The Iowa Buzz is ALL Edwards...

[AmBlue]

All this talk on DU and in the lamestream media is just that: TALK.

Edwards is going to win this. I have friends who have flown to Des Moines this week and all the cabbies and hotel employees are saying it's all Edwards' supporters and media who have flooded their town. It's Edwards signs that they see and Edwards that all the locals are talking about. Nearly nothing for BO or HRC. All the buzz is all Edwards and the energy is building. You watch.

[TwilightZone]

1. At least two other campaigns would beg to differ.

Obama and Clinton have hundreds of people in Iowa going door-to-door and performing other campaign duties. That doesn't seem to fit the definition of "nearly nothing".

[senseandsensibility]

2. I love cabbies and hotel workers as much as anyone

but since when did they become poll takers? Not that I disagree that he is probably the favorite of most working people in Iowa. It's just that it doesn't mean he's going to win. Still, I appreciate the report from the trenches.

[bvar22]

41. Take it from someone who has traveled a lot,

cabbies and hotel workers KNOW more about what is happening in a town than anyone else.

[AmBlue]

3. Just conveying reports from people on the ground there. n/t

[frogmarch]

4. Thanks, AmBlue

for the encouraging report from the ground. For many of us, it's Edwards all the way. :thumbsup:

[sandyd921]

5. It's ALL Edwards for me too!

Thanks for the encouraging report AmBlue!

[ingac70]

6. I hope so.. n/t.

[The_Casual_Observer]

7. That would be OK

He's run a good campaign.

[Liberty Belle]

8. I hope they're right. i'm going to Nevada next weekend for Edwards.

I met him in San Diego, while covering the CA Democratic convention here, and was most impressed by him. I had a strong feeling that I'd just spoken with the next president of the United States.

Since then his 80-page booklet and strong anti-corporate speeches have only intensified my positive impressions of him.

[AmBlue]

9. A lot of folks are travelling for him.

My friend from New Jersey on her way to Iowa for Edwards had a 1 1/2 hr layover on Sunday in Chicago and she ended up chatting with an RN from Seattle on her way back home from New Hampshire. The RN was on her way home from working for Edwards in NH!!

GO, JOHNNY, GO!!!

[EFerrari]

10. Crossing everything!

[CorpGovActivist]

12. Me Too! n/t

[rodeodance]

29. I feel like a pretzel.

[EFerrari]

38. "Pretzels For Edwards!"

lol

:)

[CorpGovActivist]

59. "But None for Bush!" n/t

[caligirl]

11. Thanks for the interesting on the ground news.

[adnelson60087]

13. If cabbies are talking him up...

that's a HUGE plus. Thanks for news from the Trenches. Give'm Hell John!

[balantz]

14. Great word AmBlue!!

Thanks for lifting my spirits :7

The cabbie comment made it good for me too!

The Edwards Bounce!! :bounce: :bounce: and a kick :kick:

[AmBlue]

15. Happy to oblige. n/t

[K8-EEE]

16. AmBlue -- It's my birthday tomorrow and the gift I want most is

FOR YOU TO BE RIGHT!

Loved your post, now....COME ON IOWA!!!!

[AmBlue]

52. I want nothing more than that very same thing...

...for your birthday too, darlin'! And I'll be praying that you get it!

[Inspired]

17. I'm an Iowan for Edwards.

To say it isn't close would be disingenuous. To say that the other candidates aren't organized would be a lie.

Here are some of my observations from the field.

There is a remarkable difference between the 'boots on the ground' efforts in Iowa. I know this because I wear these boots. I also have a satellite field office located in my house and I see things fairly up close.

Their are a lot of out of town Edwards supporters here in Iowa. Some are hitting the streets, some are making phone calls, some are blogging citizen journalist reports. Their efforts are extraordinary. The fact that they have taken their vacation time and are using their own money to come here is remarkable. I don't want to downplay this or seem ungrateful but the fact we have out of state volunteers isn't what is going to make the difference.

The difference is the local volunteers who are hitting the streets and making the phone calls. It is also the demographic of the out of state volunteers. The Edwards campaign has a lot of local volunteers, union volunteers and more seasoned volunteers. Iowans know who is from Iowa and who isn't. They know who understands the issues instead of rattling off memorized talking points. Not all Iowans are impressed when a young kid from Illinois comes to their door. They can't relate to these volunteer door knockers.

This is what I see with the other campaigns. I meet up with them in our neighborhoods. They are all very young, not local, and while they have talking points memorized, they really haven't experienced life enough to understand why these issues are so important. They say we need change but they weren't born before the Reagan years. They don't have a clue what it really meant to Iowa when the Maytag plant in Newton closed. You can't fake understanding the anguish that this caused our entire state. Our volunteers understand.

