Todo el repentino, republicanos quisiera que los hispanos votaran

Todo el repentino, republicanos quisiera que los hispanos votaran

The GOP has taken a sudden interest in the Hispanic vote after last week's debacle. And, as usual, their approach is tokenism:

Florida Sen. Mel Martinez, a prominent Hispanic who previously served in President Bush's Cabinet, will assume the high-profile post of Republican National Committee general chairman, GOP officials said Monday.

Wrong on just so many levels:

Just like the Rumsfeld firing, it's a ready-fire-aim too late move. Look at the numbers:

73 percent of Hispanics voted for the Democratic Party on Tuesday, while only 26 percent voted for Republican candidates, CNN exit polls show. In the 2004 presidential elections, 55 percent of Hispanics voted Democrat and about 42 percent voted Republican.

Gee, Steve King, why would that be?

Republican sponsorship of a law to build a 700-mile fence along the Mexican border and Republican House members' efforts to pass a bill that would have turned millions of undocumented workers into felons fueled a climate that many Hispanics saw as veiled racism.

When they accused Hispanic immigrants of draining Social Security coffers, clogging schools and hospitals, being potential terrorists and bringing infectious diseases into the United States, millions of Hispanic-heritage U.S. citizens felt insulted. It was as if all Hispanics were suddenly cast as potential national security threats.

A week after an election that was a repudiation of George W. Bush and the scandal-riddled Republican congress, the GOP names as its head... a former Bush cabinet official who's currently serving in Congress and who you can at least use in a sentence with the name Jack Abramoff.

Kos makes the point that Hispanics are a diverse group:

There's a wide culture gap between Cubans and most other Latinos. Politically, Cubans have more in common with Vietnamese immigrants than they do other Latino groups.

Talking Points Memo puts it well:

One of the big campaign gambits from Republican candidates was Democratic Candidate X is going to ruin Social Security by giving away money to illegal aliens (pan to pictures of Mexicans).

It's a pretty sad but also really familiar story. GOP spends years 'reaching out' to [insert minority group of your choice] until they find themselves losing an election and go hog wild with race-bating or whatever other nastiness looks like it will yield short-term political benefits.

It'll be interesting to see how this plays with the Don't Talk Spanish In Front Of Me In The Wal-Mart Line Republican base. I assume they'll be able to manage the War Is Peace, Freedom Is Slavery cognitive dissonance they usually handle, or at least a level of I'm Not Prejudiced One Of My Best Friends Is Hispanic But I'm Just Saying tokenism.

Halloween is over, don't scare me

Halloween is over, don't scare me



Register's Jane Norman is looking ahead to Harkin vs. ??? in `08 and drops this frightening concept:

Rep. Steve King emerged from the Republican bloodbath with 58.3 percent of the vote, the highest re-election percentage of any of Iowa's congressional incumbents (though down from 63 percent in 2004). Now he has to decide whether he wants to stay in the House, where he's likely guaranteed to keep his seat forever unless Iowa City is somehow redistricted into the 5th District, or challenge Harkin for his Senate seat.

I've been waiting for Democratic representation since the day redistricting took Dave Nagle away from me; don't even scare me like this!

Russ Is Out

Russ Is Out

Damn.

U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) has decided against seeking the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, saying he wanted to focus on his work in the Senate...

Best part of the e-mail:

While I've certainly enjoyed the repeated comments or buttons saying, "Run Russ Run", or "Russ in '08", I often felt that if a piece of Wisconsin swiss cheese had taken the same positions I've taken, it would have elicited the same standing ovations. This is because the hunger for progressive change we feel is obviously not about me but about the desire for a genuinely different Democratic Party that is ready to begin to reverse the 25 years of growing extremism we have endured.

While the two-divorce barrier may not have in and itself been insurmountable, one of my Wisconsin contacts notes that on paper Russ is the poorest Senator with a net negative worth; apparantly the second split was costly in the financial sense. I guess we'll leave it to Mitt Romney to test the religious barriers.

Not an entire bad weekend for Wisconsin, however:

Favre threw two touchdown passes without a turnover and Donald Driver had a career-high 191 yards receiving in a 23-17 Packer victory over the Vikings.

And I heard the Badgers had a good weekend too though my feelings are less positive about that.

