After nearly two weeks of protests, cry-ins, and canceled classes, one Iowa legislator has finally had enough. Rep. Bobby Kaufmann (R) has introduced his “Suck it up, Buttercup” bill. Kaufmann wanted to make it clear that he does not intend to infringe on anyone’s 1st amendment rights. In a news interview he said “You’ve got a right to be a brat, you’ve got a right to protest, that’s constitutionally protected. But you do not have a right to throw a temper tantrum on I-80 and put my constituents’ lives in danger.”
His new bill is intended to curb ‘frivolous’ spending of state taxes on comfort zones. “Using our tax dollars when tuition rates are skyrocketing is absolutely unacceptable to me,” Kaufmann commented about one public university’s creation of “cry rooms” after the recent election.
Kaufmann has received criticism from his opponents who feel he should be helping the protesters instead of punishing them. He responded simply, “People say, ‘Suck it up, Buttercup, that’s kind of over the top,’ but so are the protests that are happening.”