They also don't really understand how much we have been bombarded by ads, direct mail and phone calls. Our local volunteers understand completely and we know what to say when people start rolling their eyes when they see another campaign volunteer at their door. We can say from experience that we are sorry to bother them, that this will all be over soon and why this campaign is so important to Iowa. John Edwards' plans are good for Iowa. I can tell them why because I'm an Iowan. Our out of state volunteers can tell them why John is kicking ass for the middle class because they have experienced first hand the same burden.

[IndyOp]

43. Inspired - Thanks for the summary of your experiences.

Local boots on the ground are worth a whole, whole lot. I live in Monroe County, Indiana and in the 2006 election there were young staffers from D.C. who took their vacation time to come work on the election of a Democrat in my district. They were really wonderful - really wonderful - in comparison with other out-of-state helpers who've come in past, still they didn't know the towns, didn't know the culture.

I think that the time Edwards has spent in Iowa over the past several years has been well worth the effort. I've heard that he has campaign bases in all 99 counties and that is incredible.

Thank you so much for all of your hard work! :hi:

[kentuck]

18. If that were to happen...

They have covered their asses. They would say that at the last minute all the "undecideds" went to Edwards. So all propaganda was totally valid.

[TornadoTN]

19. A close business contact of mine shares your sentiment

A good friend and business contact of mine outside of Des Moines is convinced that this thing is Edwards for the taking. He caucused for Edwards in '04 and says that the overwhelming majority of people in his regional Democratic party are firmly behind Edwards this time around.

As for me, well, I'm still undecided but edging ever closer to throwing my support behind Edwards.

[Debi]

20. And we all know that Des Moines rules the entire state of Iowa

Polk County is our goddes and the other 98 counties must bow at her feet. :eyes:

Des Moines is the center of the medial circus right now - get out of Polk County to see what the rest of Iowa thinks

(However, I do believe Edwards will come out first in Iowa - I just hate it when I hear that 'Des Moines says...')

[Hoof Hearted]

21. Except for the buzz that isn't. Just came back from there, visiting SIL and it was very evenly

split with Hillary, O and Edwards. There was a very strong current of Biden in her area too, and I have high hopes that he will make a strong showing. I VASTLY prefer Biden over Edwards.

[Ganja Ninja]

22. Yeah I think he may pull an upset.

From what I've heard he's got a well oiled machine of current and former caucus voters. And I expect the Obama & Hillary voters will make make him their second choice since there seems to be a lot of bad blood between them.

[WillTheGoober]

23. heh ...

Thanks for this.

I imagine Hillary and Barrack have different numbers and different on-the-ground "buzz" reports.

We'll see.
W.

[Libby2]

24. Good Deal! Go John Go!

[spanone]

25. cabbies and hotel employees, now there's a good barometer

:toast:

[helderheid]

26. WOOT!

[xultar]

27. If the Edwards folks are in the hotels and cabs that means they are not walkin

the streets in neighborhoods and such.

Just thinkin logically.

[geiger]

28. Without even having read your post, I have been feeling this way for a couple of days now

It will be interesting to see how close Obama comes.

[rodeodance]

30. I did--until the latest polls came out. now i am just down.

[AmBlue]

33. Don't be down.... Here's one for you:

December 31, 2007 — Using the same polling methodology that successfully predicted the outcome of the 2004 Democratic Caucus in Iowa, InsiderAdvantage/Majority Opinion Research has been conducting a daily tracking poll among likely voters in the Jan. 3 Iowa Democratic Caucus, and it shows a statistical tie between Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, with Barack Obama starting to lag.

Clinton has 30%, Edwards 29%, Obama 22%, with 14% committed to other candidates and 5% undecided.

The survey was conducted Dec. 28-29 among 788 likely Democratic voters in Iowa. The poll has been weighted for gender and age. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4%.
Critically, Edwards was the second choice of 62% of those who supported other candidates that did not receive the required 15% of the vote. Clinton was the second choice of 21% and Obama of 17%.

Using the reallocation methodology InsiderAdvantage used in 2004 – which correctly indicated a fairly comfortable win for John Kerry – our new poll reveals that, if the caucuses were held today, the reallocated final outcome would be:
Edwards: 41%
Clinton: 34%
Obama: 25%

more:

http://www.southernpoliticalreport.com/storylink_1231_1...

[OzarkDem]

35. Ignore the polls

its pretty obvious what Rasmussen and others are trying to pull.

[rodeodance]

31. Huff Post: Edwards Hunts Votes All Night

Forum Name General Discussion
Topic subject Edwards Mr and Mrs. Hunts Votes All Night
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2572354#2572354
2572354, Edwards Mr and Mrs. Hunts Votes All Night
Posted by rodeodance on Wed Jan-02-08 10:14 AM

it just may come down to a few votes!!--go john and eliz. go!


