I will be live tweeting tonight’s Arizona Republican Presidential Debate on CNN at 7 PM Central.

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@UnderAUnGnome

Q: Michelle Obama was recently in Iowa on her tell everyone what to and what not to eat tour.  And Fox News just reported that a student’s bag lunch from home that included a turkey sandwhich on a wheat bun with apple juice was deemed not nutritional enough for them by the school and was then replaced with chicken nuggets instead.  I did not see a story on this from you so what are your thoughts?

A: What time is it?

Q:  What did you get Mrs. Gnome for Valentine’s Day?

A:  What else?

Q:  Bachmann dropped out forever ago, but I see her commenting on the presidential race all the time on the news.  What is her play?

A:  She has stated that she is trying to play the role of the great uniter and wants to see the candidates stop tearing one another apart.  In addition, you may not be aware of this, but she recently let go of her chief of staff, Andy Parrish.  Parrish, who oversaw her win in the Ames straw poll is now the 6^th COS in 6 years to be let go by Bachmann.  Ah Michele, I miss your wild hay maker attacks on the other candidates you great uniter you.  If you had stayed in the race, I wonder what could’ve been.

Q:  It has been a while since you last bored us with your republican talking points belittling the hard working men and women of organized labor or voter suppression by way of the photo ID poll tax requirement.  Are you slipping?

A:  A loaded question for certain, but in the interest of time, here is a twofer:

Q:  Did you see what Matt Damon said about Obama not having any balls?

A:  Actually he said that President Obama is no leader and has no balls.  You gotta love Matt Damon.

Q:  What is the latest on the John Edwards drama?

A:  I’m glad you asked.  The judge delayed proceedings in response to a letter from Edwards’ doctor claiming he had a “life threatening condition”.  In my opinion, this would be an ideal time for Rielle Hunter to cheat on him because what could he say?  Talk about a mandate for a hall pass.

Q:  Rick Santorum has taken a lot of flack for stating that birth control is harmful to women.  What do you see this doing to his campaign and the GOP regardless of who the nominee is in November?

A:  Well, there had been speculation by the evangelical Mitt-haters that his religion might be bad for his governing of the country.  Ironically, it is one of their own that is hurting our party and our chances of taking back the White House this year.  For a candidate and a party that is determined to limit the number of abortions in America, it strikes me as foolish to oppose that which prevents unplanned pregnancies when that happens to be the main cause of abortions to begin with.  The only reason Catholics oppose birth control is because it hurts their membership numbers so why he would make such a ridiculous statement is beyond me.  And when the hell did Penn State become a Catholic school?  I missed that one.

Q:  What is the deal with John Deeth commenting on your blog but you not letting others comment?

A:  1)  I like his insight and while I often disagree, I find it entertaining.  If your comments are niether, you are SOL.

2)  His hat wear.

Q:  Krusty was a Huckabee backer and you are clearly a Mitten, why the change?

A:  Thanks for paying attention, NOT.  I said that there are/were three Krusty’s and that I was but one.  So no change.  Wait, actually there has been a change for me since 2008 just not from Huck to Mitt.

Q:  What is your deal with Bob Vander Plaats?  Why do you categorically disagree with everything he does to make this state better for all Iowans?  Are you not the conservative you claim to be or is it personal?

A:  I find him irritating and detrimental to our party.  While I am the first to admit that I will hold any republican’s feet to the fire when they are skirting their responsibility to the voters and to the philosophy of our platform, he is all about Bob.  This latest attention grabbing effort in the name of holding the Governor accountable for lending his name to an anti-bullying event for GLBT students is just sad.  The Governor opposes the bullying of ANY students and yes, gay students are in fact students.  So Bob, don’t go away mad, just go away.

RIP RPI  On Saturday, the Iowa GOP’s state central committee elected A.J. Spiker as the new chairman to replace the recently resigned Matt Strawn.  A Ron Paulbot in charge of the GOP.  My thoughts on this FUBAR are well documented.   Make my Kool-Aid cherry please.

Obama Girl  This has not been a particularly good news cycle for the President.  Let me just start with the public relations let down of learning that the Obama Girl has indicated that she is not so sure she will support Barack Obama’s re-election.  Citing her concerns that he hasn’t really done anything he said he would in the campaign,  she says she may support Ron Paul instead.  Go figure.

I Beg Your Pardon  Speaking of bad press for President Obama, he recently announced that he would be returning approximately $200,000 in campaign cash donations from the Chicago brothers of Juan Rojas “Pepe” Cardona.  This Pepe guy is a casino magnate who skipped bail in Iowa back in the nineties for drug and fraud charges.  The brothers successfully got a pardon for Pepe from Obama on drug smuggling charges in New Mexico, a federal crime, but the President cannot help them on state charges in Iowa.  Hence their pardon mule and fmr. Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Gordon Fischer acted on their behalf seeking a pardon from Iowa Governor Chester J. Culver or Chet Not Stupid to you and me.

