Iowa hasn't lost its political magnetism

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=2835&u_sid=2366392

Published Monday | April 16, 2007
Iowa hasn't lost its political magnetism
BY ROBYNN TYSVER
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

DES MOINES - The question mark that dogged the Iowa caucuses early this campaign season - would they be as important as in years past? - has disappeared as presidential candidates flood the state to court caucusgoers.

Nine contenders visited the state in a five-day span earlier this month, and all but one of the major Republican candidates spoke here Saturday night at the GOP's Lincoln Day Dinner.

It seemed like an Iowan couldn't turn around in a cornfield without bumping into Hillary Clinton, who spent her time wooing rural residents in the eastern part of the state, or Rudy Giuliani, who vowed to visit often in the coming months.


Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani is a familiar face in Iowa, as are many of the presidential hopefuls. The shifting primary schedule in many states has done little to diffuse the attention given to Iowa and New Hampshire.


The front-loading of next year's presidential campaign - with more than 20 states holding, or thinking about holding, primaries Feb. 5 - was initially expected to reduce the influence of the Jan. 14 caucuses.

The theory was that candidates would spend less time in Iowa and more time in delegate-rich states like Florida, New York and California.

So far, the theory hasn't panned out.

FULL story at link.