Roxanne Conlin Charging Forward in Iowa

I saw today that Roxanne Conlin isn't too far behind Senator Chuck Grassley in the polls today if the election were held. For Sen Grassley, it may unite the RNC/RNSC monies behind him, and yet, the DNC/DSCC may move towards helping Roxanne Conlin.

I am a big fan of Roxanne Conlin. See her website. It is so people-oriented in its message. If you have a couple of extra hours to knock on Iowan's doors before the primary or else-wise financially, she is worth the investment to get the goons out of DC.

Let's elect a real progressive to the Senate who won't hold up judicial appointments, will see that the health care bill is enacted well and make improvements, and also to help business be more green.

Roxanne Conlin Announces Run for US Senate

Roxanne Conlin, a trial lawyer in Des Moines, announced her bid for the US Senate seat for next year. She hopes to win her primary first, then take on Grandpa Chuck Grassley, the incumbent. Roxanne's campaign released this two minute video that is more biographical and she uses her own voice to narrate it.



Her biography is here. It's no wonder that she was a big supporter of JRE; their personal stories are similar, although she has been an Assistant Attorney general and ran for governor in the 1980's.

Benny's World is taking an early position about this race: we hope Roxanne Conlin wins the Democratic primary next year, but we wish all Democratic candidates well in general. It's time someone represented Iowa's true interests, and Chuck Grassley is not doing it.

Rumors from Iowa

I heard a rumor today from two good Iowans that Roxanne Conlin may consider a bid for the Senate next year.

I met Roxanne in 2004 when she held a meet and greet in her office for JRE before he was to speak at the Iowa Dems Convention. She is a pootie (meaning she loves cats) person and rescues them. It was a great event, and it was the venue where I first met JRE--and many good people, such as Im4JRE, Nanny, etc. JRE got all of the Dems fired up at the convention. He became the VP candidate for John Kerry, which is what many of us wanted.

If she does decide to run, I will make a trip to Iowa to help her out as she is a true blue Dem. I'm sick of Republicans who don't care about our health care issues and are just flat out partisan for AIG types.

Happy Birthday Desmoinesdem

Desmoinesdem is one of the editors and lead writers at Bleeding Heartland. If I want to get the scoop or leads to other scoops about Iowa politics, BHL is the first place I visit. She wrote an outstanding series that was published at MyDD and Daily Kos about the caucus system and how it works.

BW readers probably have noticed that BHL is on the blogroll.

I wouldn't have known it was DMD's birthday except she penned a post at the Daily Kos about turning 40 today, and she listed 40 bloggers over 40 that she enjoys reading. Benny's World made her list, and I am honored to be on it, especially as most of the bloggers she listed are ones I also admire.

Happy Birthday to great blogger and former JRE supporter, Desmoinesdem.



Posted via Pixelpipe.

Great Video by Ed Fallon, a John Edwards Progressive Candidate

Ed Fallon ran for governor 2 years ago. Considering he ran on little money, he came in second to Chet Culver. Fallon came over to John Edwards' camp in 2006, and I had the privilege of meeting him at the kickoff of JRE's campaign in Des Moines. He greeted supporters as they came in and also directed me and another supporter where to find JRE's areas where the bloggers were to gather for a meet and greet.

I hope he wins the primary against Len Boswell. Best wishes to Ed Fallon, a true John Edwards progressive.

John Edwards the Fighter

New ad..

Off the heels of his debate win.

Des Moines Register has the complete story about Edwards' explanation to voters yesterday when asked why he would be a better candidate over Obama (or even Clinton) but without mentioning his opponents' names.

(h/t to Tarheel at MyDD)

Edwards Wins a Key Iowa Backer

And a big one in my books: Bruce Braley.

DES MOINES – John Edwards is set to collect a key Iowa endorsement tomorrow from one of the state’s Democratic members of Congress, a coveted prize that each of Mr. Edwards’ rivals have been aggressively courting.

Representative Bruce Braley, who represents Iowa’s First Congressional District in the eastern portion of the state, is scheduled to announce that he is supporting the presidential candidacy of Mr. Edwards, a former senator from North Carolina. The development was confirmed to The Caucus by two Democratic officials familiar with the endorsement.

Mr. Braley was elected to Congress last year as Democrats swept control of the House of Representatives from Republicans. In recent weeks, he has been sought after by Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and Mr. Edwards, all three of whom headlined separate versions of “Bruce, Blues and BBQ,” a fund-raising dinner for Mr. Braley.

