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| Articles about Iowa |
| Iowa sweeps doubleheader againt Albuquerque | | 2008-06-28 06:58:00 | |
The Iowa Cubs swept the doubleheader against the Albuquerque Isotopes Friday night at Principal Park, 8-6 and 7-0.
In his first start of the season, Hector Carrasco shutout the Isotopes, striking out 10 batters in six innings of work. The Cubs backed up Carrasco with stellar offense. Casey McGehee and Micah Hoffpauir each homered in the [...] | | By: The Cub Reporter | | |
| | Barack Obama Visits Flood Ravaged Iowa, Downs Gloves, Digs In (repaired) | | 2008-06-15 10:00:00 | | WHY THE GLOVES?While others are disparately shoveling dirt into sandbags to stave off the ravaging flood waters that are turning Iowa into another of the Great Lakes, Barack Obama made a visit. He downed some work gloves and started shoveling dirt into sand-bags, yet another photo-op. Notice the people in front of him - no gloves. Yes, it is petty and tacky, but what the heck. Seriously, why isn't the flooding in Iowa getting much coverage? It is one of the most catastrophic floods in American History, but you don't see any news anchors going around crying, ... | | By: The Pink Flamingo | | |
| | Iowa floods interrupts Shawn Johnson’s Olympic training | | 2008-06-14 00:05:50 | | The floods in Iowa have damaged the gym where Olympic hopeful Shawn Johnson was training. The gym was evacuated and equipment moved to higher ground, but the training floor was badly damaged and will likely need to be replaced.
The Olympic trials will start next week on June 19th in Philadelphia. Shawn Johnson and [...] | | By: Beijing Olympics 2008 | | |
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| Iowa Food Stamp Program | | 2008-06-13 00:13:00 | | The Food Stamp program is intended to promote the general welfare of low income families by raising their levels of nutrition to avoid hunger and malnutrition. In order to qualify for this benefit program, you must be a resident of the State of Iowa and fall into one of two groups: (1) those with a current bank balance (savings and checking combined) under $2,001, or (2) those with a current bank balance (savings and checking combined) under $3,001 who share their household with a person or pers | | By: us food stamps | | |
| | Statue of liberty in Iowa | | 2008-06-08 11:55:00 | | The picture was taken in 1918.It is 18,000 men preparing for war in a training camp at Camp Dodge in Iowa.Click on the image to enlarge itImagine how long these men had to stand in that one spot to set it up correctly. | | By: Jokes and Forwards | | |
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| Kevin Hart re-called from Iowa | | 2008-06-04 00:16:00 | | 13 pitchers it is. Not sure who has been optioned to Iowa, but I’d guess it’s Micah Hoffpauir unless the Cubs are sticking with 12 pitchers in which case Wuertz may have an option remaining though I’m unsure about that. Mike Fontenot would have to be placed on waivers in order to be optioned and it’s unlikely a left-handed hitting 2B with decent on-base skills would go unclaimed.
| | By: Another Cubs Blog | | |
| | | | Rich Hill Optioned to Iowa | | 2008-05-03 13:22:14 | |
ST. LOUIS – The Chicago Cubs today recalled right-handed pitcher Sean Gallagher from Triple-A Iowa and optioned left-handed pitcher Rich Hill to Triple-A.
Gallagher will wear uniform No. 36 and be available for this afternoon’s game in St. Louis.
The 22-year-old Gallagher is 2-2 with a 3.10 ERA (10 ER/29.0 IP) in five starts with Iowa this [...] | | By: The Cub Reporter | | |
| | | Cotts optioned to Iowa | | 2008-03-21 20:49:00 | | Neal Cotts was optioned to AAA and Koyie Hill was reassigned to minor league camp. The roster now stands at 36.
The Cubs are on ESPN2 today in about 10 minutes. | | By: Another Cubs Blog | | |
| | Cat Killing Town of Randolph, Iowa | | 2008-03-12 19:06:32 | | HOW TO MURDER A PETFrom ML of the Catblogsphere comes a horrible story that makes one think of China and the great Olympic cat round-up for killing in the death camps. (Miss Blue Eyes) Evidently the "good" people of Randolph, Iowa don't know much about cats. Currently, of the 5 cats who allow me to reside with them, only on is wearing a collar. She is the first cat I've ever had who wears a collar. I know how hard so many of us work to take care of "our" feral cats. You've probably read about the ... | | By: The Pink Flamingo | | |
| | More "Political Islam": Iowa Wasn't The Only One | | 2008-02-04 17:34:00 | | Back on Jan. 25th, American Congress for Truth sent out a disturbing e-letter about the "Cultural Jihad" that's running rampant and unchecked here in America. The e-letter was regarding the Iowa state legislature's opening prayer by imam Mohammed Khan, and his four minute prayer.Janet Levy in the FrontPage Magazine site on Feb. 1, had quite a bit to say about this, as she provided considerable details about the incident, as well as similar incidents around the country. You can see her article HERE, and some of the remarks in this post.Levy spoke of Khan's prayer, mentioning it included such phrases as pleas for “victory over those who disbelieve” and “protection from the Great Satan.” WAIT A MINUTE! WE, are supposed to be the great satan, aren't we? And this is what the Iowa legislature finds appealing enough to allow? Apparently not, as the comments did tend to twist a few peoples britches. Pastor Steve Smith of the Evangelical Free Church in Albert City, and Iowa State Repres | | By: Hoopy Frood Dude | | |
| | Barack Obama's brilliant Iowa victory speech | | 2008-01-07 10:23:00 | |
politics/american
Barack Obama's brilliant Iowa victory speech
(January 7th, 2008 - 8:23AM)
After Barack Obama's decisive victory at the Iowa caucus, he delivered this brilliant speech.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqoFwZUp5vc
Let's hope Barack gets elected. That might be the only thing that can dig the US out of her current hole.
