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Iowans like Chuck Grassley. The longtime Republican senator gets an approval rating of 71 percent from the state’s residents, including 66 percent from Democrats.

He stands up for the little guy, he stays in touch by regularly traveling around the state, he doesn’t put on airs and he says what he thinks.

Sometimes, though, he takes plain-spokenness too far. Grassley’s comment last week suggesting that suicide would be an acceptable option for American International Group Inc. officials was an embarrassment.

By itself, it could be brushed aside as an intemperate remark, not a serious one. Consider other Grassley comments, though, and you might wonder about the image of Iowa he’s projecting.

Speaking about the 2010 budget last week, he said: “We’re not talking about the high-paid, high-corporate-jet-flying, well-paid hedge fund managers in New York, Chicago, San Francisco or other high-income liberal meccas.” Nobody likes financial wizards right now, but “liberal meccas”?

Yes, they’re heavily Democratic, but a U.S. senator probably should refrain from labeling entire cities with a single mindset.

Also last week, speaking at a hearing on tax issues related to Ponzi schemes, Grassley said: “Some of the charities that invested with Bernie Madoff, including universities and those funded by Hollywood big shots …”

“Hollywood big shots” rolls easily off many Iowa tongues, but it makes the speaker sound small and resentful.

Other examples of Grassley’s “us vs. them” approach are out there. YouTube’s Grassley collection includes a televised comment from last fall, when he said, “The trouble is, we’ve got a press that doesn’t love America.” Now that hurts.

To be fair, we could select almost any politician and find examples of him or her playing to the audience this way. But that just means the high ground is wide open. It would be wonderful to see Iowa’s leaders capture it.