Back to Feingold: it was always about the message. Sure, I liked the messenger too, but Feingold's personal decision does not set back the message.

---

Congressman-Elect Loebsack takes the message to the New York Times:

Dave Loebsack, a political science professor in Iowa who unseated the veteran Republican moderate, Representative Jim Leach, said he intended to sign on to proposed legislation to create a single-payer, national health insurance program “as one of the first things I will do when I get to Congress.”

“I have no idea where it’s going to go next year,” Mr. Loebsack said, “but at least we can give it a fair hearing.”

Krusty reports on Iowa Senate Republican caucus infighting. Lundby is re-elected but:

Before the vote was taken, Senators, McKinley, Zieman, Boettger, Zahn, Hahn, Kettering, Behn and Senator-elect Hartsuch walked out of the meeting.

For those reading the leaves, that's the right, the old Iverson loyalists. Including Jim Hahn, the Senator from David Stanley and last Republican Senator left representing a square inch of Johnson County...

Friday Short Cuts

Friday Short Cuts

The long march is over and I'm actually getting a three day weekend. But I can't hit the road without offering a few items.

Carol deProsse writes:

Senator Chafee has stated his opposition to John Bolton's nomination as Ambassador to the UN, which makes Bolton dead in the water.

I'd like to suggest Jim Leach for the position. He's got the education, the background, the diplomatic skills, and the demeanor to be a fine ambassador.

Not a bad idea, though Chafee's opinion is only of relevance a few more weeks. But Bush will NEVER name the only anti-war Republican to anything...

Meanwhile the Press-citizen picks up on the Deeth-fueled rumor:

With defeated U.S. Rep. Jim Leach out of a job, speculation -- or at least curiosity -- about him being in the mix of candidates to become the University of Iowa's next president has surfaced once again.

But two days after he lost his bid for a 16th term in Congress, the Iowa City Republican is mum on the topic.

'I have no idea about that and it would be very, very inappropriate for me to comment,' Leach said Thursday. 'Of all subjects you've asked about, this is one I'll refrain from.'

Now that the Dems have the trifecta, we can no longer excuse a regressive sales tax as "the only way to raise revenue for The Kids."

Looking ahead: Kos examines Senate 2008. "Not likely competitive at this time: Harkin (D) in IA..." Steve King is nuts but not dumb.

Is ANYONE ever going to give Chuck Grassley a serious run? It's still four years off, but by 2010 Chuck Grassley will have served 52 consecutive years in elected office. His freakin' GRANDSON is in the Legislature now. The last time Grassley had to break a sweat was 1980 - if you think about it, literally a political generation ago. This is the kind of guy who maybe, just maybe, has let the political skills atrophy. Maybe, just maybe, the aw-shucks bit won't play in an increasingly urbanized Iowa.

Maybe, just maybe, Tom Vilsack should think about that instead of fantasizing about the White House.

Dianne Bystrom at the Register looks at Women Winning:

Record 16 women in US Senate

At least 70 women in US House, also a record (and of course that House will be gaveled by Speaker Pelosi)

Record 34 women in Iowa Legislature (still below national average, though)

Iowa is still in the club with Mississippi, though: the only two states that have never elected a woman to Congress of the governorship. How about finding a strong progressive female candidate to succeed Leonard Boswell (51.6% in the best Democratic year in decades) in `08? Names, readers; send me names.

Soil and Water: Fundamentally Undemocratic

Soil and Water: Fundamentally Undemocratic

Did you know there's an office that you can win with less votes than your opponent? Other than President of the United States, I mean.

SOIL & WATER CONS. BD. (Vote for 2)
Cindy Asmussen 16,407 37.28%
Terry Dahms 12,538 28.49%
Ed Ruppenkamp 11,747 26.69%

It's an obscure provision that I was only vaugely aware of: A county can't elect two soil and water commissioners from the same township. Asmussen and Dahms both live in the same township. In this situation, the candidate with the next highest number of votes wins.

In order to be elected, Dahms would have had to have finished in FIRST place. And Ruppenkamp was in a can't lose situation. Despite getting the fewest votes, he is elected.

There was virtually no information available on this race - believe me, I looked, it was a question I heard a lot. I got a lot of hits from people searching on it, because I briefly mentioned it at filing deadline.