By contrast, here's a recent ad that Rudy Giuliani aired.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2iFhGtKO-Q
permanent link - digg this post - 0 comments
| | By: Steve Kwan, Software Engineer | | |
| | Analysis: Iowa voters want unity | | 2008-01-06 18:55:45 | | If you want to understand what happened to Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama in Iowa, recall who stood by them on their respective stages Thursday night. For the Republican presidential candidates, the lesson was less obvious, even though former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee slammed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with a Chuck Norris-like punch. Iowans offered a roadmap for the nomination and general election fights. This election is about change but not just for change's sake, and Iowans seemed primarily interested in authenticity. They courted but ultimately rejected Romney, a relative latecomer to conservative social positions. They took a serious look at Clinton, the senator from New York but put her claims of 35 years as an agent for change behind the fresh hopefulness of Obama, the senator from Illinois, and the anger of former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina. Thursday was a very bad day for one-time front-runners like Clinton and Republican Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor who finished behind libertarian Ron Paul. That may be he biggest lesson of all. In Iowa, Obama became the most authentic voice for Democrats unhappy with the country's direction and determined to change it. Obama's call to a common yearning trumped the 2008 models of partisan fighters that Clinton and Edwards had come to represent. "We are choosing unity over division and sending a powerful message that change is coming to America," Obama told cheering supporters in Des Moines. The way he took Iowa — winning among independents and women, according to exit polls — predicts strong showings in the next big tests, starting in New Hampshire on Tuesday. There, his appeal to independents could significantly help him in a race where independents make up four of 10 voters. "We had a message from the start that resonated with independents," Obama's Iowa field strategist Steve Hildebrand told me. | | By: PhreQuency Ent. | | |
| | | Last Iowa Ruminations | | 2008-01-05 04:03:42 | | The more I think about it the more heartened I am by Ron Paul's 10% in the land of corn and mammoth super churches. Iowans tend to care most about two things: religiosity and handshaking. The candidates that fare best in Iowa are those who publicly converse with God and exercise "retail politics". Ron Paul had the fewest visits to Iowa (27) of any candidate except Duncan Hunter (data here). I wish it weren't the case, as more palm pressing might have yielded better caucus results, but then again, maybe not. I trust the campaign knows where his scarce time is best allocated. Perhaps they sensed diminishing returns in the breadbasket. New Hampshire, on the other hand, is a no-brainer. A straight primary vote in a state with a penchant for liberty and contrarians.If this is indeed a change election, as the pundits keep crowing, those looking for real change have a giant clue staring them in the face. There is only one candidate the establishment fears. If Fox News is deliberately trying to derail him, you know he is truly different. | | By: Republican Renaissance | | |
| | Barack Obama Iowa Victory Speech: "Our Time for Change Has Come" | | 2008-01-04 22:08:20 | | After winning the Iowa caucus last night Obama capped off the evening with one of his best speeches ever. The TV political “gurus” even compared this speech to his address at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. Barack Obama’s crowd of supporters roared with excitement during the speech, chanting “Obama” over and over. The crowd was so excited they even started chanting “USA!”. Obama supporters certainly had something to cheer about on Thursday night. Their candidate handed the former “front runner”, Hillary Clinton, a 9 point thumping in the opening presidential contest. Obama’s speech told of how the campaign of change overcame great odds and that the message of hope is stronger than ever because of Iowa. Hope, unity, and change were the themes of his victory message and it was all met with loud praise from the crowd. Obama used the word hope 11 times through out his 14 minute speech. “You know, they said this day would never come. They said our sights were set too high. They said this country was too divided; too disillusioned to ever come together around a common purpose,” Obama said about the win in Iowa. Obama went on to say, “In lines that stretched around schools and churches; in small towns and big cities; you came together as Democrats, Republicans and Independents to stand up and say that we are one nation; we are one people; and our time for change has come.” Obama did very well among Independent voters in Iowa and was able to get them out and caucus on Thursday night. Obama also does well among Republicans who are not satisfied with the candidates in their field and like what he has to say. Many people find his message of hope and his new kind of politics very refreshing which is how he is able to bring different kinds of voters together. “I'll be a President who ends this war in Iraq and finally brings our troops home; who restores our moral standing; who un | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Digesting Iowa (D) | | 2008-01-04 20:07:00 | | This is my assessment of the Iowa Democratic caucuses from last night. For my take on the Republican caucuses, click here.In a word, the Democratic results are earth shattering. Not only did Barack Obama win the caucuses, his strongest rival finished third. Obama will enter New Hampshire with tremendous momentum and the independent voters there will be less likely to defect to McCain because Obama is more energizing and has proven his viability. Doubts about his viability are probably the main reason why people have been reluctant to support Obama even if they do like him and his ideas. More on Obama later.For Hillary Clinton, this was the worst possible outcome. Even second place would not have been so bad for her, but if she was going to lose, she clearly would have preferred to lose to Edwards because he has less money, weaker polling, and a smaller base. Instead, she finished a distant third to the one candidate who has the money and the supporters necessary to go the distance with her. Worse yet, a lot of voters who had reservations about Obama because they weren't sure if he could win have now had his electability confirmed. Some of these voters are reluctant Clinton supporters. Given the strength of Obama's performance, these voters may defect from Clinton in droves.And it gets worse. Black voters sitting on the fence in South Carolina were waiting for a sign that Obama could win. Winning convincingly in an overwhelmingly White state over two well-regarded, high profile White candidates who have been on the national scene longer than him is huge. How can Clinton go before Black audiences now and claim she is the most electable candidate who best represents their interests? The answer is simple. She can't.Perhaps the biggest way Obama's victory has affected the race is that Clinton no longer controls her own destiny. She has ceded this luxury to Obama. For Clinton to win now, she'll need Obama to stumble somehow, be it at a debate or on | | By: The 7-10 | | |
| | Ad Wars: Goodbye, Iowa. Hello, New Hampshire! | | 2008-01-04 17:53:32 | | John EdwardsThe Edwards campaign has another new ad airing in New Hampshire, "Your Time Is Now." In the ad, Edwards calls on New Hampshire voters (including an appeal to independents and Republicans) to help him fight corporate greed.Mike HuckabeeHere's Huckabee's victory speech in Iowa last night. Huckabee notes that "people are more important than the purse," referencing the spending disparity between his campaign and that of Mitt Romney. Huckabee also emphasizes change throughout his speech, perhaps looking to broaden his appeal for the general election.John McCainMcCain continues to hit Romney online. His latest web ad accuses Romney of failing to lead on the important issues.Barack ObamaHere's Obama's victory speech from Iowa last night. Obama emphasizes his broader themes of hope, unity, and electability in one a speech that reminds me of his 2004 convention address. This speech is clearly setting the stage for his appeal to all voters in the general election and I foun | | By: Political Realm | | |
| | Glenn Beck Does Iowa | | 2008-01-04 15:30:00 | | Glenn is hopped on pain medication and gives us his thoughts on the Iowa Caucus and Mike Huckabee. I happen to agree with a lot of what he is saying and it merely helps further bolster my argument that Huckabee is not a true Conservative. | | By: The Dissident Awakens | | |
