What’s the matter with Iowa? (Hawkeye State to give Barry the bum's rush this November?)

The Washington Post's The Fix ^ | August 14, 2012 | Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake

[2ndDivisionVet]

“I have nightmares about the electoral college coming down to 266-266, with Iowa to decide it,” said longtime Iowa Democratic operative Jerry Crawford. “It’s not as far-fetched as it might sound.”

Added Dave Roederer, who ran the George W. Bush operation in Iowa: “This is an unprecedented five-city tour. I doubt he’s here for the mountains.”

Iowa has long been a place of practical and symbolic importance to Obama. It was in Iowa where Obama delivered perhaps the most important/best speech of his 2008 candidacy (at the 2007 Jefferson-Jackson Dinner) and it was in Iowa where the idea of Obama became reality when he won the caucuses. And it was Iowa that Obama visited shortly after declaring his plan to seek re-election this spring.

“He has a genuine fondness for the place, and my guess is that energizes him,” said Jo Dee Winterhof, a Democratic operative and Iowa native.

And yet, the Iowa of 2012 is not the Iowa of four years ago when Obama won by 10 points and 140,000 votes over Arizona Sen. John McCain.

Iowa Republicans had a banner year in 2010, ousting Gov. Chet Culver (D) and re-electing Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) handily. Then came a hotly-contested Iowa presidential caucus fight that saw the GOP field lavish attention and money on the Hawkeye State.

Republicans are quick to note that they have erased Democrats’ 100,000-person registration edge in the state and now lead in the registration fight — albeit narrowly...

[2ndDivisionVet]

Democrats note that the narrowness of the likely Iowa margin is less a sign of Obama’s weakness in places where he was once strong than it is indicative of the Hawkeye State returning to its swing roots.

Or could it be that the Iowa economy, like the other 57 states, is crap under Dear Leader?

[txrefugee]

Just wait till the farmers find out that the man with the purple lips lied to them about Ryan blocking the drought relief program. It was passed two weeks ago, with Ryan’s yes vote, and Harry Reid has bottled it up in the Senate. The farmers won’t trust him after that big, stinky one.

[vet7279]

I really wish we would get rid of the electoral college. Then this type of thing could not happen.....

[wideawake]

I really wish we would get rid of the electoral college. Then this type of thing could not happen.....

Brilliant idea.

We should just finish the job after that and erase all the state lines while we're at it, and abolish the Senate as well.

That would be great for America.

[Rio]

Obama went there and all he could tell them was that they need more windmills.

[safetysign]

My fellow Iowans are not dumb enough to vote for this turd
again.

[QualityMan]

all about turnout....

[Chode]

you forgot the ...

[Venturer]

Certainly Iowa is a great place for Obama. That’s where he went to break in those two, Million dollars apiece, buses we bought him to campaign in.
\
Nothing like campaigning in comfort in a free bus bought by the taxpayers.

[AlexisHeavyMetal1981]

I really wish we would get rid of the electoral college. Then this type of thing could not happen.....
Brilliant idea.

We should just finish the job after that and erase all the state lines while we’re at it, and abolish the Senate as well.

That would be great for America.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Nope. Switch to a county-by-county tabulation of electoral votes instead of state-by-state. That way the conservatives in California, New York, Illinois, etc. could have a voice.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

How's the UAW doing at Maytag, Massey Ferguson, White Tractor, etc in Iowa, Jerry ?