This post kicks off a series about my decision to participate in the Iowa caucuses effort.
In December of 2006 I told my wife Paddy that if John Edwards chose to run for President again, I wanted to go work on the campaign ahead of the Iowa caucuses for 2008. She agreed - a bit absently perhaps. A couple weeks later, John announced his candidacy from the ninth ward of New Orleans.
In the spring of 2007, I suggested to Paddy we should think about the details of me going to Iowa - and caught the person who knows me better than anyone a bit by surprise. But though she was not a supporter of John Edwards at that point, she supported my intention completely. And she understood how serious I was about it.
It can be very easy after making a claim of intended action to get lazy and find some excuse not to execute that action. That was not a big problem for me, but the idea crossed my mind from time to time.
In such cases, making a further commitment of some kind helps to keep one resolved to the chosen task.
I had seen a lot of video of John's speeches on many topics, read his position papers and policy proposals, but I wanted to see him in person and "take the measure of the man". In August while on his Fighting For One America tour, I noticed that he was scheduled for an early afternoon stop in Burlington, Iowa. That was about as close as he was likely to get to me and figuring the four and one half hour commute each way, would allow me to make a day trip out of the event.
It was a gorgeous day, and Burlington is a beautiful, old Mississippi River town that has seen at least somewhat better days. The event was held in a large outdoor area of The Drake restaurant, which looks out on the river and a really cool bridge which is the conveyance to Burlington from Illinois.
After John and his wife Elizabeth spoke and took questions, many well wishers stood in line to speak with each of them. I was one.
If you ever have been at one of these things you'll know that the celebrity's course often gets deflected, and it's almost like a conga line. After thinking I was just a couple people away from talking to John Edwards a few different times, I almost gave up. But I thought, I drove almost five hours to see him and I was going to at least shake his hand.
Then it occurred to me - he was going to have to board his bus. I withdrew from the throng and posted myself by the door to the bus. As he was about to board, I stuck out my hand and said "Senator, I came from South Bend to see you today. And I'll be back to help with the caucus in January". He looked at me soberly, seeming to size me up and noticing my One Corps shirt tapped me on the chest and said "Thank you for that".
So now I had made the promise twice.
I allowed the campaign to choose my post, and they chose Ft. Dodge, IA. As you will learn, this turned out to be an area the campaign considered critical and they devoted major effort and resources to it.
There was a huge dose of serendipity for me on this adventure.
Karita Hummer is someone whom I "met" on the John Edwards blog and considered a friend without having really met her. I not only met her in Fort Dodge - she and I worked in tandem canvassing.
To my surprise, I was assigned the role of an observer at a caucus. That particular caucus was featured on NPR's Weekend America program.
As I headed home, I passed Steve Skvara on I-80 in eastern Illinois. Steve, as you'll recall, was the gentleman who - at the AFL-CIO Presidential forum - posed the question to John Edwards "What's wrong with America and what will you do to change it?" Returning readers may remember I had the privilege to interview Mr. Skvara about health care when he was in South Bend.
Now begins my adventure...
It would be reasonable to think that Iowa would be a lot like Indiana, and Ft. Dodge (pop. 75,000) would be a lot like South Bend, but it seemed to me there were about as many differences as similarities. The terrain is not terribly different - just more hilly and wooded - but other factors are very different.
For one thing, Iowa is much "greener". It is standard to find higher octane (midgrade) 15% ethanol blends at nearly every gas station. The curious thing about it is that it typically costs 20 cents less per gallon than regular. (Why would anyone buy regular)?! You also see a lot of wind farms generating electricity. And Iowa charges a deposit on cans and bottles.
The contrast between Ft. Dodge and South Bend is more dramatic than the population difference would have made me anticipate. In part, I suppose it should be pointed out that the South Bend area includes a sister city and several nearby towns. In Ft. Dodge, other towns are a pretty good distance away- and they're all a lot smaller. South Bend has much more of a "big city" feel, Ft. Dodge is definitely a rural town, despite it's size.
Agriculture is much more important to Ft. Dodge and right now the corn farmers are doing well. There is a high capacity ethanol plant in the area and another under construction. But it can't be a sustainable policy to propel our vehicles by taking food out of the supply pipeline, so it's an open question how long the farmers will enjoy this market. (Isn't it ironic that corn farmers barely make a living when they are raising food, but do well when they are raising fuel)?
Ft. Dodge has many of its own Studebaker stories as well. They may not have lost an employer of thousands of citizens all at once - as did South Bend - but they have steadily lost good paying jobs in mills and production.
There's a Wal-Mart and an old Sears in town, but not much else in the way of "big box" retailers. Some locals told me the best restaurant in town was the Applebys. Most businesses are small and from outward appearances at least, struggling.
The people living there, on the other hand, are friendly and generous. I was quite surprised how willing many of them were to listen to what I had to say - despite the long term onslaught of eighteen campaigns +/- on them.
This being a political blog, I would be remiss in not pointing out this dramatic difference: Iowa holds caucuses in January, Indiana holds primaries in May. That's why I went to Iowa.
Apparently the John Edwards campaign perceived this to be an important area and offered an opportunity to the most progressive candidate. The office was managed by no less than the state Deputy Campaign Director. There were six paid coordinators overseeing nine counties who had been there since July. By the time I arrived, there were about a dozen out of state volunteers and a score or so locals in the office alone. Plus all the folks in the field. This operation represented a pretty serious commitment.
Our headquarters was in an old storefront building, about twenty feet wide and a hundred and fifty feet deep, right downtown. Not posh by any standard, but it kept the wind off us.
I arrived after my eight hour drive and was handed a list of people to call. I gamely went at it for about an hour, but it seemed reasonable to call it a day at that point. Getting a bit lost after leaving the office, I located a dump of a motel to spend the night. It had a bed and heat - and that was about all I needed then.
After a warm (not hot) shower at Motel Tobeavoided of Ft. Dodge, I headed into the Edwards office to do my part. In talking with volunteer coordinators prior to my trip, I learned that Karita Hummer would also be working out of this office. I was really pleased about that because she and I had had a lot of contact via the Edwards Blog. I think it's true to say that she and I were each inspired to create our own blogs due to our experience on the Edwards Blog.
When she arrived in the office that morning, we simultaneously figured out who the other was and a big hug was the only thing to do. She'd already been working there a couple days, but I was pleased to be paired up with her for canvassing in the central city area. We took the "Blue Daddy Truck" (daughter Sarah's term), parked it, and I went with Karita to a few houses before we split up.
Ms. Hummer is indomitable. She possesses great heart and a great heart. I watched her scale icy berms the plows had blocked the public sidewalks with again and again - all to get the chance to talk to people about the opportunity they had to elect a truly progressive candidate President of the United States.
We weren't knocking on every door. The campaign had refined lists by this point to undecided voters and voters leaning towards John Edwards. These were the folks we were attempting to talk to. And in Iowa anyway, most of them were willing to talk to us - in fact, many were eager to talk with us.
It was a very cold day. I checked in with Karita from time to time. We warmed up, moved the truck as our area narrowed. It was getting dark as we finally finished up. Karita was of the view we should immediately return to the office. Luckily, I had the truck keys and I insisted we treat ourselves to a decent meal first. She called in for us, and agreed to my terms.
After warming and refueling ourselves, we returned to the shabby storefront office, where there were in excess of twenty people pounding the phones. With no phones available, Karita and I used our own cell phones to contact potential Edwards caucusers. We kept this up until about 8:00 PM.
In the meantime, arrangements had been made for lodging for me.
Also in the meantime, a dense ice fog had settled into the area.
to be continued
Don Wheeler
South Bend, IN