“Heck, Ronald Reagan LOST in the 1980 Iowa Caucuses, and he actually lived and worked in Iowa (was a radio announcer in Des Moines back in the day)! But, Ronald Reagan was divorced and was a democrat in his youth, so the Churchianity types didn’t like that”.
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I agree evangelicals play a prominent role in the Iowa GOP caucus every four years. Your theory on why Reagan lost is off base. I watched that set of events unfold back in the day. Reagan had nearly snatched he GOP nomination away from Gerald Ford in 1976, so going into 1980 he considered his nomination to be inevitable (sound familiar?), and so he opted not to participate in a crucial debate leading up to the Iowa caucus.
On caucus night, he was dumbfounded when GHW Bush cleaned his clock in Iowa, famously spouting he now had “Big Mo” on his side.
To his credit, Reagan sprinted to New Hampshire where he arranged for his own debate. Bush agreed to debate, but only if it was limited to he and Reagan. Without notice, Reagan brought other candidates in, and Bush whined. The moderator attempted to turn off Reagan’s mic, when Reagan famously shouted “I am paying for this microphone, Mr. Green!” Shortly thereafter, Reagan buried the field in New Hampshire and sprinted to the nomination, and ultimately the Presidency.
Regarding Reagan and Iowa, you are probably right as I wasn’t even old enough to go to school in 1980.
I’ve lived in Iowa for years/decades, but I first participated in a caucus in 2016, and only because Trump was running. I’d voted in every normal election since turning 18, but didn’t think caucuses were worth the hassle.
The most die-hard Trump supporters that I know personally are ex-Democrats, blue collar, 2nd ammendment supporters, Gen-X, and older Millenials.
The Trump haters (those who hate him more than your typical Democrat) are the “highly educated”, regardless of whether they claim to be Democrat or Republican— masters degree, PHD, medical doctors, etc. They hate him with a burning passion, to the point of voting for Biden to “teach Republicans” a lesson.
My observation is that if it wasn’t for Trump, Iowa would still be a “toss-up” state. It is because of Trump that Iowa is now dominated by Republicans. In the 2020 election, pretty much only the college towns and the black ghetto areas went for Biden — big change from when McCain ran in 2008.