He is the first of Iowa’s three Democratic members of Congress to announce his endorsement. The value of any endorsement is always an open question, but as Mr. Edwards seeks to compete for attention and support with Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama, this rollout signals the beginning of an intense final month of the Iowa caucus campaign.

The endorsement will formally be announced tomorrow in Waterloo.

JRE stumped for him 3X in 2005-2006. Braley is a rural guy; he knows who helped him the most, despite Obama giving him 9K this past year from Hopefund PAC.

Thanks, Bruce. You are true to your core.

John Edwards: Our Future Number 44

I'll comment later, but this speech by JRE at the JJ Dinner in Iowa says it all.

Who Should Progressives Trust?

Yesterday, I posted about a heated exchange that took place between Madame Clinton and Mr. Randall Rolph in Iowa over the weekend. Apparently, this story is gaining attention as even Dan Baltz at WaPO is reporting on it.

Blogger Wade Norris picked up the WaPO story and created a diary at the Daily Kos about it. It's still on the recommended list. Norris was accused of channeling Drudge, supplying misinformation.

Hillary Murdoch posts the same WaPO story at Taylor Marsh. Taylor, in her analysis, uses the "sexism" angle, even though conceding that Andrew Sullivan might have a point about Clinton's arrogance in this instance. Since arrogance from Clinton is interpreted as "she's very working hard", Marsh contends that if a male candidate had reacted to the attendee as Clinton did, the media would see it as a sign of strength instead.

Did Taylor overlook that the first link to the exchange was reported by a woman? Does that mean the woman journalist is also sexist? I found two women who first reported on this heated dialog yesterday. I think they were just doing their job.

But look at the next commentary that Taylor probably has not seen yet.

Kos, whom you all know has infuriated me about calling Edwards weak for accepting public funds for the primaries, took a different approach and quoted from the Union-Leader (NH) a retired woman general who about who supported Clinton for this reason:

A retired U.S. Army general visiting [New Hampshire] to campaign for Hillary Clinton said yesterday she does not oppose the Iraq war -- and she said she's never heard Clinton oppose it, either [...]

Kennedy said, "I don't oppose the war. I think it's being very badly led by the civilian leadership." And, [Retired Lt. Gen. Claudia Kennedy] added, "I have not ever heard (Clinton) say, 'I oppose the war.' I've heard her say that we need to begin withdrawal under a plan led by the military and defense secretary. I've heard her say we need to create a regional stabilizing group by allies, by leaders in the world and by all of the states that are bordering Iraq. That is a very important idea and the point of that group is to create incentive and assurances that will keep the neighboring countries from becoming involved and entering Iraq. That's a much more sophisticated thing than saying, 'I oppose the war.'"

Yes, I am supplying a link to Kos because he gets the hat-tip for finding the information and pointing out that Clinton is not anti-war, and validates what Norris was reporting. Then there's another glaring problem Clinton will be dealing with: having Sandy Berger as an advisor. Great, a guy who stole classified documents from the National Archives a few years ago, and got caught.

What everyone is missing, except Pioneer and Montana Maven who posted here yesterday, is something Mark Schmitt penned at TAPPED back in mid-February about Clinton's view of executive power.

However, we have just gone through a period of the most staggering expansion of executive power in history, and I suspect that we don’t know the half of it. The setup that was the Iraq resolution, the manipulation of the executive branch itself in order to deceive Congress was one example of it. The next president will have to comb through a mass of undisclosed executive orders, secret legal opinions, bizarre theories, manipulative structures, embedded political appointees, excessive classification, and let some daylight back in. The last thing we need at this moment is yet another president who "believes in executive authority and Congressional deference." We need a president who respects separation of powers and democracy. After all, the next president will not be our last.

At the Yearly Kos, Jeffrey Feldman fielded a question to John Edwards about the unitary executive, an issue that loomed large in the pool of questions he and others collected from bloggers:

"The current administration has done so much to consolidate power to the Executive branch at the expense of the other two and in violation of the Constitution. As President, what will you do to restore balance amongst all three branches of government?"

