Posted on 01/25/2016 1:41:48 PM PST by Hojczyk
DES MOINES, Iowa — Republican presidential candidates are frantically crisscrossing Iowa telling caucus-goers they are the only voters in the world that matter. But not front-runner Donald Trump.
While Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are camped out here until the Feb. 1 caucuses, Trump is following a different playbook.
He’s got a 757, and he’s flying it around the country in the final week regardless of what his rivals are doing. After barnstorming in Iowa over the weekend — he even overnighted in Sioux City — Trump has trips planned for New Hampshire on Monday and South Carolina on Wednesday, just days before the Iowa verdict is rendered.
Trump’s confidence — or maybe overconfidence — has his campaign dreaming of an early-state sweep. “It gives us a mandate,†Trump said of securing a victory in Iowa.
His momentum is hard to deny. Both the Cruz and Rubio camps privately acknowledge they very well might finish in second or third place here. Trump has even attracted establishment politicians like Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley to one of his rallies, something that would have been unthinkable just a few months ago.
While Grassley, an Iowa GOP icon, hasn’t endorsed Trump — the veteran senator still plans to appear with other candidates — he borrowed Trump’s slogan over the weekend, declaring it was time to “Make America great again.â€
Trump continues to preach urgency to his Iowa faithful, even if his flight manifest tells a different story. “If you lose your wife, if you lose your husband — I don’t care. You’ve got to caucus,†Trump told about 500 people Saturday at Central College in Pella, Iowa.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
Go Trump.
Both the Cruz and Rubio camps privately acknowledge they very well might finish in second or third place here
I heard that Rubio has pulled all of his ads from IA and NH. That’s a sign that he doesn’t want to waste his dwindling money. Cruz campaigning with the Loony Glenn Beck has probably hurt his campaign rather than helping.
Trump will come in first, about 10 points ahead of Cruz.
Top Sessions aide joins Trump campaign
Bill Mitchell
â€@mitchellvii
This is a BIG DEAL folks. Could this foreshadow a Sessions VP nod?
It also underscores Trump’s increasingly cozy relationship with Sessions, a prominent immigration hard-liner in Congress who has yet to endorse a candidate.
Iowa often produces surprise results, but not too many ‘Pub nominees in recent years. Will be enlightening to see how the Hawkeyes vote — for retail candidates with intricate ground games or the one wholesale candidate and his earned media and 757 city-hopping strategy. Interesting election year, to say the least.
Two new anti-trump ads start today in iowa and SC in 2.5 million ad buy.
Trump can go into any state doing an active campaign and he would take it from all of them. Every time.
I took out all the squiggles.
Did he really say that?
This is a cool article on trump in Pella. He stayed in a $129/night hotel, ate at the sports bar. Trump was tweeting at 0400 Sunday morning. I was at work, it’s so interesting. He and I meeting like spirits in the night, both concerned for our country; him awake in his motel room at 0400 tweeting about it. That’s the kind of a guy I want as president.
Glad to hear Rubio’s toast.
I’ll wait for results from Iowa.
Trump and Cruz play completely different games, and it yet to be seen which is stronger on the ground.
Yes, I watched the rally video. It’s a great video, he went into eminent domain, and the NR gang of 22. Very good rally speech.
Check out post 11.
Sounds great but DT needs a younger bench warmer.
One can only hope!
Chuck Grassley may sound as corn-pone as they come, but no one knows better which way the Iowa winds blow.
GO TRUMP GO!!!
Keep America Great!
America Great for Eight!
Even More Great America!
America Great Still!
Jeff Sessions: ‘Matter Of Supreme Importance’ GOP Nominee Can ‘Negotiate Better’ Trade Deals
Darn close to endorsing Trump...especially since TeddyBoy voted for TPA!
An unknown poster here stated that VP candidates are announced/introduced at the Convention. I'll have to do a bit of research to confirm this notion. What say yee?
I don't see Trump holding fast to conventional wisdom (no pun intended) so if a pre convention announcement would help Trump win the nomination, I think we'll see his pick much sooner than in the past.
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