For a change of pace as this column has been wont not to comment on primary politics thus far, for all the noise that has been out there and we've taken the patience to see how things would shake out a bit before weighing in.
For all the complaints about the Iowa Caucuses, for Democrats they will be very instructive this election cycle.
Some argue that Iowa isn't diverse enough to be first and it's not a secret ballot, which as Tom Brokaw explained can cause some people to stay home. However, he also said that Iowans take their citizenship seriously and come out for these, as we all know. The Iowa Caucuses are the last rally for the candidates. They just happen to be all on the same night and they count this time. As today's panel agreed, the Democratic primary is so fluid because of all the factors at work for each candidate, serious citizens in public will provide some good guidance for the rest of the electorate, geography and the Bloomberg factor taken into consideration.
Democratic Strategist Cornell Belcher said with no clear front runner, Biden could finish anywhere from first to fourth. The elephant in the room of course is which candidate has sound proposes but more importantly beat Trump. Of the candidates at the top in Iowa - Biden, Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg and Klobuchar - only three of the five survive the second test against Trump.
The National Review's Rich Lowry described Bernie Sanders as radioactive in terms of the attacks he'll face from conservatives, and he's right. Elizabeth Warren will get crushed in a general election, which leaves us with Biden, Buttigieg and Klobuchar. In Iowa however, Sanders energy may carry the day. This is a scenario where Iowa will be less beneficial as a first stop because if Biden is still in for Super Tuesday, he and Bloomberg will be fighting it out. Anna Palmer from Politico explained that if Biden doesn't do well in Iowa or New Hampshire that could be it for him, with Mr. Lowry adding that Mr. Biden suffers from low enthusiasm. In a general election, enthusiasm ground can be made up with Biden's pick for vice-president, 'steady hand at the top bolstered by high energy.'
With all that said, we can only tell you that Elizabeth Warren will have the most disappointing night of all the previous mentioned.
*****
It turns out that Senator Lamar Alexander's (R-TN) word on impeachment was the really the final one. He explained that there was no need for witnesses and documents because the Democratic House Managers clearly proved that President Trump pressured Ukraine for an investigation of the Bidens by withholding military aid. However, this action doesn't warrant the removal of the president from office with an election about to start. Mr. Alexander went on to say that the public should be the ones to decide.
Senator Alexander's reasoned explanation is understandable, but as Mr. Belcher pointed out it ignores the moral obligation to the Constitution and the rule of law, which is where we should all land. The president broke the law and he knew he was doing it. At one point Mr. Alexander said that maybe Mr. Trump didn't know not to do what he did, which is inexcusable to use as an excuse, especially at this point given the entire Russia investigation and the fact that Mr. Trump spoke with the Ukrainian president the day after Robert Mueller testified. What we will come to learn is that information will come out that confirms why the president could not be removed. EU Ambassador Gordan Sondland's statement "that everyone was in the loop" will prove correct.
But there you have it. The acquittal will be on Wednesday. The Tennessee senator recommended that during the State of the Union, the president shouldn't mention it at all, but something tells us that Mr. Trump won't be able to hold back in front of a national audience.
Mr. Lowry questioned why if impeachment is such a moral obligation then why haven't Iowa voters been talking about it, to which O. Kay Henderson, Iowa Radio News Director, responded that because of the foregone conclusion of what the Senate would do, there wasn't the need. Everyone knows where the Democratic candidates stand on it. Despite Mr. Lowry sophomoric observation, the impeachment vote and the Republican rollover will be a factor come the general election in November.
If many Republican senators feel the same as Mr. Alexander, maybe a censure of the president is called for - the proverbial slap on the wrist. Censure would be a win for Democrats. Not only could they say that the trial was a sham because Republicans didn't fulfill their obligation, but then they can also say that Republicans admit what the president did was wrong because of censure. That would have the president sniping at Republican Senators who are in enough trouble trying to hold onto their seats, just as Ms. Henderson said of Senator Joni Ernst in Iowa.
Panel: O. Kay Henderson, News Director Radio Iowa; Anna Palmer, Politico; Rich Lowry, The National Review; Cornell Belcher, Democratic Strategist
One more thing...
Can't forget about the Super Bowl - Andy Reid gets the championship, Chiefs all the way!
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