The view from Iowa
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good at drinking water
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https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/03/opinion/iowa-caucuses.html
KNOXVILLE, Iowa — In the week before the Iowa caucuses, the state becomes a crazy place. Everyone wants to know what’s going on, so they ask people like me. I’m a small-town Iowa radio guy on the wrong side of 60 in suspenders, Carhartts and mud boots.
Candidates are everywhere, and media fly in from all over the world to get our stories. For this brief window, every Iowan is an expert. We in the local media draw more attention from our colleagues in the national media because we are paid to pay attention.
In the past week or so, I was booked and then bumped by “Hardball” on MSNBC more times than a petty thief in a county jail holding tank. CNN, too. I understand, it goes with the territory. Besides I don’t really like TV that much. I’m a radio guy. I look old, bald and grumpy on TV, and I’m not grumpy.
Between candidate interviews, media events, my day job, news alerts rattling my phone, tweets falling like rain and relentless email, I try to make sense of what’s happening as we call a wrap on the 2020 Iowa caucuses.
Who’s going to win?
That’s what everyone wants to know. Me, too. I’m lucky to have had long, candid conversations with almost all the candidates — and I’ll especially miss those with Cory Booker, Beto O’Rourke and John Delaney (I do know that they aren’t going to win).
But let’s see. Here’s what I worry about:
The Ukraine scandal will hurt Joe Biden, and he won’t be able to go toe to toe with President Trump.
Pete Buttigieg lacks support among African-Americans. That’s fatal for a Democrat.
Bernie Sanders’s scorched-earth campaign in 2016 continues today and will hurt not only him but us all. Most of his supporters are good, well-meaning people, but the “Bernie Bros” are real, pernicious and legion. They carry their litmus tests everywhere they go and harass non-Sanders supporters in real life (and at the events of other candidates), on social media, in their phone calls and in texts.
Elizabeth Warren peaked too soon, and Amy Klobuchar is peaking too late. Still, their organizations are strong, and northern Iowa just might surge for Ms. Klobuchar.
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Oh, and don’t forget President Trump
Just a reminder of what awaits the winning Democratic nominee: Last week, I went to the Trump rally in Des Moines. It was brilliant, and he is an extraordinary showman. Over 7,000 people attended, and many more were turned away or watched from a large screen outside, on a 29-degree winter evening.
With every gesture he welcomed the crowd into his open arms, applauded them, showed he was with them. Music blasted in a perfect rite of intensification; enemies were identified, trivialized and vanquished — Creepy Joe, Crazy Bernie, Pete BOOT-EDGE-EDGE and more.
Mr. Trump wove truth, half-truths, hyperbole, exaggeration and lies seamlessly into a vast swirling reality that swept the audience along in an energizing experience as thrilling as an overtime win at the Super Bowl.
And Trump supporters don’t care about impeachment, the lies, any of it — as one man told me in a concession line before the event, he doesn’t care what Trump does, legal or not, because he knows Trump has his back.
Anyway, back to the Democrats. With the results of the caucuses, Iowans will offer to America who they believe best has their back. And then the state becomes flyover country once more.
As I was leaving the Steyer event the other day, I said goodbye to Adam Brewster of CBS and Maura Barrett with NBC. “See you in four years,” I said.
Adam thought for a moment, and then said, “If Iowa is first in the nation in four years!” I thought about it for a moment, and said, “If two old white guys with universal name recognition and high poll numbers before the caucus season even began come out on top in Iowa, maybe we don’t deserve to be first.” I shuffled off, not realizing I had said the quiet part out loud.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Rasputin O'Leary
Been there, gorgeous state. Took a ride west from Davenport, this is pretty much all I saw, mixed in with a few hog farms, still family owned. Not a lot of hills, you could see a thunderstorm coming from an hour away.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: ogkb
6/16/74 IOWA
6/16/74 IOWA
https://youtu.be/JLW4tVcfN1c
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Johnny D
Gorgeous colors, Ras!
Gorgeous colors, Ras!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
From a bygone era when the democrats fielded an anti-war candidate, Howard & Judy in that moment were a truly special couple, I was particularly impressed with Judy, she is a kind soul.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Thumbkinetic
Corn, Corn, Pigs, Corn, Pigs,
Corn, Corn, Pigs, Corn, Pigs, Hurricane, Buffet, Pigs, Corn, Repeat...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Sigmund
How to screw Bernie 101
How to screw Bernie 101
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Racketinmyhead
These idiots can’t even run a
These idiots can’t even run a caucus, CNN is reporting technical difficulties? Lol.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Sigmund
I hope Republican Senators
I hope Republican Senators are happy
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: jeff
Lets go Centrists!!! Let's
Lets go Centrists!!! Let's kick some ass!!!!!!Never forget who won almost 3,000,000 more votes. YES!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: drkstar
winner of the iowa caucus?
winner of the iowa caucus?
bloomberg obviously. what a clusterfuck. 2020 american democracy in action
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Racketinmyhead
This shit is hilarious.
This shit is hilarious, of course it’s to keep Bernie down. Blahahahahahaha.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ken D.
What a cluster fuck. Great
What a cluster fuck. Great way to instill confidence in the voting system in kicking off the 2020 elections.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ken D.
Sanders folks just released
Sanders folks just released the count, taken by "trained Sanders volunteers," from 40% of the districts,
Bernie leading Mayor Pete by five percentage points. Biden and Klobuchar battling for fourth place.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Racketinmyhead
https://www.politico.com/news
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/03/iowa-caucus-2020-election-110600
Total Meltdown
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Racketinmyhead
Yea ken, and Pete claimed
Yea ken, and Pete claimed victory in his speech. None of it matters unless it’s official. What a joke. This is the real threat to democracy.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
https://youtu.be/AbsBM6MlLVo
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ken D.
And Trump ends up being the
And Trump ends up being the first candidate ever to win both the Republican and Democratic Iowa caucuses:
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL by Ray Charles
https://youtu.be/TRUjr8EVgBg
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: jeff
Have the bros screwed things
Have the bros screwed things up yet?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
My unfiltered thoughts whatever they may be worth...the democrats won't win another election in at least a generation, the unforeseen consequences of a complete premeditated, with malice and forethought, multifaceted Orwellian fraudulent misdirect of the American people...when that becomes general knowledge, it may get a bit challenging.
Namaste
Gyuto Monks Tantric Choir
The Perfect Jewel
Sacred Chants of Tibet
https://youtu.be/INIMACWzMsI
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Thumbkinetic
My unfiltered thoughts
My unfiltered thoughts whatever they may be worth<<
A Rush Limbaugh skid-mark?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
Ron Paul - Non-Interventionism: America’s Founding Foreign Policy
https://youtu.be/veyMXX67-84
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
https://www.miamiherald.com
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/article239913588.ht...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: good at drinking water
Iowa will not be first in
Iowa will not be first in 2024, assuming we even have elections in 2024.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ausonius
"the democrats won't win
"the democrats won't win another election in at least a generation"
They will almost certainly win back the White house in 2024.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Sigmund
The Dems could run a bag of
The Dems could run a bag of fuckin potato chips and win in 2020
Nazi used all his "Magic" last election
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Mice elf
I just had a vision of an
I just had a vision of an updated version of that painting where all of the statesmen are holding/checking their phones.