| | Digesting Iowa (R) | | 2008-01-04 14:40:00 | | By now most of you probably know that Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama won the Iowa caucses last night. For the sake of readability, I will address only the Republican results in this post. (Click here for my assessment of the Democratic caucuses.)Now, before I go any further, I must eat some crow. Here is a humorous quip by Dan Conley of Political Insider about the perils of punditry that sums up how I feel quite nicely. While my Democratic predictions were generally okay (though I thought the second tier candidates underperformed when it came to second choice preferences), my Republican predictions were slightly off, to put it gently. I may be a politico, but my punditry skills need a bit more work. I got it wrong this time. Oh well. But I'll be back!Having said that, Mike Huckabee beat most pundits' expectations and performed better than the closing tracking polls suggested. Huckabee is a talented candidate, but I believe a large part of his strength is actually a function of how weak the rest of the field was.Dan Schnur penned an excellent column in the Los Angeles Times a few days ago that talked about how former Virginia Senator George Allen has haunted the GOP field. Schnur alludes to something I call an "authenticity gap" that explains so much of what has happened in the Republican field.Schnur correctly argued that Allen was the candidate of social conservatives, economic conservatives, and defense hawks. He was the experienced candidate around whom Republicans everywhere would coalesce with minimal division. However, "macaca" doomed his candidacy and left a tremendous void in the field that no candidate has been able to fill ever since.This problem created another problem: The other Republican candidates tried too hard to portray themselves as something they obviously weren't and aren't. In 2000, John McCain was the maverick who wasn't afraid to take potshots at his own party. However, in 2007 McCain was cozying up to Jerry Falwell and em | | By: The 7-10 | | |
| | Thoughts on Iowa | | 2008-01-04 14:04:03 | | My prediction that Ron Paul would come in third was not born out, but he didn't miss by much. He garnered a respectable 10%, which, for that kind of candidate to accomplish in a state like Iowa isn't bad and is a good deal better than the mainstream media have ever given him credit for. It was a strong finish within an unfavorable framework and I have to believe that he will break upward by a substantial margin in New Hampshire.And of course, beating Giuliani so soundly does make one smile.Thompson and McCain supporters surprised me tonight, I'll admit it. I do not, however, believe for a moment that Fred can go the distance. For one thing, he's out of money and not likely to get much more. Whether he hangs on by his fingernails or throws in the towel tomorrow is of no real import. McCain, also broke, will have his ability to go on determined soon in New Hampshire.All in all, the Iowa caucus doesn't seem particularly meaningful. The Hucka-Romney duo strikes me as just so much Robertson and Dole.It's also clear (fourth table) that Iowa GOPers overwhelmingly still bounce to the beat of the Bush drum.New Hampshire is the real test. | | By: Republican Renaissance | | |
| | Les primaires étasuniennes: Iowa | | 2008-01-04 13:19:46 | | Huckabee, le pasteur baptiste financé à 40% par les banques, remporta les primaires républicaines étasuniennes de l’Iowa hier avec 34% du vote. Romney arrive deuxième avec 25% du vote. Fait intéressant, Ron Paul a récolté plus de trois fois plus de voix que Giuliani. Plus précisément, les résultats pour les républicains sont: Huckabee 34%, Romney [...] | | By: Matchafa: pour comprendre le monde | | |
| | The Iowa Meltdown | | 2008-01-04 00:06:00 | | I have to say that Iowa's turnout completely floored me. I honestly never expected the GOP base to lean towards Huckabee in such a dramatic fashion (More on this topic later as well). I suppose the real question all along should have been can he win outside of his evangelical base?As Mitt Romney stated though, this is the first of 49 other states and the only thing this really confirms in my eyes is that this could be a very interesting Primary season.Iowa was also the night that saw Biden and Dodd fold their tents for good. This comes as very little surprise to anyone as they never mustered much momentum throughout the year long campaign process.So now we turn our focus towards New Hampshire. If anything at this point I believe that our picture on the GOP side is as blurry as ever. I don't think we'll have any true idea of who the nomination will go to until after Super Tuesday at the earliest. | | By: The Dissident Awakens | | |
| | Obama and Huckabee Win in Iowa | | 2008-01-03 23:41:33 | | Definitely an upset for the predicted winners Clinton and Romney.From Reuters:Obama and Huckabee win first 2008 voteDES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - Barack Obama took a big step on Thursday toward becoming the first black U.S. president when his campaign for change caught fire in Iowa and swept him past Hillary Clinton in the opening Democratic nominating contest. Republican underdog Mike Huckabee capped a stunning political rise to beat rival Mitt Romney in Iowa, despite being dramatically outspent by the wealthy former Massachusetts governor and venture capitalist. Obama, an Illinois senator, captured the first Democratic prize on the road to the White House with a comeback triumph over New York Sen. Clinton and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, who were in a tight battle for second....Turnout among Democrats topped 220,000, smashing the previous record of 124,000 in 2004 -- testament to the high enthusiasm among Democrats heading into November's election.Conversely only 90,00 Republicans turned out for the promaries. Is this a harbinger of GOP turnout in other primaries? I seriously doubt that Huckabee can get enough momentum out of this to win NH however the post Iowa primary bump may position him to win in South Carolina. Obama on the other hand has to face Clinton's well oiled and funded NH machine as Clinton is seriously hedging her betby concentrating her resources on NH. I strongly believe that Obama has to win NH in order to guarantee a win in SC. If Clinton and Obama go into SC with only one win apiece Edwards home field advantage could snag him a win there effectively leaving the field wide open.Whats surprising is that Clinton placed third. I guess there ain't no such thing as inevitable in Iowa.
| | By: Dyre Portents | | |
| | Obama Wins Iowa & the Speech That Started It All | | 2008-01-03 23:24:54 | | HuffPost: “Democratic presidential hopeful, Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., and his wife Michelle and daughter Malia, left, celebrate with his supporters after his victory in the Iowa caucus Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)”
The speech that started a movement
Watching the presidential candidate speeches to their supporters after [...] | | By: Garling Gauge | | |
| | my thoughts on the iowa caucuses. | | 2008-01-03 23:01:10 | | at this very moment, I am listening to the victory speeches of obama and huckabee. it truly amazes me to see how far a person can reach in a lifetime. listening to these 2 gives me hope that america will do well in the future. although my personal vote will go to ron paul, I think that whomever get elected, america will be ok.back at the ranch..it was another night in the lobby. I met 3 new people last night. let us all welcome - doctor john, nickolas cage, and mercury man.it was pretty much a mellow night. no feverish debates. some of the lounge lizards are talking about their upcoming trip to china. others could be found discussing plans to go to the philippines.roll call - timberwolf, the barber, the analog man, long time jessie, howling howie, the sarge, mike jagger, the watcher, craig constantine, captain kirk, the guru, the teaser, the stunner, sweetheart, the tattoo man, honda, toyota, hawaiian bill, kilroy the stud, clint eastwood, jacques cousteau.on the agenda today.. mike jagger and I may meet up for an early dinner at the sizzler. haven't done that in a while.started work on a new wordpress blog. after working on 3 blogs on blogger, I decided to try out another blog outfit. the wordpress guys have some interesting setup features. the new blog will be named "the adventures of a-bike annie, and bangkokbuddy." stay tuned for the latest. | | By: Life of a Lounge Lizard | | |
| | Liveblogging Iowa Caucuses | | 2008-01-03 22:00:06 | | 10:55 AP: Chris Dodd drops outI think it's pretty much fair to say Obama and Huckabee have won.9:51 Obama up 7%; 1611 of 1781 precincts in9:33 Obama up 6%9:27 CBSNews projecting Obama as winner.9:24 And it's Huckabee in Iowa people, by what looks like a 5%-8% margin in front of Mitt Romney. That wasn't my prediction, but I guess Iowa must have more religious lunatics than I thought.9:10 CBS News forecasts Huckabee winning Republican caucuses.8:55 Obama passes Edwards, takes 1st; 630 of 1781 precincts reporing8:51 Obama passes Hillary to take 2nd so far; 554 of 1781 precincts reporting8:45 From http://www.iowacaucusresults.com/, the Iowa Democrat's Caucus website (I added the time signature):Kinda surprising.I'll be liveblogging by the way, for the next hour or so at least.
