The Iowa City Press-Citizen endorsed Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee in twin editorials this morning.
"Obama has the right vision for a new national politics and a new global reputation," wrote the editorial board. "Obama stands tall among this already strong group as both the candidate of hope and the candidate of change we can believe in."
Reviewing the rest of the field, the paper adds:
The more Biden, Dodd and Clinton draw upon their experience in the internecine personal battles within Washington or between world leaders, the more voters identify them with the broken political system in which they have gained their experience. And the more Richardson and Edwards lay claim to an outsider status, the more they risk having their call for change get lost in their rhetoric -- which is what seems to have happened especially to Edwards in this campaign.
"We are left wishing more Republican candidates had been willing to make time for local editorial boards -- and for Johnson County in general," wrote the Press-Citizen. Despite its heavily Democratic vote percentages, the People's Republic is in the top ten Republican counties in the state based on number of registered Republicans, and in the Republican's simplified caucus process, raw numbers are what matters.
The Press-Citizen limited its choices to only those candidates who talked with the editorial board. "Invitations were extended to every presidential hopeful visiting Johnson County for an in-person or conference-call interview with the board," the paper wrote. Nearly every GOP candidate has visited Johnson County; the exceptions are Duncan Hunter and Alan Keyes.
John McCain appears to have missed an opportunity: "We wish that Arizona Sen. John McCain had taken us up on our offer for at least a conference call," the paper wrote. "Viewing McCain from afar, we find him to be the Republican candidate with the most moral authority and foreign policy experience to lead the nation."
Only two Republicans met with the Press-Citizen editorial board: Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul.
What makes Huckabee still an attractive choice to us is that he has a fairly pragmatic record during his years governing Arkansas. Despite his earlier ideological statements, he proved willing to work with the opposition party -- a necessary decision in a state in which 85 percent of all the elected officials are Democrat -- and proved to be a "compassionate conservative" in word as well as deed.
It's for that reason that we're endorsing Huckabee as opposed to Paul -- who, despite his consistent devotion to the U.S. Constitution, hasn't demonstrated the type of executive experience or potential for cooperation necessary to function as the nation's chief executive.
The Press-Citizen did note its concerns about Huckabee's statements on HIV/AIDS in his 1992 Senate race, and over his doubts about evolution.
The Press-Citizen's corporate parent is the Gannett Corportation, the same owner as the Des Moines Register. On Sunday, the Register took a different path and endorsed Hillary Clinton and John McCain.
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