Posted on 05/02/2015 2:34:06 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Arguably the most important Republican presidential endorsement to precede the 2016 Iowa Caucuses will come from Bob Vander Plaats, who failed on three occasions to become governor of Iowa.
And over here in the ‘nobody cares’ pile is Terry Branstad, Iowa’s current Republican head of state and the soon-to-be longest-serving governor in the history of this nation. How a man with that kind of stature can have zero impact on presidential politics is a solid lesson in pyrrhic victories.
The reason for such a counter-intuitive reality is simple. It’s a matter of having convictions versus pursuing positions. Vander Plaats is a man of principle, who has repeatedly demonstrated he has no interest in simply having a seat at the table.
Not only did Vander Plaats endorse the two previous winners of the Iowa Caucuses when nobody thought they had a chance to win – Huckabee in 2008 and Santorum in 2012. He also led the historic effort to get three Iowa Supreme Court judges removed from office after they pretended to have the authority to redefine marriage.
That’s the kind of conviction and track record many of the candidates in a crowded 2016 Republican presidential field would love to have in their corner. They’ll have to dig deep for it, though. As president of The Family Leader, Vander Plaats’ primary mission is Christ-centered public policy – not courting slappies and RINO-bots.
And here’s Vander Plaats’ quick takes on who’s flying and who’s flopping on the road to becoming the next President of the United States:
Jeb Bush: “He’s in trouble. When guys like John Kasich are looking to get in, that signals not everybody (in the establishment) is aligned with him.”
Ben Carson: “He needs to show up. He’s been gone. We are looking. Where is Ben Carson? He needs to be on the ground in places like Iowa.”
Chris Christie: “I’m not sure he gets in the race.”
Ted Cruz: “If I had to pick the likely candidate to win the Iowa Caucuses and probably be the nominee, it would probably be him.”
Mike Huckabee: “He’s still benefiting from being well liked and very trusted, but he needs to get the eye of the tiger.”
Bobby Jindal: “He is turning it on and saying ‘don’t count me out.’ He could be the Rick Santorum of 2016.”
John Kasich: “It’s too early to tell.”
Carly Fiorina: “She knows how to run something but she still needs to be vetted.”
Lindsey Graham: “He has to play in more than just South Carolina.”
Rand Paul: “The biggest threat to Rand Paul is that Ted Cruz is in the race. Ron Paul had the liberty segment to himself, but now you have Ted Cruz competing for that.”
Rick Perry: “I think he is going to outperform where people think he’s at. He’s got a good message.”
Marco Rubio: “Another dent to Jeb Bush. He’s a new generation and a lot of people love him.”
Rick Santorum: “A lot of people count him out, but he gets a lot of coverage when he shows up.”
Donald Trump: “Loaded with a lot of money.”
Scott Walker: “He jumped out with a bang at the Iowa Freedom Summit, but we need to see if he is a one-hit wonder.”
Vander Plaats’ take on the field and where they currently stand obviously flies in the face of conventional wisdom and polls. Proving that right now polls are irrelevant. Like the one Fox News released in January that had Mitt Romney in first place—two days before he declined to run again because he didn’t think he could win.
On the ground in early states like Iowa, all that matters right now is who is winning over the key activists that actually can move people when it counts the most. And nobody has proven they can move people when it counts more than Vander Plaats.
(VIDEO-AT-LINK)
Very nice assessment,
from Chris Christie being unable to bridge to the race,
to FOX “New” pushing (and still hoping for) Mr. RomneyCARE.
Why we let this early stuff be handled by lesser states remains a problem for me.
Seems like an ate-up-with-the-dumbass method.
What states would you suggest?
Some squishy talk from Governor Abbott or Nikki Haley on immigration.
Iowa has an anti-amnesty, anti-war, anti-crony conservative who won in a Dem district. (Rod Blum)
It has the biggest opponent of amnesty in the district with the most Republican.(Steve King)
It has Chuck Grassley. Big opponent of H1B and big defender of Jeff Sessions calling the ACLU & NAACP commies. Who accused Romney of stabbing Iowa in the back and called Obama “stupid”.
Iowa is a non-binding straw vote with no delegates at stake. Caucuses require face-to-face exposure instead of just ad money and a ballot. Gives lesser-known candidates a chance to shine without having tens of millions of dollars before the campaign begins. Some other small states like Utah, Kansas or Oklahoma would be even better.
I want what ever Vander Platts is smoking.
Lindsey Graham: “He has to play in more than just South Carolina.”
linda, if she even runs, will be nothing more than a stalking horse for Jebbie.
Bryan English, Iowa State Director with Cruz for President, says the following about the background of the team members:
Keep in mind, we’re not going to just walk into the nomination. We are going to have to fight every step of the way. There is no candidate the political elites are more afraid of than Ted Cruz. He represents a new way of doing things in Washington that upsets the big-government status quo the entrenched interests depend on. They will try to divide his base, distort his record, and distract voters from the real issues. It is our job as courageous conservatives to make sure people know who Ted is, how he’s fought for us, and the truth about his record.That’s why we’ve built a team in Iowa to reflect the broad coalition we will need to win. It includes leaders from across Iowa, including those in evangelical and homeschool circles, some who were instrumental in building the Liberty Iowa movement, plus energetic business owners and elected officials.
We have a number of individuals who were active in the campaigns of the last two winners of the Iowa Caucuses, Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee. There are some who helped strong performers in past cycles like Rep. Ron Paul, Rep. Michelle Bachmann, and Governor Mitt Romney. This diversity of backgrounds is an indication of our strength.
WooHoo!!!!
Looks like Iowa voters approve of honesty. A lot of people thought Cruz had killed his chances by being candid about his position on ethanol, but Cruz is too honest to try to pull the wool over people’s eyes. Looks like Iowan’s get it.
Schultz was officially named chair of the Iowa campaign Wednesday. Schultz currently works as the Madison County attorney, which he was elected to in November. He was elected secretary of state in 2010, according to The Des Moines Register.Schultz endorsed the presidential campaign of former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum in 2012, when he won the Iowa caucuses, even though he ended up losing to former presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
Newsmax Source: 2012 Santorum Supporter to Chair Ted Cruz's Iowa Campaign
There's a zero % chance that self-aggrandizing clown runs.
Agree.
There should be ONE date for all elections. NO early voting. No news from early states should be allowed until there are winners. Forget absentee ballots, excepting military and diplomatic staff who should all vote a month before the rest of us so their would be ballots for ALL and their votes will be counted. No more early voting. If they can’t be there on that one date, tough. I also think a purple thumb should be the rule of the land so there can be no multiple votes fraud.
It should be mandatory that who you vote for in the primary is the same party you vote for in the general. No more democrat crossovers in the primary.
Any machine that doesn’t show who you selected should immediately be taken out of action.
It would cut down on so much fraud.
Don’t be so sure. Trump certainly seems to be building an organization this time.
Many of us would agree with your proposals, but how do we get them implemented?
Ted Cruz Ping! BTTT
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