If geographic diversity is so important on this board the Legislature should find another method, such as districts, to ensure it. In the meantime, Ruppenkamp should do the decent thing and resign. The commission itself would appoint a new member. It still couldn't be Dahms because of the township thing, and I wonder whether such an appointment is less democratic than an election. But at least it wouldn't be someone who was explicitly rejected by the voters. Sorry to nitpick but though this was legal it doesn't seem fair.

Vilsack 08: That Didn't Take Long

Vilsack 08: That Didn't Take Long

Tom Vilsack is striking while the iron is hot:

Vilsack said he will officially launch his presidential campaign Thursday when he files documents with the Federal Election Commission.

The filing comes two days after his fellow Democrats scored overwhelming victories in state and national elections.

Vilsack heads the Democratic Leadership Council, a centrist group that former President Clinton used to help launch his candidacy. He has also traveled the country campaigning for Democratic gubernatorial candidates while considering a presidential run.

After the near sweep in Iowa he figures his stock is up.

Timing his announcement to the Democrats' gains this week will show national donors that Vilsack can take credit for victories, a key asset when soliciting contributions, Texas A&M University political science professor George Edwards said.

Does this kill the caucuses? Or did the caucuses get a bye, one last exemption, in 2008 because the nationals figured Vilsack will make them irrelevant anyway? I'm not convinced of that:

Sunday in Iowa City, Vilsack didn't get nearly the reception that Barack Obama, Chet Culver, and Tom Harkin did. Nobody started spontaneously chanting "Run, Tom, Run." They DID, however, spontaneously chant "LOEB-SACK! LOEB-SACK! LOEB-SACK!"

That's twice in a row I've seen him that his speeches have ended with the screaming thing. Worked really well for Howard Dean.

Tuesday's results were hardly a mandate for DLC me-too politics. It was unapologetic progressives like Dave Loebsack who picked up seats.

He's not going to be governor anymore, and Governor Culver will likely want to leave his own imprint on the state political scene, no doubt eclipsing Vilsack to some extent.

Bottom line is I wish this wasn't happening. I was mostly proud of Vilsack as a governor; he did a good job playing defense on choice, but I never did get that totally nude dancing he promised. And he should have taken the hit and vetoed English Only - he might have beaten the hapless Doug Gross by a couple less points but he still would have won in `02. I feel no sense of enthusiasm like I did in 1991 for Harkin, and not even a sense of favorite son obligation.

---

Press-citizen and Register look at the Loebsack win:

His first order of business as a congressman will be to vote for a single-payer, universal health care plan, Loebsack said. He also wants to help pass a minimum wage increase and hopes to serve on the education and work force committee.

"Now that we have control of the House of Representatives, Democrats will be in charge of the committees, and we will be able to put our agenda forth," he said. "We're going to have to compromise. I think it's really important that people know that."

"People liked him, but they wanted change, and he was in the party that they wanted to see changed, so he had to go," University of Iowa associate political science professor Cary Covington said. "I think in virtually any other circumstance, Leach would have weathered the storm, but this was one where I think Loebsack made exactly the right argument and he hammered it home.

"In a way, it was almost like, 'Vote against Jim Leach for a greater good that I stand for,'" Covington said. "I think (Loebsack) stands for a lot of things people like ... but I do think it was the opposition to President Bush that put him over the top."

Loebsack and Leach ran what were seen as polite and civil campaigns, attempting to spell out their policy differences rather than engage in attacks. Leach was not viewed by national pundits as endangered until almost the last minute, when he made the national political tip sheet Hotline's list of endangered incumbents at No. 59.

Leach raised $444,000 while Loebsack raised $368,000 for the campaign through Oct. 18, small sums compared with the millions raised in two other Iowa congressional districts with more high-profile contests.

Not to bash Braley - and he was a great help to Dave Loebsack early on when almost no one believed - but the contrast is striking. Here outside the 1st District, Braley seemed to have higher name ID than Loebsack. It was TV, TV, TV to the north, and shoe leather here in the south. Number One Race In The Country vs. Dave Who. Dave won it the way it's supposed to be but all too rarely is.

---

The Overrated One has some bullet point postmortems for the GOP:

Quit being a subsidiary of the religious right. This may be the toughest balancing act of all. Yes, religious conservatives are an important part of the GOP constituency. But they need to be told they aren't, or can't be, the only foundation.