The Johnson County Attorney (Iowa City) Janet Lyness, a Democrat, said that “Pepe did not deserve a pardon”, that “he hurt a lot of innocent people and has yet to take responsibility.”  She further stated that “she can think of few people less deserving of a pardon.”

There are so many things wrong with this, where do I even start?  Look, selling pardons is wrong.  It doesn’t matter what party you belong to, whether its Obama, Culver, Huckabee or Barbour.  There is so much shame in it.

PAC MAN  So much for the President’s self righteous condemnation of super PACs to compete with union campaign spending.   President Obama strongly opposed the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in 2010 stripping away some of the limits on campaign donations and allowing for the super PACs to raise unlimited amounts of money without having to disclose the sources.  A funny yet predictable flip flop happened on the way to his re-election campaign.    Obama now is actively soliciting major Democratic donors to get in touch with Priorities USA, a super PAC formed by two former close aides to the President.  To add insult to this gross change of tune, Obama’s cabinet members will be appearing at Priorities USA fundraising events to speak to those in attendance.

Obama’s campaign manager, Jim Messina cited the need for a super PAC because they can’t “allow for two sets of rules.”  Where was this guy when labor unions were spending unlimited amounts of union dues without the consent of their individual members for the election of Democrats I wonder?

Tomorrow, the Republican Party of Iowa’s state central committee will likely elect a new chairman to replace Matt Strawn who resigned last week.  I warned of the possibility that the fallout had the potential to be worse than the status quo.  The first such worse alternative announced almost immediately (Dave Funk), and I had some spirited yet informed analysis of that train wreck.  We now have two other candidates that currently serve on the state central committee who have entered the race, Bill Schickel and A.J. Spiker.  Here is a plug for another good analysis on the chairman race but he failed to list mine as a related article (F.U. Craig).

Schickel currently serves as the Co-Chairman of the Iowa GOP and has been publicly endorsed by Governor Branstad.  He’s generally viewed by those who know him as a really good guy, so unless an unknown super candidate emerges at the last minute, Schickel would be my choice for chairman by default.  It’s not so much a ringing endorsement of him as it is a repudiation of the alternatives.  My thoughts on Dave Funk is well known as to why he is an unacceptable option.  Here is why the third choice is far, far worse than even Funk.

A.J. Spiker serves on the state central committee and was the Iowa Chairman for Ron Paul.  Yes, you read that right.  Spiker is one of five members of the SCC who sold out their responsibility to represent their district impartially and made his role one of advocacy for a candidate competing in the Ames Straw Poll and the Iowa Caucuses.  Those lines should never be blurred either directly or indirectly.  Not ever.  Chairman Strawn was maligned for being in the bag for Mitt Romney rightly or wrongly, but even the perception of bias is very problematic.  Spiker could care less and that is huge problem.

The last thing our party needs is a chairman who spends the next 2-4 years laying the groundwork for a Rand Paul presidential candidacy.  Ron Paul will be the guest speaker at the next Reagan Dinner and Rand Paul will be the speaker at the Lincoln Day Dinner.  Then they will alternate each year.  And did I mention that the Ron Paulbots aren’t even republicans?  A possible Chairman A. J. Spiker is my opinion is an N.O. Spiker

And so it begins.  I warned of the fallout of Matt Strawn’s resignation and already my point is being proven.  Yes, Strawn screwed himself and the Iowa Caucuses by doing irreparable harm to the Ames Straw Poll and the Caucuses themselves by his involvement with a special interest group and of course his abysmal handling of the caucus vote tally certification.  I get all that.  Oh and he was a high profile chairman who was never shy about getting in front of a camera and many started calling the state GOP, the Republican Party of Strawn.  Ok, I don’t think I’ve left anything out.

The void in question is the things that Matt Strawn did very well.  Organization and fundraising are tools that were sorely missing before Strawn took the helm of the state party.  I do feel he should have implemented a legitimate candidate training program the likes we haven’t seen since Chairman Kayne Robinson’s leadership for example.

So who can or will fill the leadership void?  The first to throw his hat into the ring is a familiar name, Dave Funk.  Funk, who got throttled in his bid for the GOP nomination for Congress by both Sen. Brad Zahn and Jim Gibbons is not that guy in my opinion.