| | By: Thoughts on the World | | |
| | Obama and Huckabee Win Iowa, Chris Dodd Drops Out | | 2008-01-03 21:51:21 | | With 96 percent of the precincts reporting, Barack Obama has sealed a victory in Iowa with 38 percent of the vote. Edwards and Clinton are in a tight race for second place. Edwards currently has 30 percent of the votes and Clinton is close behind with 29 percent. The two are separated by only 11 delegate votes. Mike Huckabee received 34 percent and Mitt Romney came in second with 25 percent. CNN announced tonight that Chris Dodd would be dropping out of the race after a poor showing in Iowa. Dodd had moved his family to Iowa so that he could spend as much time campaigning there as possible. Clinton also had a bad night. Clinton might end up finishing third in Iowa which is a devastating blow to her campaign. Hillary currently leads in New Hampshire but after this showing could take a hit there in the polls. Here are the Democratic results as of 10:25 PM Barack Obama (898) 38% John Edwards (716) 30% Hillary Clinton (704) 29% Bill Richardson (50) 2% Joe Biden (22) 1% Uncommitted (3) 0% Chris Dodd (1) 0% Mike Gravel (0) 0% Dennis Kucinich (0) 0% Other (0) 0% Republican Results as of 10:35 PM Mike Huckabee (31,508) 34% Mitt Romney (23,682) 25% John McCain (12,520) 13% Fred Thompson (12,484) 13% Ron Paul (9,132) 10% Rudy Giuliani (3,321) 4% Duncan Hunter (395) 0% Tom Tancredo (3) 0% | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Iowa fun, and some comments | | 2008-01-03 21:22:05 | | So a few thoughts on Iowa, some big, some little. All right, they're my thoughts, so I guess they are all little, but when thoughts are that small, they need a lot of love.I stand by McCain as the Republican nominee. Huckabee brutalized Romney, and McCain will brutalize Romney in New Hampshire.Here's the question on the Republican side: Will we finally see the Holy Grail of political reporters, a brokered convention? Not once in my lifetime has either of the parties gone to the convention with a nomination undecided. If Huckabee, McCain, Romney and Giuliani all stayed in all the way through, no one would get a majority. It is a fascinating, unlikely possibility that Super Tuesday will probably put an end to.On the Democrat's side, you have to wonder if Obama can beat Clinton. There is a sense that America is exhausted with the whole Bush/Clinton thing, that as bad as the national mood is now, we remember it kind of sucked for much of 1992-2000 also. Obama has the Kennedy thing goin | | By: Ask Mr. Smartypants | | |
| | | Aside From Iowa Caucus Fiasco, The Politics of Energy and Food | | 2008-01-03 19:30:17 | | While this fiasco election, called Iowa State Caucus, is unfolding, this date I will write about a few other things.
The Democratic Congress is starting off the new year in their usual way - no legislation, but lots of investigations. They did this all through 2007 and now are continuing into 2008. They are [...] | | By: Forgot To Ask | | |
| | Iowa Caucus Live Chat | | 2008-01-03 17:54:00 | | The good folks over at The Palmetto Scoop have informed me about a live chat taking place as the caucus results come in at 8:00 tonight. Anyone who is interested in participating in this live chat should click on the link below.This chat is open to everyone and is live right now. Participants include political bloggers and political junkies all over America. I plan on joining the chat later tonight, so I encourage anyone interested to try it out.Click here for live chatCopyright 2007-2008 by Anthony Palmer. All rights reserved.
| | By: The 7-10 | | |
| | Obligatory Iowa Caucus Themed Post -OR- Excuse Me While I Rant A While | | 2008-01-03 14:28:00 | | I live in Florida and therefore I am not allowed to express my opinion on the subject of the nomination for President of the United States. Most of the states are allowed to express their opinions, but Florida and Michigan have been outcast from the DNC for daring to challenge Iowa’s standing as the first caucus in the country. It seems stupid to me personally for a party that is trying to gain power to disenfranchise an entire battleground state by ignoring their desires, but so be it. We all knew the DNC had no real want to make things better when they nominated Kerry back in 2004, but still we hoped. In 2006 we gave them the Congress. I say “gave” because they did nothing to earn it aside from remaining quiet and letting the RNC garner most of the nation’s ill will. We gave it to them hoping that they would gain a backbone and stand up for what we, as a nation demanded, but the war continues and the funding for it keeps growing and pet projects keep getting funded and the economy keeps sinking right along with the hopes and dreams of tomorrow. I pass five houses for sale on my way to work and it only takes me six minutes to get from home to here. So, who are the leaders right now? Obama? Edwards? Clinton? McCain? Romney? Huckabee? G-d help us if we must choose between Obama and Huckabee for the Presidency; it will be the battle of the stupid names. Honestly, does President Obama sound any less like a SNL skit character’s name than President Huckabee? At least Clinton, Edwards, and McCain have Presidential sounding names.Now let’s look at the central themes to their campaigns and see what they are really saying:Edwards- I am giving you a second chance to make up for 2004, but I am not offering anything that you did not already reject.Clinton- I screwed a president and got elected to the Senate because of my last name. Oh, and I am a woman.Obama- I have no real experience, but I am black. Not supporting me means you are a racist.Ro | | By: The Kanrei Home for Wayward Lemmings | | |
| | Iowa Caucuses Tonight Important for Candidates on Both Sides | | 2008-01-03 12:27:09 | | After months of campaigning and $40 million of dollars of spending (figure based on Iowa ads alone), a major first step in the nomination process will take place tonight in Iowa.Iowa is especially critical for the Democratic nominee where a majority of candidates who have won their have gone on to win the nomination of the party. Edwards would have a significant struggle ahead if he were to loose in Iowa.Edwards is polling in a rather distant third in New Hampshire and a loss in Iowa would make it much more difficult for him to rebound there.According to a Real Clear Politics poll, Clinton currently leads in New Hampshire with 33.5 percent of likely voters, Obama has 26.3 percent, and Edwards 18.3 percent.The New Hampshire primary is only 5 days after the Iowa caucuses and the winner in Iowa will certainly get a bump in New Hampshire as well as nationally. After Kerry’s come from behind win in 2004 he got a 20 point bump in national polls after winning the Iowa caucus.While this year’s winner may not get as large a bump as Kerry did with this Democratic race being the close three way race that it is, any bump in the polls after winning Iowa could be significant to any candidate.A Clinton win in Iowa would make New Hampshire much harder for Obama and Edwards to win 5 days after loosing in Iowa. Obama has closed the gap between him and Clinton to only 7 points but it would be much more challenging to come back if Clinton won in Iowa.With the race being as tight as it is, it is entirely possible for Clinton to finish in third place as well.This would certainly have an impact on the New Hampshire primary. Edwards and Obama finishing first or second could shuffle the polls in New Hampshire and create a whole new race thereafter.Iowa has historically not been this close going into caucus night. Anything can happen on the Democratic side especially because caucus goers can try to get other voters to vote for their candidate and they are allowed to vote for their s | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | | Iowa Predictions | | 2008-01-02 18:59:29 | | Democrats:1.Hillary Clinton2.Barack Obama3.John Edwards4. Joe BidenClinton, Obama, and Edwards will have nearly the same number of votes, but I predict it will be in that order. Biden will come out as a surprise and do better than expected.Republicans1. Mitt Romney2. Mike Huckabee3. Fred Thompson/John McCain4. John McCain/Fred ThompsonRomney and Huckabee is a toss up, but I'm betting Romney will come out on top. After that, McCain could pull a strong showing, but so could Thompson.