In Iowa, 35 percent of likely voters describe themselves as "fundamentalist" or "born again." That also means 65 percent aren't. Yet, too often, the GOP seems like a branch of some evangelical church, and it moves too far to the right on social questions.

So, for example, when a little-known candidate is chosen at the last minute to run for secretary of state based on her religious views and not her electability, well, it just cedes the job to a Democrat.

Well, yeah... but it also kinda sorta a little helped that Mike Mauro was incredibly more qualified for the job.

End the Iraq war. It's politically smart for Donald Rumsfeld to leave as defense secretary. Other heads should roll, too. Bush could do worse than offer outgoing Iowa Congressman Jim Leach a job helping to fashion a new administration plan for the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq.

Sounds like a good man for the job and a good job for the man. (Though I'm stubbornly sticking to my U of I president theory, a rumor Leach is already having to no comment on in the Gazette (no link).

---

Dance with meeeee, I want to be your congressman, can't you seeeee, my first term is just starting: Rep.-elect John Hall (D-NY). His politics are way better than Sonny Bono's, but "Still The One" is no "Needles and Pins."

Bob's Your Uncle, Dave's Your Congressman

Bob's Your Uncle, Dave's Your Congressman

Randy Larson makes the best Democratic pizza in Iowa City (that, however is the only race the Republicans win around here; Armond Pagliai is as unbeatable as we once though Jim Leach was.) And so the tired Johnson County Dems gathered at Bob's Your Uncle for what I believe was officially the victory party for county attorney-elect Janet Lyness - it's still a victory even if you're unopposed - but became a joint victory party with Dave Loebsack.

Everyone else still seemed to be in pinching themselves shock but Loebsack is taking it all in stride. The voice mail is full, he's off to Washington on Sunday for congressional orientation.

Loebsack: That's your taxpayer dollars paying for my trip.
Deeth: It's money well spent.

The political scientist in Dave wanted to talk numbers, and we chatted about the margin at different times and which counties were reporting. The campaigner notes that today is the start of a new campaign financial cycle and that his contribution page remains active.

This was a local operation from the get-go, a total contrast from the last "serious" attempt by DC and Des Moines at this seat, Julie Thomas in `02. That race was almost consulted and DCCC'd to death, and simply assumed that getting out the Democrats to vote would do and partisan voting index would do the rest. Which succeeded in getting out a lot of votes... for Leach.

Dave Loebsack realized that Leach was a unique situation and he needed to persuade the Democrats to come home - which they did yesterday.

Other than the national wave, a few other subjects popped up in various talks:

Leach was gracious in defeat. But few bought into my U of I President theory.

Staffers can get really deep in the bubble - I met one so preoccupied with GOTV that the dead cows story was news.

Jim Nussle has been in college, law school, and elective office his entire adult life. What the hell is he going to do next?

I looked at the numbers and I was wrong: Culver's Johnson County percentage was in fact 0.1% HIGHER than LBJ in 1964.

Last time Iowa Democrats held majority of US House delegation was 1970's - Harkin, Blouin, Smith, Bedell.

Upset of the Nation: In 1996 it was Loretta Sanchez knocking off B-1 Bob Dornan. Two years ago it was Melissa Bean taking out Phil Crane. Left unsaid was the 1990 Minnesota Senate race, won by an unknown political science professor from a small college...

Damn I'm tired.

The Faces of Victory

The Faces of Victory

'They said it couldn't happen, but you know what, there were some of us who thought it could happen,' Congressman-elect Loebsack told a crowd of about 300 jubilant supporters about 12:30 a.m. today. 'People really want real change. They really want this country to go in a different direction.'"

Congressman-elect Loebsack. I like the way that rolls out. Con-gress-man-e-lect Loeb-sack.

I'm on about two hours sleep so I'm just cribbing at the moment.

Register summarizes Iowa legislative seat changes.

MyDD has a look at What We Accomplished, well worth the read.

DI has nice local pics.

The Upset Of The Nation

The Upset Of The Nation

US House Dist 2
US House
338 of 338 (100 %) Precincts Reporting
* Dave Loebsack (D) 107,097 51 %
Jim Leach (R) (i) 101,386 49 %

Every cycle someone does it. Someone who no one thinks has a chance, in a race that's literally not even on the map, comes out of nowhere and shocks the country.