Edwards response is better to be watched and heard rather than retyping the script:





I don't see that Clinton is going to be much different from Bush. And no matter what anyone says, her arrogant attitude with Mr. Rolph, a former Deaniac, is going to get noticed, and it should, if you are a progressive. And I trust John Edwards to do as he says he will, which is restoring the trust of Presidency as our founding fathers (and their wives who supported them) intended.

Clinton Gets Testy with Iowan in Defending Her Vote about Iran

As all of the blogs, MTP, and the AP reported today, the Des Moines Register reported Mrs. Clinton to be leading in their most recent poll. Rather than being able to enjoy a lead, instead Clinton, in a moment of being questioned intensely, falsely accuses an Iowan of being a plant "that someone put him up to asking the question. "

This is what Athena Jones reported over at MSNBC's blog:

At a campaign stop here, Hillary Clinton sparred verbally for several minutes with a man who pressed her on her recent vote to call Iran's army a terrorist organization.

Randall Rolph, from nearby Nashua, asked why he should support Clinton's candidacy when she did not appear to have learned any lessons from having voted to authorize force in Iraq.

snip

Clinton accused the man of being a plant who had been sent to ask the question, to which he took exception, saying the question was a result of his own research.

"I apologize," Clinton said, explaining that she had been asked the very same question in three other places.

Then Amy Lorentzen of the AP, who witnessed the same exchange, contributed to Norma Pickler's report that the dialog became more heated:

Their exchanged grew heated as he insisted the bill would authorize combat. Clinton snapped back, her voice rising, "I'm sorry, sir, it does not."

Well, let's hear it for Madame Clinton. She finally apologizes for something, mainly for her own paranoia, but of course, she still thinks she's right.

Clinton lost his vote, and no telling how many others that he will caucus with on January 5th. As the Roundtable on MTP said today, the polls are misleading because it's still early, and the folks, particularly in Iowa will continue to ask Clinton questions of substance and she will have to answer them.

That exchange is something she is unaccustomed of--clearly. And Iowans do study their candidates' views, usually beginning in October. Impressions time is over, and Clinton better do her homework about Iowans and their expectations via retail politics. Her spouse did not compete there in 1992, so this is a different ballgame. Iowans are tougher about asking questions than the traditional media such as Fox News is, and they expect honest answers.

I know John Edwards would never lose his patience with an Iowan.

JRE Buzz: Iowa is Edwards Country

Yesterday, I got back from a trip to Tom Harkin's Steak Fry. It was like a cross between a big football game of rivals and a rock concert. It was far more diverse than I expected. One woman commented that she had never seen buses from Waterloo before. Waterloo has lots of African-Americans and Latinos in their town, according to one of my friends.

To give one an idea of the scene: Obamaians marched in from a rally across the street. I spoke with one of Obama's unpaid interns and he was very nice. Most Obama supporters were enthusiastic, but they were not rude like the punks for Madam Clinton. There were young cheerleaders for Madame Clinton who shouted at Fry attendees as we walked in. Then these same punks also tried to hijack an Edwards rally---older Iowans did not like it at all as they were Edwards' supporters. The older ones who supported Clinton didn't do those kind of antics.

Iowans take their retail politics very seriously.

A word about Tom Harkin first. He is so down to earth and he understands his constituents very well. He had some great lines, such as these:

"This is my idea of surge" and reported this was a record turnout of over 12,000 people.
"Ready to do some preaching to the choir. Who is better a better choir than fellow Iowans?"
"We are ready to kick some....elephants!"

Harkin made the grandest speech of the day, outlining things Iowans (and this Illini) wants: bold movement towards universal health care, global warming, etc. I liked it that he used a WWII expression that was the theme of the event, particularly for JRE:

"We will fight, but fear not".

I parked my camp chair and gear by some other JRE supporters in the back as I wanted to sit back, observe what was going on, and get into some conversations with Iowans at the event. The ones I talked to were impressed that I drove from east Central Illinois just to witness "a lifetime" event. I was not too far from the Edwards booth, which offered hand paddle/tambourines to shake and offered John Edwards pasties for temporary tatoos. One could also get face painting. The lady next me got a photo of her little girl with Jack and Emma Claire. That's impressive. I also liked the huge vertical signs that read Edwards 08. They stood out, as well as the airplane that flew about with a banner that read "Iowa is Edwards Country"

A HRC supporter and her husband, who was leaning towards Obama were to my right. I asked the HRC supporter why she supported her. She didn't have a clear cut answer, but my impression was that it was because Clinton was a woman. The supporter mentioned that her son was now in Iraq. I asked her if she knew if Clinton had a plan to get out of Iraq. She confessed that she had not heard one from Clinton. I said that I wish I could ask Clinton that question in addition to another: when in upstate NY International Paper was threatening to burn tires for heat and energy, workers wrote and called Clinton to ask to intervene. Clinton did nothing. They burned the tires, but the state finally got wind of it, and made them stop. So if Clinton was so concerned about occupational hazards and global warming, why did she let it ride?