| | By: Thoughts on the World | | |
| | Iowa Predictions (D) | | 2008-01-02 14:07:00 | | I handicapped the Republicans in my last post. Now I will address the Democratic caucuses and offer my predictions (again, against my better judgment).The Democratic race is particularly difficult to predict because the three leading candidates can easily place first or third. In addition to that, because of the uniqueness of the Democratic caucus rules, second choice preferences can further throw pundits' projections out of whack. Knowing this, there are three main questions:1. Who will win?This is the easy part. By most pundits' predictions, the winner of the caucuses will be Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, or John Edwards. If it's Clinton, the race for the Democratic nomination is likely over unless Obama places a very close second. If it's Edwards, that's great news for Clinton bad news for Obama and the so-called "second tier" candidates because that would prolong the notion that this is really only a race between the same three candidates. If it's Obama, while that would be terrible news for Clinton, that would be absolutely fatal for Edwards and good news for one of the "second tier" candidates who will fill the void left by Edwards, who must win the caucuses to remain viable.Clinton has the best name recognition and is seen as the "experienced" candidate. As an added bonus, Democrats generally like Bill Clinton and long for the peace and prosperity of the 1990s, even if they grew weary of the scandals. Voters who like Richardson, Dodd, and Biden because of their experience, but fear they are not viable, will probably come back to Clinton. There are also a lot of female voters who are excited about the prospect of a woman president, so they may turn out in droves to "help make history." Obama and Edwards supporters may also grudgingly support Clinton because of fears those candidates are not quite ready for prime time against a Republican opponent in the general election.Obama has been the media darling for months and has tapped into somethin | | By: The 7-10 | | |
| | Iowa Predictions (R) | | 2008-01-02 12:26:00 | | Against my better judgment, I will attempt to handicap the Iowa caucuses tomorrow and offer my predictions. (Why not have a little bit of fun, right?) In this post I will address the Republican race. (I addressed the Democratic contest here.)The Republican contest consists of two smaller contests: the battle for first and the battle for third. The battle for first is between Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney. Huckabee came out of nowhere and surged to the top of the polls in recent weeks, much to the chagrin of Mitt Romney, who has invested millions from his personal fortune in the state. However, it is possible that Huckabee peaked too soon, as crises abroad reminded voters of the importance of electing a president with foreign policy chops. Huckabee fumbled the issue by tying the assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto with Pakistani illegal immigrants. This fumble likely benefited John McCain in his quest for third more than it benefited Romney in his quest for first simply because Romney's foreign policy credentials are also suspect.Romney seems to be more of an establishment Republican who adequately represents the evangelical and business wings of the party. Huckabee is more of the insurgent or outsider candidate who wants to take the party in a whole new direction. However, Christian conservatives who like Huckabee (because he has the Christianity without the Mormonism and the anti-abortion rhetoric without the anti-anti-abortion past) probably have reservations about his policy depth in other areas. Romney has also attacked Huckabee hard over the past few weeks on his record on illegal immigration, taxes, and crime. Evangelical Christians will have to be honest with themselves about their personal biases, as Romney seems to be a more complete candidate than Huckabee. Huckabee seems to be the candidate of these voters' hearts while Romney is the candidate of these voters' heads.The battle for third is between John McCain, | | By: The 7-10 | | |
| | Romney and Edwards Lead Again in Iowa | | 2007-12-30 18:31:28 | | Romney and Edwards Lead Again in IowaA New McClatchy-MSNBC poll of Iowa shows that Mike Huckabee is no longer invincible in Iowa. Huckabee had surged ahead in Iowa just weeks ago overtaking Romney and stole all of the momentum for the time being.Now Romney has crawled back to the top taking away the momentum from Huckabee and even taking some of his support from the evangelical voters. Huckabee has lost support in Iowa, including those in the evangelical community. Romney now leads with 27 percent of potential caucus goers supporting him, Huckabee has 23 percent, Fred Thompson 14 percent, John McCain 13 percent, and Rudy Giuliani and Ron Paul both have 5 percent. John Edwards is leading in a tight three way race among the Democratic candidates. The new poll shows Edwards gained a few percentage points, getting 24 percent of potential caucus goers, Hillary Clinton had 23 percent, Barack Obama 22 percent, and Bill Richardson with 13 percent. “On the Democratic side, the race is about as close as it can get, but keep an eye on Edwards,” said Brad Coker of Mason-Dixon Polling & Research. “Romney has rebounded and the Huckabee bubble may have burst. Last time, Huckabee was getting all the good press and nobody had put him under any scrutiny. ... Now he’s under the spotlight, and he’s started to wilt a little,” Coker said. One difficulty in trying to predict the outcome is the high percentage of caucus goers who say that they are still not sure about their pick for president. One in five Democrats say that they could still change their minds before the caucus begins this Thursday.One in three Republican caucus goers say that they could still end up changing their mind before Thursday as well. Republicans are having a difficult time selecting a candidate among the lackluster crowd of candidates. Democrats seem to have the opposite problem with too many good candidates to choose from. Whether it is the potential first woman president, first Afric | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | | Iowa Democratic Race: Too Close to Call | | 2007-12-29 00:18:39 | | After months of polling potential January 3rd caucus goers, we are no where closer to knowing which Democrat will win in Iowa.The latest Research 2000 poll shows John Edwards and Barack Obama are tied at 29 percent and Hillary Clinton is just behind with 28 percent of potential voters. Three candidates and only 1 percent separates the lead between them.Real Clear Politics took an average of the polls for Iowa and found that Hillary Clinton leads John Edwards by only 2 percentage points. Barack Obama was in third place just .3 percent