Posted on 09/29/2010 3:01:16 PM PDT by iowamark
The economy
Voters are not known for acting rationally when it comes to the state of the economy.
Economists recognize the economy has peaks and valleys and that climbing out of a deep valley rarely happens quickly. But voters who are losing their jobs and income often feel powerless, and so they respond in one of the few ways they can — lashing out at the people in power.
A strong economy on Election Day rarely helps an incumbent, because the public simply focuses on other issues. However, a weak economy almost always hurts the incumbent, often unfairly.
The situation facing Gov. Chet Culver is a similar situation. During Culver's term, Iowa's net income has fallen, and unemployment has risen to almost 7 percent. As a result, he is far behind in the polls.
Voters polled are ignoring that there wasn't much Culver could do to help Iowa during a global economic downturn. Iowa's state government simply does not have the financial resources to drastically improve its economy. That didn't stop him from trying; he introduced an $875 million spending bill called "I-JOBS" to revive Iowa's state economy.
Voters' self-contradictory views are evident from the responses in a recent Des Moines Register poll. Of those surveyed, 66 percent said they believed that "investing in improvements to infrastructure would attract new businesses," and 59 percent of respondents said it was wise to use the state's borrowing power to make those investments.
These two principles are the underlying ideas behind I-JOBS, which distributed money to infrastructure improvements through borrowing money. Still, the nature of a massive economy is that it moves slowly. Iowans are still suffering from the national recession, which "officially" ended in June 2009.
These empty pockets will translate into a loss for Culver.
— by Will Mattessich
Culver himself
I'll be upfront: I really don't like Chet Culver.
He's always struck me as a thoroughly political animal, devoid of any political conviction. For Culver, expediency seems to inevitably trump ideological integrity.
He's the political antithesis of Ed Fallon, the former state representative and unabashed progressive populist. (Fallon ran in the 2006 Democratic gubernatorial primary that Culver ultimately won.)
When a contentious issue arises — such as last year's gay-marriage ruling — expect him to reflexively triangulate (à la Bill Clinton) and release a vapid statement designed to appeal to everyone.
And he employs quotidian campaign pitches such as "Let's move Iowa forward, not backward." Culver is the kind of ideologically amorphous empty suit I disdain.
My aversion to Culver aside, it's clear he would be in a tough re-election fight this year, individual ineptitude or not. The poor economy and anti-incumbent sentiment are clearly driving his poll numbers down.
In a recently released Des Moines Register poll, just 35 percent of participants approved of Culver's job performance. In addition, 52 percent of respondents backed Branstad, and 33 percent said they would vote for Culver.
But the drop in support is hardly surprising, stagnant economy or not. Iowans aren't fools. They see right through Culver's political pivots and empty rhetoric.
In addition, he hasn't pushed policies that would vivify his base. He vetoed a labor-backed collective-bargaining bill, for example, and hasn't stumped for "fair share" and other pro-labor legislation. While many Democrats will tepidly support Culver come November, he has given them little reason to actively campaign for him.
More than the economy, Culver's inadequacy as a candidate torpedoed his re-election bid.
— by Shawn Gude
Just like his daddy. And just like Tom Harkin, another notorious Iowa liberal.
Ed Fallon?! OMG! I used to be in his social circle due to me ex-wife. He and E.W., Pastor Bob and all the rest are Marxists. Progressive my Aunt Fannie!!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Fallon
Progressive is just another word for Marxist. It was popular from the late nineteenth century into the twentieth, and then went out of favor when it was tarnished by Stalin and the Cold War.
So they used Liberal, instead. Now that’s tarnished, so they’re reviving Progressive.
Endorsed by the NRA just yesterday. Things that make you go HHHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM?
I wrote for that paper and they are very left wing I was the only conservative there in 2008. That being said I can’t wait to see Culver crash and burn - he sucks, the Dems can’t run on Bush this year and they’re going down big time, serves them right.
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