The supporter's response? "Oh, I didn't know that".

Or when Clinton spoke later and said she would create jobs. I turned to the JRE supporter on my left and said, "She will? Why is it that she touted a foreign company (and paved the way) near Buffalo and said they would create jobs. They have 10 employees and they have outsourced all of the work to India?"

The JRE supporter said, really, and added, "well, she hasn't been to my part of the state, and probably won't get there. " I replied, "and she's not likely to, if your town is only 5000 in population."

Clinton lacked any empathy in her voice. She came across like she is seen in the 1984 video/Youtube. Even David Yepsen thought Clinton was not that great.

I had a few things to say Obama's record as well, such as he voted with the President most of the time and he voted to confirm Condelezza Rice. At this rally, he said he would not vote for supplemental funding for the war without a deadline (whatever that means). He claimed in 2004 there was no black or white America, but I think on that vote, it was more racially based. I also mentioned to the HRC supporter that Obama voted "present" on women's health issues while he was in the state legislature, but was glad to see he has progressed since then. His supporters though showed passion when he used the expressions "Fired Up, Ready to Go" and repeated after him when he said repeated the words 3 times.

"Good cheerleader" said the Iowan to my left.

Bill Richardson canvassed among the crowd. I said hello to him and took his picture. He has a good sense of humor and of himself. But I sure disagree with him on removing all of the troops from Iraq and leaving no residuals within 6-8 months. I don't think that is possible. He also commented that Al Gore was right, but he also hoped Gore would not run. Hmm, is that his worry? I think if I were he, I would be concerned about the uranium stock piles that haven't been accounted for 12 years.

Chris Dodd more or less told his story about being in the Peace Corps, inspired by JFK's call of service for our country. To his credit, the International Union of Fire Fighters were there to help promote him at the event. But Dodd said something really odd, such as that he would "restore the Constitution of the US" on his first day. I know what he meant, it had to do with Gitmo, but it was phrased so weirdly. I liked how he ended the speech with humor, saying that all of the 12,000 attendees were invited to spend the night at the WH if he were elected president.

JRE was by far the most revered of the candidates. (No I didn't get my pic made with him this time, but I got to give him a quick hug and a peck on the cheek which he returned in kind) To get a good summary of what he said (I took too few notes on his since I was familiar with his words), Patrick from the Century of the Common Iowan has a good report on his blog. But I will tell you that when Tom Harkin uttered "John Edwards" the crowd went wild and the folks in the front started chanting. Harkin was pleasantly interrupted a few times during his introduction. And when Edwards said we don't want to trade "Republican Corporate interests with Democratic ones", that got the most applause along with being able to sign a union card as easily as joining the Republican party. I also remember that Edwards said that all kinds of health care coverage would be included. A Native American man, who was on crutches, held one of his crutches up high in support. I took his picture later.

I felt the most sympathy for Biden. He had to follow Edwards, and he took too long to get to the meat and potatoes of his speech. I do remember that he talked about Iraq and it was more like a report rather than what his plan was, although he did believe the country should be segregated into three states so that the Sunis, Shias, and the Kurds would quit fighting each other.

As aside, I wish my good acquaintance Taylor Marsh had been at the Harkin Event and read the other reports about Clinton, whom she has a high regard for. Instead, Taylor has been very critical of Obama and Elizabeth Edwards for their criticism of last week's ad in the NYT about General Petraeus. I have to say that I disagree with Taylor on this one because MoveOn ultimately changed their ad on YouTube to focus on Bush rather than calling the general a traitor. Based on her show yesterday, I think Taylor is a bit displeased with the Edwards Online campaign for not being as responsive, but that's just my opinion. Keep listening to her, BW readers. She's still the best radio talk show host out there.

Speaking of media, you can find me on C-SPAN's show of the Harkin Fry. I'm there for 2 seconds about 2 hours into the program.