behind Edwards. One thing is consistent and clear in Iowa, no one knows who will win. The experts don’t know, the political scientists have no idea, and the media doesn’t have a clue. 2004 Howard Dean was supposed to win it all. The media and all the experts picked him to come out on top in Iowa. Dean finished third. Iowa voters usually wait until the last minute to decide who to vote for and turnout is lackluster. Iowa is also a state known for strong participation in politics yet only 6 to 7 percent of the people actually show up to vote, according to TIME Magazine. Iowa Democrats are also hard to predict because of the fact that the candidates who fail to get 15 percent of the vote are said to be “nonviable”. The caucus goers who selected that candidate can try to get more people in their group or they can break off and join another candidate. After each candidate has at least 15 percent of the votes they use a formula based on their percentage to determine how many delegates they get from that precinct. On the Republican side in Iowa things are a little more predictable. Mike Huckabee currently leads Mitt Romney by 7 points in the Research 2000 poll and by 5.7 points in the Real Clear Politics average. The Republicans in Iowa have a much simpler way of voting compared to Democrats. The candidate that gets the majority of the vote in the precinct gets all of the votes for that precinct. The Republican race | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Candidates Leave Iowa for Christmas... All but Dodd | | 2007-12-25 00:59:57 | | The presidential candidates that have been camped in Iowa the past few weeks have left to be with their families for Christmas. The candidates are actually taking a day off from the campaign trail. All but Senator Chris Dodd (D-Connecticut) left the first caucus state. According to NPR, Dodd moved his family to Iowa for the caucuses. Dodd has been polling in the low single digits. According to TIME Magazine Dodd has had to campaign by making appearances where the crowds already are. Dodd appears anywhere where he can find an audience including bars and baseball games. | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Des Moines Register Democratic Debate from Iowa (YouTube Videos) December 13, 2007 | | 2007-12-21 04:11:25 | | December 13, 2007 the Des Moines Register and Iowa Public Television hosted the second day of presidential primary debates in Iowa. This time the Democrats faced off for Carolyn Washburn who moderated the debate. The debate was shown on the Fox News channel. The best part of this series of debates was that Fox News put the live dial group’s opinions to what the candidates were saying in the upper right hand corner. Being able to see how the dial group was reacting to what the candidates were saying was very interesting. Mike Gravel again was not present but the newest candidate to be excluded was Dennis Kucinich. The reason Dennis was excluded was not because of his low poll numbers but because his Iowa field director works from his home and did not meet the requirements of a full-time paid staff in Iowa. With the Iowa caucuses just 3 weeks away the candidates had one last chance to debate the issues before the people of Iowa went to vote. The candidates dec | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Third Place in Iowa | | 2007-12-19 17:54:31 | | It's been the Huckabee and Romney show in Iowa, but pay attention to the third place slot. Ron Paul, at 8%, is currently in a virtual 3-way tie for third with Giuliani (8%) and Thompson (9%) according to today's Washington Post-ABC News poll. A strong third place finish in Iowa would mean a lot for the campaign's momentum heading into the other early primaries. Bet you won't hear that from the dinosaur media.(Hat tip: Eric Garris) | | By: Republican Renaissance | | |
| | Latest Iowa Poll (12/18) Has John Edwards Leading | | 2007-12-18 21:03:39 | | The latest Iowa poll has John Edwards leading both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
In an InsiderAdvantage poll in Iowa, Edwards leads among (977) likely voters 30-26-24 over Clinton and Obama. Edwards is also the clear second choice winner, 42-29-28 over Clinton and Obama. This is the first poll to show Edwards solely in the lead [...] | | By: Wake Up America | | |
| | Iowa Newspapers Handout Endorsements | | 2007-12-15 23:05:55 | | The Des Moines Register, which is a statewide newspaper in Iowa, officially gave their endorsements to the two parties on Saturday night. The Register endorsed Senator John McCain on the Republican side and Senator Hillary Clinton on the Democratic side. The Register said that the two candidates were the most competent and ready to lead. Fortunately, these are just endorsements and the voters are the ones that actually get to decide. The editorial board also said, "With dissension at home and distrust abroad, as American troops continue to fight wars on two fronts, the times call for two essential qualities in the next American president. Those qualities became the paramount considerations in making endorsements for the Democratic and Republican nominees in the 2008 Iowa caucuses.” "The times call for competence. Americans want their government to work again. The times call for readiness to lead. Americans want their country to do great things again. They'll re | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Des Moines Register Republican Debate from Iowa (YouTube Videos) | | 2007-12-14 02:01:45 | | Wednesday, December 12, 2007 the Des Moines Register hosted the last Republican debate before the critical January 3rd Iowa caucus. Carolyn Washburn of the Register was the moderator. One of the main topics of the debate was the fair-tax. Huckabee has been gaining major popularity in Iowa recently and he is one candidate who is in favor of getting rid of the income tax. Huckabee has proposed a “fair-tax”, also known as a consumption tax, to replace the income tax. A consumption tax would be based on what people buy instead of their income. The more you buy, especially luxury items, you will be taxed more. Those that have less money to spend will be taxed very little. "That means the rich people aren't going to be made poor, but maybe the poor people will be made rich. That ought to be the goal of any tax system — not to punish somebody but to enable somebody, so they can have a part of the American dream," Huckabee said. Romney on the other hand is | | By: The Mersman Political Blog | | |