Tonight it happened in my town. This is the biggest win I've ever been a small part of.

I remember sitting around living rooms in about February, brainstorming messages, trying to find a way to do the impossible, to beat a 30 year incumbent. I remember a quck spoken genial professor who I've worked with on campaigns successful and not, watching him struggle with telling his story of a difficult youth - I knew him for at least a decade before I heard it - watching him grow into a powerful messenger for change and for Democratic values.

I'm proud to call Dave Loebsack a friend.

Tonight I am proud to call him my congressman.

---

I knew it would happen at about 10:15, when I saw the numbers from Iowa City precincts coming in 15, 20% higher than they were four years ago. Tonight the Democrats of Johnson County came home and voted like Democrats. That was the difference between the near-misses of Bob Rush and Julie Thomas and tonight's win. We knew all along that if even half of the Leach Democrats came home Dave would win. He carried Johnson County with 60%.

Jim Leach will be named president of the University of Iowa before Christmas. And the moderate House Republican is now officially extinct.

---

Governor-Elect Culver won 68% here which may be the biggest Democratic margin since, get this, LBJ in 1964. I need to look that up.

It's a turnout record too: just over 44,000 votes.

Mike Mauro wins handily over the Invisible Woman; how long till she goes back to Virginia? Only real tarnish on the night was that Denise O'Brien couldn't get the green bus across the line.

The Dems pick up a state senate seat in Johnson County as well, as Becky Schmitz knocks off Dave Miller to become part of a 30-20 majority. Joe Bolkcom beats the guy with the long name 78-22. On the House side Ro Foege whomped Emma Nemecek 61-39, Mark Nolte made a respectable showing, and Clara Oleson got beat even worse than I did.

Split Your Vote appears to have accomlished little more than venting some Newport Township steam, as the voting patterns in the other 56 precincts seem to follow lines that are explained by other factors. Other than Newport, Curry's best spots were places Republicans usually do well. Sally Stutsman comes in first and is the first four term supervisor in at least a couple generations. Larry Meyers is a close second and the Dems keep the solid 10-0 hold on the courthouse.

Elsewhere in the state Braley overwhelms Whalen but despite the national trend Leonard Boswell only beats Lamberti by six. The wave saved Boswell, who really should announce his retirement now.

I'll take me a day or two to absorb the national scene but I can't wait to see Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid take on the Bushies... Dennis Hastert will return to the back benches before the month is through.

For tonight I'm just enjoying the moment: the giddy staffers at the end of the victory party, the emotional release of the end of this particular long haul. I doubt I'll get any sleep...

Comments from others:

The Johnson County Republicans are concise.

Common Iowan and Political Forecast had play by play on results.

In Muscatine, Nathan Reichert is re-elected and the Democrats have taken contol of the Board of Supervisors.

The Longest Day Starts

The Longest Day Starts

You won't hear much from me today, maybe an early evening update and a verrrrry late look at the local big picture. Just a couple things to share this morning:

The big secret weapon of the GOP 72 Hour Fiendish Plan seems to be, you guessed it, vote suppression:

This year's heavy volume of automated political phone calls has infuriated countless voters and triggered sharp complaints from Democrats, who say the Republican Party has crossed the line in bombarding households with recorded attacks on candidates in tight House races nationwide.

Some voters, sick of interrupted dinners and evenings, say they will punish the offending parties by opposing them in today's elections. But critics say Republicans crafted the messages to delude voters -- especially those who hang up quickly -- into thinking that Democrats placed the calls.

Many voters hang up as soon as a robo-call begins -- without waiting for the criticisms or the NRCC sign-off at the end -- so they think it was placed by the Democratic candidate named at the start...

Even worse:

In New Mexico yesterday, the state Democratic Party accused its GOP counterpart of calling Democratic voters and falsely telling them their polling place has changed.

Even Even Worse:

Tim Daly from Clarendon got a call saying that if he votes Tuesday, he will be arrested. The transcript from his voicemail reads:

"This message is for Timothy Daly. This is the Virginia Elections Commission. We've determined you are registered in New York to vote. Therefore, you will not be allowed to cast your vote on Tuesday. If you do show up, you will be charged criminally."