Anyway, I left the Steak Fry at 4:30, and didn't stick around as I needed to get to my host's place by dark. But it was a wonderful event. I only wish I could go caucus for JRE as Harkin said, "to make the vote heard around the world" in January.

More JRE buzz l8tr...

Update: Iowa for Edwards has videos of JRE's speech up now.

Fancy Fred Goes To The Fair

Normally, I don't post such things, but this was too funny not to post.

And this is the same guy who rented a red truck for his candidacy for the Senate.

Oh my. Great start, Freddy Thompson. The man who rides around in a Republican golf cart at a country fair in Ferragamos (albeit it Fixed Noise says they are Gucci) loafers. Gucci's (or Ferragamo's) happen to cost around $315-400 at Saks Fifth Avenue.

John Edwards on the Road Again

Today, John and Elizabeth Edwards will be on the road again, this time all week in Iowa. According to Tracy Russo at JRE's blog, they will visit 31 places. In an-email, the campaign reported that they are using B20 biodiesel, a cleaner fuel, to run their bus.



I also read that John will be on C-SPAN tonight. Here's what Serb Hall Celebrator reported on JRE's blog this morning:

John Edwards campaign stop in Iowa tonight will be broadcast LIVE on CSPAN (Monday August 13) at 9 pm ET. On Monday morning's Washington Journal program, CSPAN's upcoming program schedule that scrolls at the bottom of the screen indicated the network plans to televise Edwards' appearance tonight in Iowa. One hour before Edwards, CSPAN's listings indicate they will broadcast an 8 pm ET appearance in New hampshire by Arizona senator JOHN McCAIN so if you tune in and see McCain on your screen, there is a chance the Arizona senator's event went into overtime. For those unable to catch Edwards' initial appearance, check out CSPAN.ORG under the TV Schedules link as CSPAN usually re-airs programming later in the evening and also will re-post content on its website for review.

Excellent, BW readers. We have something to look forward on the teevee instead of the usual summer re-runs.

John Edwards at RAGBRAI

Pork chop sounds good at the moment.

Clinton Surveyers in Iowa

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton means what she says, " Hi, I'm Hillary Clinton, I'm running for President. And I'm in it to Win." After reading this post on the Iowa Independent blog, it is no wonder that Clinton is behind in the polls in Iowa and North Carolina.

Clinton's campaign hired folks to ask the sleeziest questions, in a stealth manner.

Next, the questions turned specifically to the candidates. The caller also asked the standard candidate ID question, “Who are you most likely to support in the caucuses?” (Eness-Potter identified himself as leaning towards Sen. Obama.) A standard, public poll may have finished here, but the caller pressed on with questions about Sen. Clinton. He asked first what Eness-Potter's general approval rating of Clinton was, following up with carefully worded questions about Clinton: Do you feel that she is too strong of a feminist? Do you plan to support another candidate "because [Sen. Clinton] stands by her convictions on her war vote and refuses to back down?"

Then, Eness-Potter got a glimpse of what may become the positive side of Clinton’s message: “During Bill Clinton’s administration, the Clintons helped to create 100,000 jobs in Iowa. After hearing this, is your opinion of Sen. Clinton higher or lower?” The caller went on to ask a few questions about Clinton’s campaign platform, asking whether specific campaign promises, as worded by the campaign’s pollster, make Jason more or less likely to support her.

But the survey didn’t end there. As Eness-Potter’s patience continued to wane, the caller started into the negative questions about Clinton’s opponents. Although he cut the caller off fairly quickly after he saw where the caller was headed, he recalled two questions -- one about Sen. Barack Obama and the other about former Sen. John Edwards -- that were particularly memorable.

On Sen. Obama, the caller’s question had to do with the war: Paraphrased, it was “Sen. Obama boasts of his consistent opposition to the war, but he has contradicted himself by voting for appropriation bills to fund it. Does this make you approve of Sen. Obama more or less?”

And on Edwards, the subject was, predictably, about his $400 haircut a month or so ago.

It was roughly at that point in the call that Eness-Potter excused himself and hung up –- after the caller admitted to him that the survey was commissioned by the Clinton campaign.

Iowans are not easily fooled, Madame Clinton. I live next door to them.

JRE Buzz: Saturday Morning Edition

OMGawd, the last few days have been cra-a-zy on the blogsophere, and quite a bit of it about the Edwards campaign. Good and bad, but I will report the good.