Following his standard operating campaign procedure, Funk is playing the “I’m the first to declare my candidacy so nobody else needs to run” or “I called shotgun” game.  It did not work out too well when he ran for Congress in 2010 nor when he ran for Polk County Supervisor.  No organization or fundraising is a recipe for failure and Funk takes that with him in his bid to be state GOP chairman.

We need a candidate that is well versed in organization and party building (Strike 1 for Funk).  We need a chairman who has the ability to energize the GOP donor base and give a reason for new donors to get involved (Strike 2 for Funk).  We need a chairman candidate that is either high profile enough to be synonymous with leadership and success or low profile enough to not make the party an apparatus to promote themselves en route to a run for elected office (Strike 3 for Funk).

George Clinton may want the Funk, but I and the Iowa Republican Party do not.

So why is this a big deal? I’ll tell you. This ends the fears many of us in the GOP had about a potential third party run by a fiscally conservative foreign policy hawk like Trump doing to our nominee what H. Ross Perot did to President George H. W. Bush in 1992.  If you want Obama gone, it will not happen with a legit third party candidate taking north of 3 to 14% of the vote in November.

Mitt Romney is all smiles today (ok he’s always smiling) because he knows everything he has done to take back the White House will not be a complete waste of time with Trump running as an Independent.  In addition, if you have ever seen The Donald unleash his wrath via a public relations blitzkrieg on anybody he’s pissed at or uses to get attention for the Trump brand, you will know that Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and the other guy will now have to face a bombastic attack dog that gets covered by the media.  In politics, for them we call that a moment where you say, “oh shit!”

Newt Gingrich is the only other candidate who had a shot at landing this endorsement and his surrogates including that guy who seems to be Morton Downey Jr.’s lovechild, R.C. Hammond, have been touting a Trump endorsement coming today.  Imagine the egg on their face that there is an endorsement coming today, but not for Newt as they claimed.  Speaker Gingrich, who made a critical flaw in attacking free enterprise and the entrepreneurial spirit, drew the ire of The Donald as one would expect.  And just when Newt had seen a little hope that maybe his mistake was behind him, Trump emerges to remind everyone.  Newt is now effectively done as the “Mitt alternative”.  Time for Santorum to step up or get out because Newt blew it.

Matt Strawn took over after the “leadership” of Stew Iverson and Ray Hoffman.  Let me put it this way, Iverson and Hoffman are the RPI leadership rock star equivalent of Senate Republican Leaders Paul McKinley and Ron Wieck.  Yes, they are just that inspiring.  Needless to say, Strawn was a huge breath of fresh air and had much success in his first 2 year term resulting in a 2^nd term as chairman.

Let me state that I am a Matt Strawn fan, but somewhere on the road to Strawn’s coronation as the heir apparent to represent Iowa in Congress, things began to unravel and thus dim his political aspirations.  His anti-climatic and poorly run Ames Straw Poll has all but put the final nail in the event’s coffin.  And then the matter that has everyone around the country scratching their heads or sharpening their pitchforks like they are in Iowa, the way he handled the Iowa Caucus results.  His mistakes and re-made mistakes are well documented and have been cause for many who value our First in the Nation Caucuses to call for his resignation.

My concern is not only the irreparable harm that has been done to the Ames Straw Poll and the Iowa Caucus itself, but the fallout of his resignation.  Where does that leave us?  Are we better off as Iowa Republicans without Strawn at the helm?  Perhaps not.  It does not take a University of Iowa graduate in astro physics to understand that Bob Vander Plaats or one of his minions that he can control will want to take over.  Of course we also have to consider the strong possibility that the Ron Paulbots who have placed 4 of their ilk onto the RPI state central committee will try to grab the top post as well.  Still think Strawn should have resigned?  I can think of nothing more detrimental to the Iowa GOP than a Chairman Vander Plaats or a Chairman Ivers.

Let’s just hope none of these nutjobs can corral the votes to become chairman.

The brightest of the young new stars in Iowa politics, Secretary of State Matt Schultz, seemed to be owning the news cycle (Till Strawn) and his timing could not be better for his future in elected office.  Just a week ago was the arrest of Iowa democratic political operative and Obama staffer, Zach Edwards for “allegedly” stealing the Secretary’s identity for the purposes of implicating him in unethical or illegal behavior.  Speaking of Edwards, why in the name of Zeus’s $@%& is Matt Whittaker defending him?

The Dems who cry foul over any attempt to require authentication of a person’s identity at the polls, have gone way out of their way to prove the need for that which they claim is not a problem.

This isn’t the first time an Iowa democratic operative stole a Republican’s identity.  Then candidate for State Representative, Renee Schulte had her identity stolen by Adrian Noe who fleeced her for 30 large.

