And so, Bachmann leaves … to the cheerful melodies of Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister,” which is how we’ll remember her campaign. Like an upbeat Train song.
Republicans are going to be neglectful if they say: ‘Oh, you don’t need Independents, you don’t need the young people.’ That’s where the excitement is, and that’s where the changes are coming about.Ron Paul • Speaking this morning on NBC’s Today Show in the wake of the Iowa Caucuses, which he placed third in — and despite the relatively tight race between Romney and Santorum, he was fairly close to the front of the pack. It was a solid enough result that he has no plans to quit the race. Paul’s strategy has long banked on the youth vote. “That’s how you would have to beat Obama, so I think that’s a very encouraging statistic,” he said. Paul will take a little break in Iowa, then head to New Hampshire. source (via • follow)
While she remained confident last night, it sounds like the Tea Party stalwart could be ready to let realism set in. On top of canceling a trip to South Carolina, Michele Bachmann has a press conference scheduled for 11 a.m. EST (which we’ll cover), but The National Journal got a bit of a preview this morning: A campaign spokesperson says Bachmann “doesn’t see a way forward in her campaign for the GOP nomination for president and will make an announcement to that effect this morning.” He stopped short of saying she’d be dropping out, but there are certainly lines to read between here. Update: The National Journal is now saying that Bachmann will suspend her campaign. Wow, that was fast. (Photo via Gage Skidmore on Flickr) source
We shocked the world last night in Iowa. We did it with a coalition of conservatives, Tea Party members, and values voters who recognized that my successful conservative record gives the GOP the best chance to defeat Barack Obama. No more sitting on the sidelines. Now is the time to act or get stuck with a bland, boring, career politician who will lose to Barack Obama.Rick Santorum, writing in a fundraising e-mail to supporters in reaction to his Iowa Caucus showing. Clearly his tough words are a reaction to Mitt Romney. Think he’ll keep up the momentum beyond the caucus?
Perry says he will go back to Texas and reassess his candidacy. That’s big news. But he looks relieved in a way. If you out-spend your opponents by this vast amount and come in fifth, you really need to drop out. And it looks as if he will.Andrew Sullivan’s take on Rick Perry, who plans to head back to Texas to reconsider whether he wants to keep running for president. Bachmann, however, is still in the race.
In case you weren’t sure, President Obama is the projected winner of the Democratic Iowa Caucus. He is expected to receive all delegates.
Don’t be so stingy, Barack. Mind offering a few this way? We won’t do anything with them you wouldn’t do.
That feeling in the pit of your stomach is the knowledge that Rick Santorum could actually win the Iowa Caucus, and you just remembered the Santorum Salad post from yesterday. Sorry.
Earlier in the day, Keith Olbermann learned that Current TV had benched him for tonight’s Iowa Caucus coverage, choosing to go with other personalities as word of a fractured relationship surfaced. It was in this environment that Piers Morgan decided to throw a verbal molotov cocktail:
Cheer up @KeithOlbermann - you can catch all the big Iowa political news on my live show at midnight ET. #CNNElections
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 4, 2012
Which drew an entertaining response from Current TV:
@piersmorgan You go big. We’ll go best. #politicallydirect
— Current TV (@current) January 4, 2012
And a harsh one from Keith Olbermann himself:
Great! So you’ll be showing your latest subpoena? RT @piersmorgan Cheer up @KeithOlbermann you can catch all Iowa political news on my show
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) January 4, 2012
And it devolved from there. Mediaite has more.
Sadder vote tally: The fact that Huntsman is behind Broken Image or the fact that Roemer is behind Herman Cain, despite the fact that Cain’s out of the race entirely? (30 percent of the votes so far, BTW)
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
Here’s a hidden feature that shipped in...
Uh, guys, the caucus results are already in. Elementary students in Des Moines, Iowa voted “chocolate chip” the winner of the second Hillis Elementary Cookie Caucus.
The only caucus we really, truly care about.
About today’s cover: “Iowa’s Ideal”
A Frankenstein of a GOP candidate: A while back, you might have seen The Washington Post’s week of profiles on the major GOP candidates, complete with portraits for each. What you might not have realized is how well they’d mash together into a single beast — as many Iowa caucus voters like some elements of each of the candidates, but not everything in any one of them. As Lila Reyonlds, an undecided Iowa voter puts it: “There is no Prince Charming.” (From top: Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann. Missing: Jon Huntsman, who is focusing on New Hampshire. Photos by Melina Mara/TWP; photo illustration by Express)
Paul’s hair + Mitt’s forehead + Newt’s eyes + Perry’s nose + Santorum’s chin + Bachmann’s neck = A mashup that you might want to avert your eyes from.
wnyc:
Wait, there’s something happening in Iowa today? Spend five minutes reading the explainer from It’s A Free Country on how the Iowa Caucus works (for one, it’s different for the Dems and the GOP) - then you’ll be able to explain it to your friends later.
-Jody, BL Show-
Because, let’s face it, you probably don’t know how the Iowa caucus system works.
I hope that people will go to the polls and forget all the media people that say this one can’t go on or that one doesn’t have the money, because this is the process, and if we don’t let the process happen — I just think it’s so unfair and I hope that people will vote their conscience.Michele Bachmann • Offering a strong defense of letting people make up their own minds in Iowa. Bachmann is banking on such sentiment — she’s far behind her rivals in the polls and even longtime supporters, like Sarah Palin, are suggesting she quit the race. In related good timing, Bachmann dropped this line in reference to Margaret Thatcher, currently the subject of a Meryl Streep biopic: “My goal is to be America’s iron lady.” Would she make a good Iron Lady for the U.S.? Do Americans need one of those? source (via • follow)
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