DES MOINES, Iowa — Scott Raecker didn’t boo, hiss or jeer Democrats when he was a Republican member of the Iowa House of Representatives from 1999-2012. And he doesn’t cheer fellow Republicans who did Tuesday night during the State of the Union Address, but he remains optimistic that civility can still lead the way in politics.

“Clearly what I witnessed last night is we can be better than this,” Raecker said between meetings at the Iowa Statehouse Wednesday afternoon. Raecker is the director of the Robert D. and Billie Ray Center at Drake University, the center modeled after Iowa’s former first couple’s commitment to civility in life.

“It’s easy to point fingers when we see other people doing things that we don’t think are appropriate,” Raecker said.

Outbursts by Republicans like U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene headlined numerous stories Wednesday about the speech, but Raecker believes that those actions are from just a few, and don’t represent the overall behavior of members of Congress. He also believes that citizens can lead the way by not just demanding civility, but living it through their daily actions.

“We really should be reflecting a little bit on ourselves as well,” Raecker said.