2nd District workshop report

[rurallib]

Sorry to be so late with this report. Allergies had us laid up yesterday. I am sure many of you can emphathize. On to the report:
An excellent turnout in the neighbor hood of 75 very active Dems from the 2nd district came to West Liberty Saturday 8/13.
There was a kickoff video of Prof. George Lakoff discussing his book "Don't think of an Elephant". Most are probably fami;iar with this book. For those who are not, the book concerns framing of issues. The video is well worth seeing. For those who have DISH FreeSpeechTV(9415) carries it frequently.
We then split into 3 separate work groups One covered more framing, another money raising and a third candidates. Most were well pleased with the training they received.
Now to the highlight. We were graced with all but one of the candidates for governor. Chet Culver did not make an appearance. Ageneral comment - we should be proud of the folks who have stepped forward to compete. A very competent and intelligent group each of whom has much to offer. So sorry Culver was not there. It would have been a great opportunity to see how he stacked up.
Individually:
Patty Judge - Very forceful and focused. Got the night off in a big way. Really liked her.
Mike Blouin - An inspirational speech. Blouin has a list of accomplishments as long as your arm. Background with bringing businesses and jobs to the stae a real plus.
Sal Mohammed - A Hoartio Alger attempt at becoming governor. Still I admire his guts for trying.
Ed Fallon - Ed is also inspirational. Most of you are familiar with Ed. Takes the 'not business as usual' stance. Emphasizes health carre and education. Many are concerned he's 'too left'. But when you hear him speak, his agenda sounds very doable and sensible.
Mike Gronstal - State Senate leader from Council Bluffs. Been a consistent blue winner in the red part of Iowa. Like Blouin, along list of accomplishments with good ties to the business community. His speech was also inspirational. Nicely contrasted his views to Ed Fallon's in a very high level comparison.

Well, they all brought their 'A' game Saturday. I was leaning toward Fallon going in. Now I am totally up in the air. I still admire Fallon's idealism, but some 'practical' considerations make me lean to Judge and Gronstal. I liked Blouin, but the unspoken issue (anti-choice) leads me to rule him out at present.
Considering what the other side is offering (N-word and Vanderplaats) our side has a much more talented group. Gonna be a tough choice.

[blueloo]

1. great round-up

Thanks for the report. Is anyone on here a Blouin supporter? I am but am not currently in Iowa.

[cyberswede]

2. good candidates!

Thanks for the report, rurallib!

I agree with you that all the candidates looked really good! The only one I'd heard before was Mr. Fallon, so it was great to see the others in action - a talented pool with various strengths. After each speaker, my husband and I would look at each other and say, "I like her (or him)! How can we decide?!?" :)

Anyway, the speeches weren't too heavy on specific issues - lots of bios, credentials & qualifications, upbeat views of where Iowa can go, and a few funny anecdotes.

Fallon did specifically mention how he favors clean election laws and is not in favor of corporate welfare. These are strong issues for him that set him apart from the pack, so I'm not surprised he mentioned them. He needs to get rid of his "Iowa is like a beautiful woman who doesn't know she's beautiful" analogy, though - bleah!

After seeing all these candidates, I'm still undecided, but I'm confident that we can and will have another Democratic governor! :)
thx - cs

[Debi]

3. Great update!

Sorry to hear that Culver couldn't make it...would have been nice to have all the candidates in one room.

Thanks for the continued information.

Hopefully our primary will remain a positive one with comparison of ideas and positions (the republicans will be slining mud in no time!)