Daly has been registered to vote in Virginia since 1998, and he has voted for the last several cycles with no problem. He has filed a criminal complaint with the Commonwealth's attorney in Arlington.

If you really really don't know where to vote, call me at work or look it up. I'll also be posting the turnout updates and the returns - there not here so that explains the lack of blogging.

Just How Confident Are House Republicans?

Some Republican members have already suggested that the conference may consider an entirely new leadership team if the party ends up losing control of the House. Among those mentioned as possible members are Policy Chairman Adam H. Putnam of Florida and Chief Deputy Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia.

Parties that are expecting to win -- or even to lose narrowly -- don't let leak discussion of the defenestration of their leadership the day before an election.

Loebsack and Culver win the Hamburg Inn Coffee Bean Poll:

Culver defeated Republican candidate Jim Nussle 1,475 votes to 260 votes. Loebsack defeated incumbent Jim Leach 1,123 votes to 446 votes.

Remember: the Ronald Reagan table is also the Jim Leach Table...

Obamarama: Old Media Roundup

Obamarama: Old Media Roundup

Lots of stories and pics this morning:

Register:

The campaign of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chet Culver got an almost picture-perfect rally Sunday night.

"I think I heard the sheriff say something like 5,000 people are here," said Taylor West, Culver's press secretary. "I think it's indicative of the huge momentum build we've seen over the last few weeks."

I'll take Lonny Pulkrabek's word for it; it was beyond my capacity but perhaps they teach you crowd estimating at sheriff school.

Gazette covers the other team too, and zooms in on some of the same things I did on the fly:

``It requires audacity to believe in things not seen,'' he said, adding that ``to hope is not to ignore the challenges we face, but to say we can do something about it.''

From the birth of the nation to the abolition of slavery to women's suffrage, unionization and the influx of immigrants, he said, ``this country was built on the audacity of hope.''

Tuesday's election will reaffirm that Americans, ``at their core, are decent people,'' Obama said.

``When American people pay attention, good things happen,'' he said, and they are paying attention in this election cycle.

PC has a photo gallery (you can spot me if you look close) and article:

"Our party is about hope and opportunity," said Culver, who spoke at the end of rally. "But we're also the party of dreams."

Some of those "dreams" include raising teachers' salaries, providing health care and early education to all children, giving women the right to choose what to do with their bodies, and lifting the ban for stem-cell research, Culver said.

Iowa City is the second to last stop in the last minute campaign to rally votes by Democrats. The rally will end in Des Moines, at Hoover High School where Culver was a teacher and coach.

Mike Glover has two pieces - the "well, there's gonna be an election" angle:

Both had their party's biggest names in tow, and they were getting plenty of help from national figures as well.

Nussle was fresh from a swing last week by President Bush seeking support in overwhelmingly Republican western Iowa.

Culver was taking a page from that playbook on Sunday, bringing Illinois Sen. Barack Obama into overwhelmingly Democratic Iowa City on Sunday night for a rally with other big-name Democrats such as Gov. Tom Vilsack and Sen. Tom Harkin. Like Nussle's western Iowa effort, Culver was looking to boost turnout in a region he's certain to carry.

And the 2008 angle:

Obama was making his third swing this year through Iowa, where precinct caucuses traditionally launch the presidential nominating season.

Though he's only in his first term in the Senate, Obama has risen fast inside the Democratic Party. He energized many with a keynote speech at the last Democratic National Convention, and he's widely sought as a fundraiser for Democrats across the country.

That role may soon change as he mulls a run at the White House.

"After the election, I'm going to sit down and give the possibility the serious consideration it deserves," said Obama.

Forgot to mention I ran into Dien Judge last night. Smoky Hollow should be back sometime soon...

This kind of big rally is almost anachronistic - a century or more ago, before electronic media, political speeches were a major form of mass entertainment, and voter turnout was much higher than it is now (at least among the white males who were allowed to vote back then). It's nice to know people can still get fired up by in person politics. There's a lot more drudgery to activism than hoopla, but hoopla is a nice reward.

Obamarama 8: Chet and Followup

Obamarama 8: Chet and Followup

It's a LOT later now. My souvenir for the night is a CREDENTIALED PRESS ONLY sign that I stole from the media riser. Christmas gift to self: long life laptop battery.

