 years and, prior to that, worked for the Garst Seed Co. She has been on the board of the Iowa Forage and Grassland Council, having previously served as the organization’s president. She also served as president of the American Forage and Grassland Council in 2000.
“I have a lot of agricultural experience,” she said. “As a woman in agriculture, that’s unusual in and of itself. I’m very much accustom to working with a lot of men and getting a lot of things done in that circumstance.”
Greenwald believes that being both a woman and a native of the District she hopes to represent provides her an understanding that may not be shared by others.
“As a woman, I’m also very much in tune with the issues that are of importance to the families and women in the fourth district,” she said. “I’ve been where they are now. I know what it feels like to balance work and home. I know I can represent their interests well because their interests are my own, the ones that I’ve had to battle my entire life.”
Greenwald’s campaign, in addition to availing itself of Iowa political veterans, has received the public blessing of the state’s congressional delegation. In particular, Sen. Tom Harkin and Congressman Bruce Braley have been known to sing Greenwald’s praises. The Cook Political Report recently changed its outlook on the 4th District race from “solid Republican” to “likely Republican.” As Greenwald stands toe-to-toe with 13-year Republican incumbent Congressman Tom Latham, however, there are some statistics that help her stay focused.
“This is not a campaign that was launched on a whim,” she said. “This is not just a campaign that’s based on hope that I’ll do well. Sen. Harkin won 28 of the 28 counties in the 4th District in 2002. The 4th District is the only district in Iowa in which he carried every single county. Gov. Culver, when he ran in 2006, carried 22 of the 28 counties in the 4th District.”
