Iowa08: Archives

MEG WHITE writes:
I was listening to National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" today (December 19), and they had a quick segment about Iowa caucus goers. During "Morning Edition," political reporter David Green had commented that in the last few caucuses, only six or seven percent of eligible voters in Iowa caucused. In response to this, the reporter invited University of Iowa political science professor David Redlawsk to talk about what these people look like.

I turned the radio up, curious to find out who I'd be meeting in Bettendorf, Iowa.

Redlawsk said caucus goers are whiter, older, richer, more educated, and more rural. That didn't surprise me, until I started thinking about it. They are whiter, older, and more rural than most other Iowans?

We're talking Iowa: 93 percent white, 14.6 percent over age 65, and the state that taught this Minnesotan the definition of rural.

Who knew Iowa could even get whiter, older, or more rural?

Who made these people boss of the democratic process?

I might be overreacting here. What state can truly claim to represent our diverse nation? And how much power does Iowa really have in choosing our next president? Not all that much, historically.

But they sure do get a lot of attention. I don't think it's too off base to suggest that environmentally dubious ethanol is still on the political table because corn-heavy Iowa makes up its mind on the next presidential candidates first.

Iowans don't like it when I say stuff like that. They say they have built up a political culture that no other state could compete with. They also say I am just jealous.

Iowans may be in better political shape for this job than other states. I intend to find that out for myself on January 3, 2008.

I do know this, however. I've lived in a couple of "purple" or swing states. And I have to say having my city swamped by reporters, the Secret Service, and candidates, not to mention my television taken over by attack ads, is not something I looked forward to on election years.

Meg White is a graduate student in journalism from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

MEG WHITE writes:
I walked up to Senator Chris Dodd's Davenport headquarters as a group of young volunteers were taking a group picture in front of the door. Their office was nestled between an unused storefront littered with last season's political signs and Blue Hue Tattoo.

They were smoking cigarettes, joking around, and strategizing. I joined them in the alcove against the bitter January wind. The first thing they showed me was their socks.
Emilie Deans showed off her pair of "lucky argyle socks." Karen Polet had on a pair of Christmas-themed ones. Justin Daniels laughed.

"We're laying it all on the table," he said jokingly about the auspicious footwear.

Just inside the front door they had taped a piece of butcher paper on the wall with a wish list:

trash cans
letter sponges SHOULD BE CROSSED OUT
coffee maker SHOULD BE CROSSED OUT
mop + bucket
tea
mini-fridge
shredder
desk SHOULD BE CROSSED OUT

They may as well have put "over 1 percent of the Iowa vote" on the list.

Most of the calls placed from the office were outgoing that day. However, one call in particular caught my attention. While J.R. Cohen was running the front desk, she received a call from a Dodd precinct captain saying the Clinton campaign was planning on catering the caucus at a precinct in Davenport. She announced this to the half dozen volunteers in the office, and the response was multiple in perfect unison:

"Food is not allowed!" they said.

To be clear, food is allowed in the building but not in the actual rooms where the caucusing takes place.

"That's pretty much buying votes, which we don't do at the Dodd campaign," Polet reminded the precinct captain over the phone. She then called Scott County Democratic Chairman Susan Frembgen and left her a message.

Later that day, I ran into Frembgen at a rally for Senator Joe Biden at Mojo's Coffee House in Davenport and asked about the precinct.

"It's just another headache...another stinking situation I have to deal with," she said wearily.

Thursday night, Dodd came up with 0.02 percent support in the caucuses, leading him to drop out of the race. No doubt, the volunteers went home, Frembgen went back to her day job at the Rock Island Arsenal, and the wish list was thrown away.

Meg White is a graduate student in journalism from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

MEG WHITE writes:
After living out of a suitcase for two weeks, my northern "vacation" came to a close this Saturday.

I spent Christmas and New Year's in Minnesota with family and friends who wanted to hear all about grad school and the caucuses. I returned to Chicago for a couple of hours of class before heading out to Iowa.

After the holidays and the caucuses, it felt good to be on the El, surrounded by strangers I didn't have to talk to. I made no effort to watch the presidential debates in New Hampshire. Not only do I not have T.V. reception, but I was just too burned out on campaign talk to handle it.

I listened to them on public radio Sunday night, however.

Kucinich had filed a complaint with the FCC against ABC News for excluding him (as well as Democrat Mike Gravel and Republican Duncan Hunter) from the New Hampshire debates Saturday. I agreed with the sentiment completely. Kucinich differs on issues that the four included Democratic candidates seem to largely agree upon.

Without these issues being raised, will I have to listen to a slew of questions about "experience" and "change"? Why should we exclude voices from the Democratic debate, especially based on the results from one relatively homogeneous state like Iowa?

But I have to admit, I really enjoyed this last debate. With fewer candidates (Senators Biden and Dodd dropped out after a poor showing in Iowa), moderator Charlie Gibson didn't have to rely on buzzers or timers to keep order. So, it was more fluid conversation than stump speeches.

And Gibson's last question was a tiny piece of interviewing genius, in my humble opinion. He asked the candidates what statement, in any previous debate, they would take back if they could? Now that's a question about experience and change worth asking.

Meg White is a graduate student in journalism from Minneapolis.