Ernst's re-election looms as she weighs Pete Hegseth's bid for defense secretary

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

55% : Musk, the world's richest man, spent more than a quarter-billion dollars on groups boosting Trump this year, according to recent campaign finance reports.
50% : But that was not enough to quiet some of the grassroots anxiety in a state Trump won by 13 points in November.
49% : She is the chair and founder of the new Senate DOGE Caucus, referring to the "Department of Government Efficiency," which Trump has named Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead.
48% : While it was not specifically aimed at Ernst, Musk's threat holds added weight given his wealth and proven big spending in support of Trump.
45% : Deace also suggested former acting U.S. Attorney General Matt Whitaker, whom Trump recently chose to be the U.S. ambassador to NATO, could be a strong challenger.
45% : Some critics pointed to Ernst's 2022 vote to approve the Respect for Marriage Act, which codified federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriages, leading several Iowa Republican county parties to censure or condemn her.
41% : The episode illustrates the pressures Republican members of Congress have faced throughout the Trump years -- pressures that are redoubling as Trump prepares to retake office with the GOP more firmly in his grasp than ever before.
22% : Ernst recently told NBC News that Trump has not threatened to support a primary challenge against her.
20% : "Trump has not suggested he would back a challenger to Ernst if she opposes his pick.

*Our bias meter rating uses data science including sentiment analysis, machine learning and our proprietary algorithm for determining biases in news articles. Bias scores are on a scale of -100% to 100% with higher negative scores being more liberal and higher positive scores being more conservative, and 0% being neutral. The rating is an independent analysis and is not affiliated nor sponsored by the news source or any other organization.