When I was interrupted, Obama was wrapping up Immediate silence as he said the word "Iraq" - everyone wants an answer. But he used the "any of us here would take up arms" line again that excludes the notion of patriotic pacifism. SOme folks had improvised peace signs on paper plates.

Big closing statement: "The American people want their decency reflected in their government - that's why we're seeing this change." He does the victory tableau with Chet and Culver takes over. A few folks drift off, but not very many. He kept it relatively short, gave Mari a smooch, and intro'd the family without having them on stage - John Culver was there but we didn't see him.

Chet pledges a minimum wage hike in his first 100 days. The issue bullet points get big cheers with choice getting as big a reaction as Obama did. The band ends with BTO's You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet which must be on the approved list now - and the crush to meet Obama happens.

Neighbor Sean met him on the way in and told Obama to "kick some ass" - which of course explains everything. My daughter has inherited the political bug from me and the push through the crowd skills from her mother. With a big assist from Tom Harkin, she got to meet Barack Obama, who she pronounced reeealy cute. Hardly a unique observation, but very much in character.

Thanks for the massive traffic, all. I've had several inquiries about election night blogging and I'm afraid I'll miss out on that due to the nature of my work...

Obama 7: He's on

Obama 7: He's on

9:18 and Obama's on. Making Firefighters/crowd on fire jokes. They're letting him speak next to last: Chet, I hope you're on tonight...

Past the intros on to the message.

There's a mood shift, a sea change across the country. Explaining the origins of the phrase "The Audacity Of Hope." Praising the importance of grass roots work as part of his own background... "The easiest thing in the world is to feel cynical." His voice echoes of the walls of Iowa City's litte concrete canyon as people wait,hanging on his words... "but to see the world not as it is but as it can be is the audacity of hope." This has built our whole country. And he walks the audacity of hope through our history. And he ties it to the same issues we face today: gender equality, living wages, civil rights...

"At each and every juncture people said'you can't do that - yet it happened."

"Not a Democratic or Republican agenda, it's an AMERICAN agenda."

Battery dying will finish later... sorry Chet. Tune in later tonight.

ba0ara0a 6+ E3v5s 5s 5n the b453d5ng

ba0ara0a 6+ E3v5s 5s 5n the b453d5ng

Damn number lock.

Chet and Mari, Tom and Christy, and Harkin hit the stage. And oh yeah Obama too.

Vilsack speaks first.

TV is in full YEAH! mode as he was at JJ. Actually sounding a bit hoarse. Content is trifecta, trifecta, trifecta and bullet points. First Obama reference gets screams.

Hereeee's Harkin absolutely in his element. He's zooming in the GOTV hard work message. Calls for a 20,000 vote Johnson County margin (THAT'll be tough but why not set the bar high?)

Some well-received Bush bashing ensues. More than a few "Impeach him!" shouts. Harkin responds "No way we're going to impeach Bush." The crowd, fished in, mutters "why not?" And Harkin gets the punch line: "Because no Democrat in the Senate wants to see Dick Cheney become President." Calls for a Dem congress and the "Loebsack" chants start.

Nussle bashing gets good reacts too but not nearly as much as Bush.

"Two words: Had Enough?"

Obamarama 5: Loebsack

Obamarama 5: Loebsack

Loebsack points right at Leach's office which is just behind me. He's getting biggest cheers of anyone yet - can these folks taste victory?

Sets up a rhetorical question format but stays on message: Leach's first vote for Hastert and he's a Bush backer, I'm the only Democrat in this race. Suggests that Leach can take over Loebsack's professorship after his defeat :) Hitting health care, the war, minimum wage. A spontaneous "Dave! Dave! Dave!" chant.

"I will never, never leave behind those who most need our help."

Thsi would be a standing ovation speech if anyone were actually sitting down.

Obamarama 4: Here They Come

Obamarama 4: Here They Come

8:33 - holding pattern? We have live music again. 8:37 and I think I see politicians gathering in the hotel lobby. Best seats in the house seem to be on the Sheraton balcony though a couple folks prefer the trees. This is the definitive Iowa City location, truly the heart of my city.

Journalist: "There's Obama! Far side of the lobby." He couldn't help but sound excited.