Yesterday, Edwards announced he would not participate in the CBC/Fox News Debate in Sept. Personally, I don't know what the CBC was thinking on this one as Fox wants to control the whole thing. Edwards campaign is about transparency. He's saying Fox News is Faux News with a direct bias against Democratic candidates, and they ain't being honest with the viewers. Here's his statement, through Deputy Campaign Director Jonathon Prince:

"We just called the CBC to let them know that we're looking forward to their January debate with CNN but we're not going to participate in the proposed debate with Fox. The CBC champions critical issues that matter enormously to the future of our country, and we look forward to discussing them throughout this campaign and at their debate in January. But we believe there's just no reason for Democrats to give Fox a platform to advance the right-wing agenda while pretending they're objective. If there was any uncertainty as to Fox's objectivity, it was put to rest when they attacked Democratic candidates, Democratic constituency groups, and the Nevada Democratic party when their last proposed debate was cancelled for lack of support."

It will be interesting to see what the other candidates do, but the rumor is that Bill Richardson wouldn't like participate either. Both Edwards and Richardson are smart on this one as the DNC isn't allowing this to be one of their 6 sanctioned debates. Thank you, Howard Dean!

Now, on to some other news.

The Edwards family (all but Cate) was traveling and doing some town halls. There are some good vlogs and CJ reports about them. Most seemed impressed with Edwards' ideas and specifics with them. Rather than list them, I suggest going to the JRE Blog Roundup that was posted yesterday.

Elizabeth was on Oprah. I admit I thought the whole hour was going to be with EE, but it lasted maybe 5-7 minutes. I have mixed feelings about it because Oprah didn't appear to be her sympathetic or empathetic self. I hope her reaction to JRE and EE's decision to continue on, "to live life" isn't based on her support for Barack Obama or is a talking point for him.

I just listened to JRE's Saturday morning e-cast about Form One. http://johnedwards.com/media/podcasts/20 070407/

Edwards explains that it takes 7 hours to fill out a 1040EZ form. He's right that the average American has to spend hours, sometimes days to gather the data, then one calculates the tax etc. In his proposal, the IRS would do the work for us, send us our numbers since they already have the data, then either we agree and sign it, or do our own with a different form.

The big winner would be those who qualify for Earned Income Tax Credits and never it knew it.

I like this idea because it's example of how government should work for us when we've prepaid for their services.

The man has plans. I cannot wait for the SC debate on the 26th. The candidates will try to gnaw and attack his ideas, but I think SC viewers will see the campaign is about us, and not about big money or egos.

Lastly, I want to encourage BW readers to tune into Daily Kos about 8:30 CT for the Edwards Evening News. There are three anchors: TomP from St. Louis, Ladylib from TN, and Sally in SF. You get daily news about Edwards, and the water is really fine for a swim if you wish. Bloggers are friendly.

Update: Watch this awesome video of stops in NH earlier this week, courtesy of the Washington Post.


More buzz l8tr...

Edwards Announces Hawkeye State Staffers

Iowa Team Features Experienced Caucus and Campaign Staff

Des Moines, Iowa – Building on the momentum from Senator John Edwards' series of community meetings on health care with Iowa caucus goers last week, the campaign announced today the addition of key staff members in Iowa. The staff includes veterans of numerous campaigns, who have years of experience working in the caucuses.

“I am proud to have such a strong staff in Iowa to share my vision for America with caucus goers,” said Edwards. “I plan to campaign hard in Iowa and look forward to talking with Iowans about the big challenges facing our nation and how we can meet them together.”

The Iowa staff is led by State Director Jennifer O’Malley, who was Edwards’ Iowa Field Director during the 2004 caucuses. She most recently worked as campaign manager for Congressman Jim Davis' gubernatorial campaign in Florida. She has worked on numerous campaigns, including as Deputy Campaign Manager for Senator Tom Daschle's re-election campaign and Field Director for South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson's winning re-election campaign.


The Iowa staff includes:

Jackie Lee — Iowa Field DirectorLee returns to Iowa for her second caucuses having served as the North Central Iowa Regional Field Director for the Edwards for President Campaign in the 2003-04 cycle, and then as Field Director in Virginia and Florida. Most recently Lee served as Field Director for the Florida Democratic Party. Previously, she was Delaware State Director for the Emergency Campaign for America’s Priorities and for Americans United to Protect Social Security and served as the Field Director for the Oklahoma Democratic Coordinated Campaign.

