Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds as the next US education secretary? What she says about the job
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says she is not interested in serving as U.S. Secretary of Education if Donald Trump is re-elected, batting down a recent report from The Daily Caller.
The right-wing media outlet quoted a Reynolds spokesperson saying the job is “something that (Reynolds) is interested in” in an April 22 article speculating on potential cabinet appointments.
“I am passionate about education. I'm proud of what we're doing," Reynolds told reporters Wednesday at a news conference. "I mean, it started with STEM, it started with registered apprenticeship programs, literacy, parental choice. So I've got a lot of work to do as governor. I love what I'm doing. And I'm really proud of the work we've done, but we've got a lot of work to do.”
Reynolds said she thinks someone mistook her enthusiasm for education issues as interest in the position.
“The report said they thought I was (interested), and that was — I think they mistook just the way I talk about education as maybe ‘pick me,’” she said.
Reynolds has endorsed former president Trump’s re-election effort after he became the presumptive Republican nominee in March.
"Joe Biden has been a disaster for our country," she posted to social media. "Higher prices, inflation, an open border, crime, and the destruction of America’s image on the world stage. I will do everything to defeat him and elect Donald J. Trump for president of the United States!"
But the endorsement followed a tumultuous primary cycle in which Trump lashed out at Reynolds first for failing to publicly support him and then for throwing her weight behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ahead of the Iowa caucuses.
Trump called Reynolds “disloyal” in a string of social media posts and threatened that her endorsement of DeSantis “will be the end of her political career in that MAGA would never support her again.”
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Des Moines Register. She is also covering the 2024 presidential race for USA TODAY as a senior national campaign correspondent. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.
Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Kim Reynolds says she isn't interested in being US education secretary