| | Iowa Republican Presidential Debate Live Blog | | 2007-12-12 14:36:31 | | 2:25: In comparison to recent debates and campaign activity, this debate was very subdued. The lack of fireworks has to help Mike Huckabee, but it's clear he has a big bullseye on his back now. Unlike almost every previous debate, Rudy Giuliani essentially went unnoticed. He was probably hoping to see a few more nasty exchanges today, however, to keep the field divided and boosting his New Hampshire and February 5 chances. 2:24: That's all folks. 2:23: Tom Tancredo, Huckabee's biggest detractor today, again attacks the former Arkansas governor, this time on immigration.2:22: Asked about a New Year's resolution, Huckabee says he'll watch was he says carefully. Certainly his comments, both far and recent history, have come to bite him a little this week (on Mormonism and AIDS/homosexuality). 2:20: The moderator is asking very pointed questions to several candidates. To Tancredo, if he is more than a single issue candidate. To Paul, how he can make his "revolution" a re | | By: Political Realm | | |
| | Huckabee Surges in Iowa | | 2007-11-30 11:20:50 | | Apparently that Chuck Norris endorsement did the trick.From the LA Times:DES MOINES — With 34 days remaining, the Republican presidential race in Iowa has broken wide open, as Mike Huckabee surges into contention with the longtime front-runner, Mitt Romney.Polls show the two former governors running nearly even in Iowa, which will cast the first votes of the 2008 campaign, despite Huckabee's meager resources and the large amounts of time and TV advertising that Romney has lavished on the state. Earlier this month, surveys had Huckabee trailing Romney by double digits.Huckabee's strong showing, one of the biggest surprises of the presidential race, is threatening the foundation of Romney's candidacy and has shaken up the GOP contest across the country.On Thursday, Huckabee savored strong reviews for his performance the previous night in the CNN-YouTube debate, at which the former Arkansas governor delivered one-liners, played up his humble roots and proposed abolishing the IRS in f | | By: Dyre Portents | | |
| | Iowa Or Bust | | 2007-09-26 22:00:30 | | Joe Biden has already acknowledged that a top three finish in Iowa is make or break for his campaign. He has moved almost all of its senior staff to the state and he has picked up some good endorsements in the state recently--the House majority leader and speaker pro tempore. In fact, he's picked up more legislative endorsements in Iowa than everyone save Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama (where's John Edwards?). Says Mark Ambinder: "Biden polls at around five percent right now. But political prognosticators and many Iowa Democrats are buzzing about a coming Biden surge. They believe he is working his way to a stronger finish in Iowa than many of his rivals anticipate." For now, Biden typically does not break five percent in most Iowa polling.Meanwhile, Chris Dodd has also moved at least two senior staffers from Nevada to the Hawkeye State. He has shown an increased aggression on the campaign trail of late, dating back to the endorsement by the firefighters union last month. Like | | By: Political Realm | | |
| | On The Trail In Iowa | | 2007-09-07 19:54:23 | | I've had the opportunity to see five top Democratic contenders speak in Iowa over the past few weeks, so I thought I would share some of my completely subjective thoughts on their campaign stops. I've not intentionally avoided the Republican candidates, but for a variety of reasons I haven't been able to attend one of their events yet (I should have a chance to see Fred Thompson later this week).John EdwardsThe Edwards campaign stopped in Iowa on July 26 after announcing his new tax plan. Much of the focus of Edwards' stump speech was dedicated to discussing the details of that plan. Recalling his "Two Americas" theme from 2004, Edwards presented an "us vs. them" message that was well received by the crowd of perhaps 300 people. Edwards also took a noticeably aggressive tone in seeking to separate himself from his Democratic rivals. Edwards suggested that he was the candidate who has and would fight for the middle and lower class in America. He has a strong following in Iowa | | By: Political Realm | | |
| | This Week @ Iowa | | 2007-09-06 17:27:45 | | This Week @ Iowa 0 Comments Published by ListServ August 24th, 2007 Scott Werling Anamosa High School PA & … Games … -American Games Posted in Pan 2007 - Rio de Janeiro 2007 Pan-American Games Blog… ( View br Posted in Pan 2007 - Rio de Janeiro 2007 Pan-American Games Blog…
Posted in Pan 2007 - [...] | | By: Pan 2007 | | |
| | Iowa Judge Rules Gay Marriage Legal | | 2007-09-01 05:07:53 | | From The Nation via Yahoo: The Nation -- Iowa will in all likelihood remain the state that opens the process of nominating the Democratic and Republican candidates for president in 2008. As such, it is a "must visit" and "must impress" state for contenders in both parties. Iowa is now something else, however. With the decision of a county judge to strike down Iowa's law banning same-sex marriages, the state becomes a front-line battleground in America's ongoing political wrestling match over gay and lesbian rights. When Polk County Judge Robert Hanson concluded that the state's prohibition on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional and ordered the county recorder in Des Moines to issue marriage licenses to six gay couples, he did not merely give an unexpected courtroom victory to plaintiffs likes Iowa City's Jen BarbouRoske, who declared Thursday, "This is kind of the American Dream." Hanson also reshaped the presidential races of both parties. Democratic and Republicans candidates will | | By: Dyre Portents | | |
| | On the Ground in Iowa, Part II | | 2007-08-30 18:56:00 | | Two weeks have passed since my last post, from Iowa. I meant to follow up with another right away, but have been busy with, among other things, creating a video about Dr. Paul which I just uploaded. It should appear on Google Video soon (too long for YouTube).There has been a lot of good stuff written by others already, so I'll keep it short. Here are my belated conclusions about Iowa:There are two kinds of votes cast in the straw poll - votes for ideas and votes for festival. The former are tougher to get while the latter only require putting on a good show and serving a better plate of barbeque than the next tent. I found the atmosphere to be more carnival-like than I expected. It's been reported that Mitt Romney spent over two million dollars on this thing, and it wouldn't surprise me to learn that it was actually more than that. From the looks of it Brownback probably spent about as much as he had, and I don't think there will be enough gas in his tank to go a lot further.One thing | | By: Republican Renaissance | | |
| | An unofficial candidate woos Iowa | | 2007-08-18 20:02:56 | | DES MOINES - Following in the path of Mitt Romney, Rudolph W. Giuliani, Hillary Rodham Clinton and a host of other presidential candidates, Fred D. Thompson punched his ticket at the Iowa State Fair on Friday, acting very much the candidate despite legal restrictions on his political activity.
