Personal About Politics: Report From Inside the Iowa Caucuses

My son-in-law called me from Northeast Iowa as soon as he got home from his caucus this evening. It was the first time he and his folks had participated in a caucus. In the past they has always supported Republicans, who do a simple straw vote in Iowa, but decided they wanted to support Obama, so the process was new to them.

He said it was reported to be the largest caucus turnout ever in his district, a report that seems to be reverberating throughout the state. When the tally was done, he said 40% supported Obama with Edwards coming in second and Clinton close behind. He also mentioned that Edwards picked up the most "second choice" votes, a strategy the he had been counting on.

Shortly after speaking to my son-in-law, both of my Iowa correspondents, Bruce in eastern Iowa and Larry in central Iowa, checked in via e-mail. Here are their reports.


I just got home from my caucus and I'm completely wiped out. Cheri -- If you want to include any of my thoughts in your blog, you may have to tweak my comments and smooth out the rough edges because I'm exhausted and I'm probably not making a lot of sense right now. It was probably the largest neighborhood caucus I've ever attended, with an official count of 273 packed into the multi-purpose room at Fellows Elementary School. There were a lot of newbies there and the precinct leader, although a veteran of these events, had a hard time in controlling the huge crowd. I won't go into all the details, but the Hillary people really ticked me off with their obnoxious and pushy attitudes --- but that's another story for another day. Unfortunately, our Richardson preference group wasn't viable and we were unable to pick up enough people during the thirty-minute re-alignment period. Most of us in the Richardson group -- including yours truly -- moved over to the Edwards camp. I won't even go into the mess we had with the numbers counting because I'm too tired and I need to have a light snack and hit the hay. When the dust finally settled, it was Edwards 92, Obama 92, and Clinton 89. Obama picked up an extra delegate on the coin flip, which is a whole other story. My wife, Pat, who has been a Edwards supporter all along will be moving on as delegate and I'm going to be an Edwards alternate. I'm tired, I'm hungry.....and that's all for now.

--Larry



Hi guys,
We had 292 people at our precinct which was far and away a record. This bodes good for the Dems. We ended up distributing the 10 delegates by awarding 4 to Obama, 3 to Clinton, and 3 to Edwards. I think Edwards and Obama picked up more of the groups that weren't viable. My son-in-law went to observe and got to see some interesting things. Their were about 24 people for Richardson and they really hung together hoping to make a deal. He said the Biden people had about 22 and Dodd only 4. Three of the Dodd people were our friends and neighbors...the son came over to Obama and his parents went to Edwards. At the very last, some of the Richardson folks left in a bit of a huff and most of the rest went to Edwards. I think Obama picked up more of the Biden folks than did Hillary. I declined the opportunity to try to get a delegate or alternative delegate spot to the county convention. My neighbor across the street is going as an Obama delegate.

Bruce


A final note about the Iowa caucuses.

There are unending articles and comments that Iowa should not have such political clout because they are a small state and not a good representation of the rest of the country.

In reality, all the other states are pissed off that they didn't jump on that bandwagon years ago. Now, after years of hard work and nurturing, Iowa has made their caucuses an important political tool by locking in the First in the Nation status. It is now a huge financial boon to the entire state. Not only the candidates pouring in money, but all the entourage that follows. Food, lodging, and fuel all bring huge amounts of needed revenue into the state. Both the state and national Democratic Committees recognized the value of pointing the spotlight on the unique Iowa caucuses, and it has paid off.

Except for every four years, most of the country ignores Iowa. It's a place they fly over on their way to one coast or the other. It's often confused with Idaho, or Ohio. Most people are not even sure where it is, except "somewhere in the Midwest".

So, every four years, Iowans tolerate unending political calls, TV and radio ads, and campaigners knocking on doors. They are very polite to all the candidates and reporters and photographers. They work hard at campaigning themselves and work at the caucuses, and exhausting job as evidenced by the e-mails. They listen, read and discuss politics and take their job as "First in the Nation, Second to None" very seriously, because they understand that for a few months every four years the spotlight is on them, they have a great deal of influence, and for just a little while the rest of the world takes them seriously.

To all you naysayers I say, leave Iowa alone. Stop being a bully because your state is bigger, has a larger population and more money. That doesn't mean your state is better prepared or educated to host the earliest political vote. Instead of complaining that a smaller state has become a political powerhouse of sorts, why don't you listen to what they have to say, and maybe...just maybe, you might learn something.



Cheri Cabot, Politics Correspondent
Cheri's column, "Personal About Politics", published every week, will reflect on how the life of a 58 year-old, middle class woman is affected by politics, policy and the current state of the nation - a look at the personal aspects of politics. The articles will be posted to Politics.gather.com as part of Gather Essentials.

Cheri is a freelance writer, living in Southern California. She has two grown children, one in Iowa and one at Columbia University, and is the proud grandmother of two. Cheri is also a purveyor of fine coffee, warm chatter and dry wit.

You can find all of Cheri's columns on Personal About Politics at www.ccabot.gather.com.