Pat Maloney — Iowa Political Director
Maloney joins the campaign from 21st Century Democrats where he was National Field Director during 2006. Maloney, a native of Cushing, Oklahoma, worked as Political Director for the 2004 Oklahoma Democratic Coordinated Campaign. Maloney is returning to Iowa for his second time having previously organized southwestern Iowa for Edwards in the 2003-04 caucuses before working as Deputy Field Director in Oklahoma and Texas.

Matt McGrath — Iowa Trip Director
McGrath is a veteran of the Iowa caucuses, having organized parts of Southeastern Iowa for Edwards in 2003-04, and then continuing with the campaign in Tennessee and Ohio. He was South Carolina’s Coordinated Campaign Director in 2006. Prior to that, McGrath worked with New Hampshire Rep. Paul Hodes, helping to set up his successful campaign for Congress. In 2005, McGrath served as the Kentucky State Director for Americans United to Protect Social Security. McGrath served as a Regional Field Director for Anchorage for Tony Knowles’ U.S. Senate race in 2004.

Mark McCullough – Iowa Deputy Press Secretary
McCullough worked at the American Association for Justice as the Southern Regional Press Secretary. Prior to that, he handled media for the non-profit Washington Regional Transplant Consortium, a Donate Life organization. In the last caucuses, McCullough organized Iowa City and eastern Iowa for Edwards and later worked in Virginia and Florida. The Florida native has also worked on U.S. Senate campaigns in South Dakota and Oklahoma.

Zach Wineburg – Iowa Deputy Field Director
Wineburg, a North Carolina native, returns to Iowa after organizing northeastern Iowa for Edwards in the 2003-04 cycle before continuing with the campaign in Virginia and Georgia. Recently, Wineburg was the Kansas City Regional Field Director for the successful McCaskill for U.S. Senate campaign in Missouri. He previously worked at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC).

Chris Fields — Surrogate Trip Director for Iowa
Fields previously worked as a Field Organizer in Davenport for Edwards’ campaign during the 2003-04 caucuses. She most recently managed the successful re-election campaign of State Senator Beall. Fields, a seasoned Hispanic organizer, was the director of all Hispanic and bilingual educational efforts at D.C. ParentSmart, a Washington, D.C. based educational non-profit and as a Field Organizer for the South Carolina Democratic Party to elect Inez Tenenbaum to the U.S. Senate.

Melanie Muenzer — Iowa Operations Director
Muenzer is back in Iowa after having worked in 2006 for Congressman Leonard Boswell’s re-election campaign, a position sponsored through Senator Evan Bayh’s All-America PAC. In Chicago, she handled operations for a real estate title company. Prior to that, the native of Indiana worked extensively in 2004 on Governor Joe Kernan’s race.

Andy Zabel — Iowa Regional Field Director
Andy Zabel, a native of Humboldt, Iowa, graduated from the University of Iowa. Zabel’s campaign experience includes organizing for the Edwards for President Campaign in Iowa City and former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle’s 2004 re-election campaign in Rapid City, South Dakota. Most recently, Zabel was the Democratic Farmer Labor Party’s Coordinated Campaign Regional Field Director for the 8th Congressional District in Minnesota during the 2006 elections.

Chad Horrell — Iowa Regional Field Director
Horrell comes to the John Edwards for President Campaign with Midwestern experience having served as the Field Director for Brad Ellsworth’s successful campaign for the House of Representatives in 2006 in his home state of Indiana. Horrell also worked on Governor Tim Kaine’s campaign in Virginia in 2005. Other campaign experience includes various local and congressional races in Indiana, including time spent working for Senator Evan Bayh and the Indiana General Assembly.

Elizabeth Lucas — Iowa Regional Field Director
A native of Iowa, Lucas graduated from the University of Iowa with a background in sales and marketing. In 2006, Lucas was a field organizer for the Jim Davis for Governor campaign in Florida. In 2004, Lucas was the volunteer coordinator for MoveOn PAC in the Central Florida/Tampa Bay area before becoming the event coordinator for the Kerry/Edwards campaign in Pinellas County, Florida.