This was in no uncertain terms a debut [...] | | By: TexasFred's | | |
| | Clinton Invests in Iowa | | 2007-08-14 04:47:58 | | After a poll released earlier this month showed that Hillary Clinton is virtually tied with John Edwards and Barack Obama in Iowa, she has released her first television ad to start airing tomorrow. The poll showed that: As is the case nationally, Clinton gains from being seen as the strongest leader and the most electable contender. But in a state where retail politics can be crucial, she lags | | By: Poli-Think | | |
| | Romney Wins in Iowa Straw Poll | | 2007-08-12 22:25:04 | | From The Atlantic OnlineGov Mitt Romney won the 2007 Ames straw poll, receiving 4516 votes, or 31%. In a surprise, Gov. Mike Huckabee finished second with 2587 votes at 18.1% 11. John Cox with 41 votes.10. John McCain with 101 votes.9. Duncan Hunter with 174 votes.8. Rudy Giuliani with 183 votes.7. Fred Thomson with 203 votes.6. Tommy Thompson, 1,039 votes, 7.3%5. Ron Paul with 1305 votes, and 9.1%4. Tom Tancredo with 1961 votes, 13.7%.3. Sen. Sam Brownback with 2192 votes and 15.3% Iowa state auditor David Vaudt unofficially certified the results. 14,203 ballots were cast.Now here's the weird thing... If you combine Giuliani and McCain's total votes Ron Paul beat them by over a 4 to 1 margin. Whodathunkit?h/t Memeorandum
| | By: Dyre Portents | | |
| | On the Ground in Iowa | | 2007-08-10 05:38:22 | | Because flights from Seattle to Des Moines are horrifically expensive, I chose instead to take a red-eye flight into Minneapolis this morning and drive down to Ames, Iowa, where the big straw poll will be held Saturday the 11th. On arrival I snuck in a quick cat nap, then set out to survey the scene. Here are my observations thus far:Committees for the candidates are starting to set up their tents, etc., and it's interesting to see how each group is handling things. Most of the visible activity for Ron Paul is being done by volunteers from local MeetUp groups and others who have come from all around the country. I've been surprised at how many people I've met who have traveled great distances to be here for the cause. Of course, none of us out-of-staters can vote in the poll, but there are lots and lots of us helping get things done. The grassroots volunteer effort for Paul is pretty astounding. This is an element that is not accounted for in typical reports focusing on money raised. Q | | By: Republican Renaissance | | |
| | Iowa Republican Debate: The 2008 Presidential Election with Clarity | | 2007-08-06 03:30:37 | | The ABC News Republican Debate was a breath of fresh air (although some disagree) compared to the Democratic panderfest. While the Democrats did not debate issues, they simply engaged in emotional blabber, the Republicans discussed specific policy differences. It was amazing that we could have a debate about the real problems facing this Country without watching snowmen and children cry about global warming.For the first time the American people actually were explained the FairTax. George Stephanopoulos told the American people that the FairTax would create a 23% national sales tax while eliminating virtually all other taxes. For a year now, we have only heard candidates claim they support the FairTax without recognizing that most Americans are clueless what they meant.From the debate, we can gather that Mike Huckabee and Tom Tancredo staunchly support the FairTax. They assert that the National sales tax would be able to generate an enormous revenue stream for the Country simply b | | By: Copious Dissent - Your Daily Dose of Liberty | | |
| | John Edwards’ 2008 Presidential Campaign Hopes are Over after Three Top Democrats Share Lead in Iowa Poll | | 2007-08-04 01:47:58 | | If you were not convinced already that John Edwards, the charlatan, has no chance of defeating Hillary Clinton, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll has sealed his fate. The poll shows Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards in a virtual tie in the State of Iowa (27 percent said they would vote for Obama, 26 percent for Clinton and 26 percent for Edwards). While this may seem like a meaningless poll this early in the race, it is not. John Edwards needed to be ahead by at least ten-points to have a chance at the Presidency.A ten-point lead would have provided Edwards with the momentum to overcome the impossibility of him defeating Hillary or Obama in other states. Edwards thought that if he strategically targeting the State of Iowa, he could still be successful with fewer resources than the other Candidates. This is analogous to Mitt Romney of the Republican Party, whose son has visited every county in the State. But, unlike Mitt Romney, John Edwards botched his chances gaini | | By: Copious Dissent - Your Daily Dose of Liberty | | |
| | Ron Paul in Iowa | | 2007-07-06 09:20:00 | | I had mentioned Dr. Paul's massive draw after the Iowa Forum. Below is the YouTube video of that day.Dr. Paul is also appearing on ABC News this Sunday. | | By: The Dissident Awakens | | |
| | Ron Paul Excluded in Iowa | | 2007-06-23 07:37:46 | | From Transworld News:Monroe, Ga. 6/22/2007 7:46 PM GMTGOP presidential candidate Ron Paul has been blocked from an upcoming political forum sponsored by Iowans for Tax Relief and the Iowa Christian Alliance because he is not a “credible’ Republican candidate. At least that’s what Ed Failor Jr., vice president of ITR commented when asked why Paul was left off the June 30 event. Failor told the Des Moines Register “We invited credible Democratic and credible Republican candidates,” he went on to say “we had to draw the line somewhere.” While Ron Paul doesn’t have a campaign office in Iowa the decision to leave him out of the event was called “weak” by Paul’s campaign chairman Kent Snyder. articleConsidering that depending on what pundit one listens to no GOP candidate has a chance of winning therefore Ron Paul is just as inviable as any other candidate. Besides that is no way to treat an internet superstar.
| | By: Dyre Portents | | |
| | Cubs Recall Rapada, Send Murton to Iowa | | 2007-06-14 00:07:21 | | The Cubs have recalled LHP Clay Rapada from Iowa, and have optioned OF Matt Murton to the same club.
The side-slingin’ Rapada has been the Iowa Cubs primary closer this season, but as shown by his ‘07 AAA splits, he is really more of a classic LOOGY. That is, he is death on left-handed hitters, but with his frisbee-style offerings that seem to come out of right field, you really don’t want him to throw to MLB-quality right-handed swingers if it can be avoided.
As for Murton, this move will give Orange Guy a chance to play everyday (probably playing RF and hitting 3rd in the I-Cubs lineup), and (hopefully) get his groove back, either forcing himself back into the Cubs starting lineup as the everyday RF at some point in the not-too-distant future–or at least making him more attractive as trade bait later this season or next off-season.
Adding Rapada gives the Cubs a 13-man pitching staff, so expect a pitcher to get trimmed from the roster whenever the first positi | | By: The Cub Reporter | | |
| | Tax Amnesty in Iowa | | 2007-05-29 07:00:00 | | Iowans who have not paid their state taxes will soon have a chance to atone, thanks to a new tax amnesty program in Iowa. From the Sioux City Journal:Gov. Chet Culver signed a bill that allows a two-month tax amnesty, a period in which delinquent taxpayers don't have to pay any penalties and only have to pay half of the interest they owe. The Iowa Department of Revenue estimates it will receive $53.9 million in payments, including $16 million that wouldn't be paid otherwise.The only other amnesty in Iowa history was in 1986, when taxpayers forked over about $37 million, with the majority of the dollars, $21 million, coming from corporate taxes. Individual income taxes accounted for just $5 million. The rest was sales tax, use tax or other taxes.But not everyone is happy about this program:The bill passed the Legislature, despite strong opposition from House Republicans. House Minority Leader Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City, said the bill is unfriendly to law-abiding taxpayers.& | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
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