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/01/02/edwards-hunts-votes-all-n_n_79157.html



Edwards Hunts Votes All Night

Des Moines Register | Tony Leys | January 2, 2008 08:15 AM
Read More: Florida, Joe Biden, Iowa, Bill Richardson, John Edwards , Breaking Iowa News
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Creston, Ia. - It would be surprising enough if Marcia Fulton was willing to get up in the middle of the night to go listen to her favorite presidential candidate. Or even her second-favorite presidential candidate. But here she was, at 2:15 a.m. today, sitting on a couch in someone else's Creston home, waiting for the arrival of her third-favorite presidential candidate.

A few minutes later, the front door opened, and in came John Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, who were midway through a frantic, 36-hour campaign trek across Iowa.

Fulton wouldn't have missed it. "I thought, if they're willing to do this, I'm willing to be here," she said. She prefers rival Democratic candidates Joe Biden and Bill Richardson. But she suspects neither of them will receive the minimum of 15 percent at her caucus Thursday. She's looking for a fallback choice, and she likes Edwards' positions and his straight-forward style.

Fulton is a native Iowan who lived most of her adult life in Florida before retiring and moving back to Creston three years ago. She's gone to see each of the top five Democratic candidates, including Edwards, Biden and Richardson, at least twice. "This will be my first caucus," she said. "I just love this stuff."

[AmBlue]

32. self-delete

posted in the wrong spot

[youthere]

34. Edwards WILL win Iowa...

he has enormous support here, and maintained most of his base from 2004, which gave him a leg up on the other candidates. There are others running that I like much better than Edwards, but ultimately I will support whoever wins the nomination.

[Clark2008]

36. Bad news.

I really would hate to have to take a hiatus from this board until he loses the GE.

[EFerrari]

37. My heart is with Dennis but imo, Edwards is a winner. For one thing,

he doesn't look crazy or mendacious like ALL the Republicans in the race so far.

[truebrit71]

44. ..so after he wins the GE what will you do then?

...

[Kurovski]

39. K&R

The man is talking about what needs to be discussed. And he has been doing so for many months.

[chimpymustgo]

40. Thanks for the uplifting report! Go Edwards! Go cabbies! Go pretzels!

nt

[Laura PourMeADrink]

42. He needs to high-tail it to NH - pronto !!

[femrap]

45. Reading your post just gave me

the goose bumps....I hope you're right.

I remember my father telling me that when FDR was elected, people were on their knees crying...happy tears of relief. I feel we are on very similar ground today.

[AmBlue]

50. Amen, sister!!

I will be on my knees with tears of joy myself with an Edwards win tomorrow night.

[earth mom]

58. Wouldn't we all do the same to get to get someone who is on our side in office?!

BTW-YOUR post gave me goose bumps!

[girl gone mad]

46. I hope that Iowa does the right thing.

And at the moment, that appears to be voting for Edwards.

[Prefer]

47. Funny to watch them try to minimize Edwards on TV

They are all aflutter on cable, trying to hide him behind Hillary and Obama.

Normally it would work, but with Hillary's big donor buddies and corporatist ties, people are running from her.

Obama, unable to define who he is. Is he a people's candidate? No that's Edwards. So who is Obama? He seems like a phony actor making big promises he can't keep. The arm motions are particularly phony looking to me.

[AzDar]

48. Edwards challenges the status quo like no one else in the race.

Makes him 'dangerous' to a lot of entities.
Go, Johnny, GO!!!

[AmBlue]

51. That's right!

What he has done is nothing short of astounding considering that he has spent the least amount of money, he's taking no corporate lobbyist or PAC money, and has been all but blacked out by the lamestream media while they spoonfeed us HRC and BO.

Nothing short of astounding. I hope to be further astoundeded tomorrow night!!! GO, JOHN, GO!!!!
:kick:

[Guaranteed]

49. Yup. I've been thinking he's going to win. nt

[IsItJustMe]

53. I'll say a prayer tonight. Who knows, it may help. Cross my fingers too.

On Edit:

Good luck John. We desperately need a change in this country and I honestly believe you are that ticket.

[Arugula Latte]

54. That would be too cooooool!

I'm afraid to get my hopes up, though.

I want Edwards to win, but, almost more than that, I want Hillary to bite the dust so badly. :bounce:

[WillyT]

55. Yeah Baby !!! - K & R !!!

:bounce::kick::bounce:

[jeffrey_X]

56. My friend lives and teaches in Ames....he says it's all Obama.

don't shoot the messenger.

[L84TEA]

57. yup most of my friends and neighbors

are backing Edwards...
My only fear is we just had Bill in town..and for some reason people think Bill is HILL?? so I AM HOPING...that isn't true.
I find it hard to believe Obama will be viable here..but stranger things have happened.