Pam Danielson — Iowa Regional Field Director
Danielson served as Deputy Finance Director for the Jim Davis for Governor campaign in Florida after managing the Arkansas campaign for Jay Martin for Lt. Governor. Previously, she spent two years as Regional Field Director and Deputy National Field Director for the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks working with Midwestern states including Iowa, Ohio and Indiana. Danielson was a Regional Field Director for Central Arkansas to elect Mark Pryor to the U.S. Senate before going to Louisiana to help re-elect Senator Mary Landrieu.

Jessica Jones — Iowa Regional Field Director
Jones joins the staff after clerking in the Iowa Senate for Senators Joe Bolkcom and Bill Dotzler. During the last caucuses, Jones worked as a field organizer for the Edwards for President campaign in Cedar Rapids. Jones was a Regional Field Director for Missouri Project Victory, electing Claire McCaskill to the U.S. Senate. Jones worked to elect Tim Kaine as Governor in Virginia in 2005 and as a field organizer for former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle’s 2004 re-election campaign in South Dakota.

I hope I get to meet them! Welcome to them from your neighbor in Illinois.

JRE Buzz: Healthcare Plan on DVD Sent to Iowans

From Aaron Myers this evening on JRE blog:

Greetings from Chapel Hill HQ. During a staff meeting yesterday, our crew watched a DVD that the campaign is mailing to Iowa caucus-goers. Families around Iowa will be seeing the video this week -- and you can watch it online here. The video describes John Edwards' plan for true universal health care.

Our new DVD will arrive in 70,000 mailboxes bundled with details of the Edwards health care plan. It's a great package -- showing a real plan to guarantee health care to every American. (Right now, 47 million Americans have no health insurance at all -- 265,000 of them in Iowa alone.)

Unfortunately, we can't mail a DVD to all of you. We can certainly put the video on YouTube. Have a look.

We know that many of you are curious to see what happens here at HQ. I'll do my best to snap photos more often. And we'll introduce more of the staff (and our great local volunteers). Stay tuned on the blog. And thanks for the energy you put into the campaign.

My reaction to the YT?

My investment in this campaign is worth every penny of this video on YT and DVD. I hope Jackie and others in Iowa will invite others they meet tomorrow and Saturday to tell them to open this mail package, review the video, and really see this candidate with an open mind with a plan for one of the top 3 concerns they have.

The first of it almost sounded like a negative ad because of the music, but when the contrast came JRE explicating his plan for action on the problem, it clicked with me and kept me focused.

However, what resonated was the end, and I confess I got teary-eyed, is the man who remarked,

He keeps talking about the right and the truth, and uh while we haven't heard that in quite awhile.

And I think he would be the one that everyone could say, 'Hey, that's my President' and really mean it, and be proud of it."

Sounds like an Iowan and the rest of us. Iowa ground booters, get out there in this better weather to help get his message out.

JRE in Iowa tomorrow and Sat.

Different way to get message out as nearly 80% of Iowans have DVD players. I bet only a small fraction read the net. I wonder how this will work in light of teevee ads, and how the teevee stations will cover his town halls?

Stay tuned as there will be more buzz l8tr..

JRE Buzz: Statement on Scooter Libby's Verdict

Senator John Edwards released the following statement today about the recent verdict finding Vice President Cheney’s former Chief of Staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby guilty on multiple counts in the CIA leak case.

"Today's verdict in the Libby case is an important step in holding the Administration accountable for its consistent misuse and manipulation of intelligence to further its ideological agenda. But there are serious questions about whether the buck actually stopped with Scooter Libby. The American people deserve to know if Mr. Libby has been made a scapegoat in order to protect anyone else."

For another round-up of John Edwards' events, including videos and articles, go here.

Good news: 100 supporters of former 2008 candidate Tom Vilsack are getting on the Edwards train.

Don't forget to tune into MSNBC's "Hardball" this evening, where Edwards will be a guest.

Update: Here's the link to the video. It's about 8 min long.

Understanding the Iowa Caucus Process

Desmoines Dem at My DD created a diary in which she explained the basics of the Iowa caucus process. It is far more complex than what I am accustomed to, which is one person, one vote. But rather than repeating here what she wrote, I'll provide the link to her diary at MyDD so BW readers can read it for themselves there.

LINK

Ok, you are wondering why JRE gets a tag on this post. Because I just mentioned his acronym...no, that's not why. It's because Edwards actually understands how this works..better than his opponents.