Tuesday we encountered the full Iowa Caucus experience.
We left our adventures in Des Moines and headed to Council Bluffs. We checked in with the John Edwards headquarters and immediately started making calls to leaning Edwards supporters. It was then that I encountered much of this midwestern sensibility that I adore so much. All the while the final Edwards ad began to air on Iowa TV.
It was then we sat out on our excursion to see the top three candidates all within a few hours of each other. This was possible because... well ... its Iowa. Hillary Clinton I don't think has ever been to Kansas. At least not for a public function that wasn't in KC for money. Barack Obama came to a party function where many heard him speak. And John Edwards has been to Kansas a few times both for the party function - and in a very important "Wait! Go back!" moment in 2004 where the Kerry/Edwards train passed through 7,000 supporters waiting in the middle of the dark cold Kansas night in hopes to catch a glimpse of a presidential candidate.
Lets face it... in Kansas, we're pretty desperate. And often cast aside for larger more populated states with many more democrats. But in Iowa... its Candidates GONE WILD!
So, seeing all of these people in a short period was surreal. Unreal, actually. First, we started with Clinton. It was packed! In a giant auditorium with tons of chairs around that they had to add some. Very well organized with Chelsea and Dorothy (HRC's momma). And of course the Senator. That was the closest I'd ever been to her and I have to say for someone who has always adored her I was a little excited.
She spoke on social security and health care. She told a long timeline of her life in public service - that if anyone doesn't know by now they just aren't playing with a full deck. And she gave her list of times where she's worked with Republicans on issues. We left early. Not because of anything that was said or done, we just had to move on to the next event.
I should mention a particularly great moment that made me see HRC as more of a person rather than a political candidate robot. She was talking about moments when she has been so frustrated with the Bush Administration that she shouted back at the TV. (we've all been there right?) And she said that she thought she'd reached a point where they couldn't surprise her anymore - "I mean - the Vice President SHOT a man!" she said - and the room erupted with laughter and for the first time ever I saw her as just a normal person and not a politician.
Barack Obama's event was a whole different world. Standing room only - in a gym at the School for the Deaf, we saw mostly young people and what I would assume were potentially ex-hippies, interspersed with regular old democrats. Barack was 20 minutes late - so we could have stayed to see Hillary - but the person driving the car has anxiety issues about lateness.
He was amazing. I've never seen him speak - not even at the relative party functions in the past but I was surprised. He connected with the people there on a very colloquial, normal level. Making jokes about his relation to Dick Chaney. "You know when they start doing these genealogies you hopin' you're going to be related to someone cool. Like Abraham Lincoln or Willie Mayes or something. But Dick Chaney? That one was a real bummer..."
He not only thanked supporters and friends - but Obama actually thanked his regional staff - which was clearly not anticipated since some of them were in the other room or in the back of the room and he asked them to join him on stage. As someone who likes to volunteer and someone who values young people I was appreciative of the sentiment.
He went further to preach his Hope message - but also continued on about civility and civic participation. Clearly, a message geared toward his younger audience. Behind Obama you can also see Rory Steele who is working for him out here in western Iowa. He once headed the Washington Bus - a youth org in Washington State. I watched Obama thank him, call him out to the room, and hug him. It was amazing.
I also got to play a fun game of Watch the Secret Service Man. At Clinton's event I saw perhaps two of them - but at the Obama event there were many as well as the county sheriffs department. I watched as a secret service guy picked a hang nail and then chewed his nails. It was another one of those moments when I couldn't believe that I was actually standing in Iowa watching all of this unfold.
Then when I thought it couldn't get any weirder - we went to the midnight John Edwards event. That's right. John Edwards has decided to campaign for 36 hours straight. Holding events at 10pm, 12am, and 2am all across the state of Iowa for 36 full hours. At 11 we arrived early to the farm home of Larry and Denise and their adorable golden retriever Brandy. We shared cider and talked about John Edwards until people started to show up.
The media began to set up cameras - the Kansas City Star captured one in our party as we all cheered for a hometown paper and our hometown candidate.
And then more people came. More still - and then more - until I swear to you we were in 3 big rooms in the house all crammed in so tightly that Jason had to leave for some air. People were plastered to windows out front hoping to catch a glimpse of John and Elizabeth and sadly all we saw was the top of John's head and as Elizabeth walked out a few minutes after him.
"We missed the whole thing," my friend told our Edwards coordinator.
"Seriously?"
"Yeah... whole thing. I mean we were here, and we still missed it."
There were just that many people. At midnight. The temperature on the wall said 9 degrees.
After we gathered our party - one of the more vocal in the party was castrating the Des Moines Register for their youth vote coverage while at the same time trying not to be insulting to the great state of Iowa. It was a pretty hilarious attempt at a dance - particularly when you factor in the idea that we are not Obama supporters. The reporter was surprised why we wanted more young people to come out even if they weren't going to support our candidate of choice. She pretty much nailed it:
"The more young people that turn out the better the party," she said. "I don't care who they vote for."
She then became perhaps the most folksy person there and started playing with Brandy - the golden retriever rather than continuing their conversation.
Time check when we started heading to our crashing place was 1am. Edwards was nearing his next stop and we were about to pass out.
My conclusion:The caucus is a sport that one must train for.
I learned in the morning that the 2am Edwards event had as many if not more than the midnight event. And we spent the day canvasing a pretty conservative town that was evenly split for Hillary and Edwards.
It all comes to a head in less than 21 hours.... Tomorrow we are hanging door hangers on the same town we canvased - then heading to Des Moines to meet up with some other youth vote folks.
Cross Posted to Everyday Citizen.com
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