8:44 and it's the state slate card. Patty Judge on the mike, Mauro's here, Denise is here, the Loebsacks too. Patty keeps it brief - re-fires up the crowd. She gives a shout out to Dien: can't wait to see him blogging again.

I'll applaud Mike Mauro from the press riser. "We can't let Ohio and Florida happen in Iowa." Makes the straight ticket pitch.

Denise O'Brien: Clean food, clean water, local control.

Obamarama 3: The Show Begins

Obamarama 3: The Show Begins

Sue Dvorsky handles the intros of the locals and it looks like the whole slate card up there. Looks like all the contested legislative locals will have a moment. 8:19 and we have Mark Nolte. Gets the cadence going like a much more experienced pro.

Ro and Joe talk up the trifecta, but Sue Dvorsky can't think of a loan shark joke. Bolkcom wants "Iowa to be a welcoming place to ALL our citizens." The locals are doing a good job of holding the largely student crowd.

Pictures from up here won't work with the lighting so send em if you get 'em.

Sue: "This is what it feels like when you know you're gonna win! This isn't just another election - this is HISTORY."

Obamarama 2: Tighten Up!

Obamarama 2: Tighten Up!

Objective journalists refuse to applaud even to a statement as universal as "Y'all like James Brown?" It's 8:10 and I detect local politicians gathering backstage. Crowd is about five times your typical friday concert size. DEFINITELY the best warm up music this year.

Doug "Yoda of Voting Equipment" says hi, he's off to monitor the Netherlands soon. They had an equipment issue: seems the machines gave off an electronic signal that could be used to tell how people are voting. OOPS...

Obamarama Part 1

Obamarama Part 1

Live from the Ped Mall in Iowa City and interloping on the press platform in my Loebsack shirt. Here's to post-objective journalism! Doeesn't seem to offend the Underrated One Mike Glover who stopped by. Tried to pump him for info but he saw it coming: "Well, gonna have an election..." Note to self: Don't ever play poker with HIM.

Music is hipper than usual with a live blues rock band. My first impression is there are a lot of lot of lot of YOUNG people here. (Including my daughter who refused to miss this.) Hope they all heeded the warnings of Robot and got registered.

Nice weather - a little chilly for bare handed typing. A shout out to Neighbor Sean and the crew who just called lookin for me. The joys of tech...

Stay tuned.

Vote Suppression 101

Vote Suppression 101

Why get out the vote when you can get rid of the vote?

The Maryland GOP poll-watcher program, outlined in a 13-page document, states: "Your most important duty is to challenge people who present themselves to vote but who are not authorized to vote."

Jonah H. Goldman, director of the National Campaign for Fair Elections, said the program "raises serious concerns."

"When you have a political party telling people their Number 1 responsibility is to challenge voters, our ears certainly perk up," Goldman said. "This could either be intended to challenge voters in a discriminatory way or in a disruptive way. A lot of times, they just try to cause chaos and long lines."

Wonder how far and wide this sort of thing will be happening? At MyDD, Jill Tubman writes:

There are some folks laying in plans to create voter confusion, suppression, intimidation. There are also some people working hard to prevent another round of disenfranchisement aimed at low-income people, seniors and particularly, minority voters. Things like:

Harsh and Burdensome Voter ID Requirements

Barriers to voter registration

Provisional Ballots

Long lines and inequality in resource distribution at the polls

Disenfranchisement of citizens with past felony convictions

Emerging suppression strategies

It's too bad paper trail has sucked up so much energy that this stuff gets too little attention. That and same day registration: Despite all the warnings issued by Robot, I've had to tell too many people "I'm sorry, you missed the deadline, you can't vote" this week.

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Register has the best writing this morning:

A longer story on the final Iowa Poll and Chet Culver's nine point lead

The Overrated One is actually worth the link love with a Nussle: what went wrong? column

Rekha Basu looks at the big picture of Iowa agriculture:

Denise O'Brien isn't just the better candidate for Iowa agriculture secretary, she's one of the most exciting candidates for any office in next week's elections. Even if agriculture isn't your issue, she's talking about our identity and quality of life as a state.

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Been so busy I completely missed Friday's Daily Iowan Dave Loebsack endorsement. As I write, I'm planning to be on the Ped Mall tonight for the big Obamarama, but if you're there and don't see me, I'll be happy to pass your thoughts and/or pics along.