Last week, Secretary Schultz made a renewed call for legislation requiring that photo identification be presented in order to cast a ballot.  A similar measure passed 60-40 in the House of Representatives last year, but failed to be even taken up for consideration in the Gronstalling Senate.  This issue of election integrity via Photo ID is why a majority of independents sided with Republicans and even some Democrats in supporting the newcomer to statewide politics.

Democrats better wise up and realize that it’s their misguided philosophy that is their problem, not the freedom loving Americans preventing ACORN, ACT or DNC from cheating come election time.  Nobody likes a cheater which is why EVERYBODY hates the New England Patriots.

Last Friday it was reported by the Des Moines Register that Zachary Edwards was arrested and charged with the identity theft of Secretary of State Matt Schultz and/or his younger brother Thomas Schultz “with the intent to benefit, in an alleged scheme to falsely implicate Secretary Schultz in perceived illegal or unethical behavior while in office.” Edwards is a 29 year old Director of New Media for Link Strategies in Des Moines and was the 2008 Obama for President New Media Director in Iowa.  His name and bio are no longer listed on the firm’s website.  I’m guessing this sort of attention is frowned upon by non-partisan trade groups and corporate clients that Link does business for.

Link Strategies is run by Jeff Link, yes, THAT Jeff Link.  You may recall this awesome political manuever and subsequent ramifications that made the New York Times “Senator’s Campaign Manager Resigns In Furor Over Taping Of Rival’s Meeting”.  Harkin feigned outraged at the “young staffers who made a mistake” and dismissed the severity of their actions yet had them resign.  Okay.  Link returned for the next race and has been back on Senator Harkin’s kitchen cabinet ever since the press stopped caring. 

In addition to being Harkin’s braintrust, Link is also the general consultant for North East Iowa’s Rep. Bruce Braley.  I’m sure Link won’t ever do anything like that for Harkin, Braley or the Iowa Democrat Party again.  Oh wait, he in fact did do it again by allowing his new media director to illegally steal the identity of a rising republican star and implicate him in activity that would be characterized as unethical by the Iowa Democrat Party.  Coincidently, the IDP’s blog arm, Under The Golden Dome, made a series of charges of “unethical behavior” the same day Edwards’ alleged criminal activity took place.  Again, I’m sure it was just a coincidence.  Had to be.  Right?

This latest criminal activity Link is associated with solidifies him as the Democrat equivalent to Chuck Larson, Jr. who seemed to only hire political operatives with a criminal rap sheet for the ill-fated Tim Pawlenty campaign.  Ironically, it was Larson who was the Iowa GOP Chairman who condemned Link’s antics on the Harkin campaign back in 2002.

Perhaps in addition to not associating yourself or your business with Link Strategies is the lesson that when nefarious democratic operatives can no longer beat conservatives on the issues, they will resort to cheating and no law will stand in their way.  It is not surprising that while the Dems cry foul about Shultz’s efforts to require a Photo ID to ensure election integrity, they resort to criminal attacks on his integrity to defeat them.  Pathetically hypocritical liberal bs.

Note to Edwards, give Larson a call and see if you can work over there.  His firm is “bi-partisan” and you can use me as a reference if you like.  No need to thank me.

Quasi-famous or infamous trial lawyer, Roxanne Conlin is at it again.  Having failed in politics both as the Democratic nominee for Governor against Terry Branstad in 1982 and for United States Senate against Chuck Grassley in 2010, she is still trying to settle old political scores.  This time she is representing Christopher Godfrey in a $1 Million sexual discrimination lawsuit filed against Governor Branstad.  Godfrey is the openly gay (who cares) Iowa Worker’s Compensation Commissioner who when asked to step down by the Governor, refused.  The Worker’s Compensation Commissioner then had his compensation reduced by 30% from $109,000 to a paltry $73,000.  Can you picture me rolling my eyes?

The suit filed by Godfrey and his attorney Gloria Allred, claims he was asked to step down and then had his salary reduced because he was gay.  Oops, Gloria Allred. Roxanne Conlin, same difference so sue me.  No no no, not literally Roxy.  Now I’m going to throw out a crazy suggestion here, but maybe, just maybe the Governor was adjusting his compensation to make it in more in line with the private sector equivalent?  I think I remember Branstad saying something in the campaign about not wasting tax dollars and getting the budget back in line after 12 years of Vilsack and Chet Not Stupid.  I’m glad to see him making good on a campaign promise.

Having said that, my suggestion to Godfrey is to make a call to your old department in Iowa Workforce Development that still bares your name and see if they have any job leads for you.  Be prepared to tell them what job skills you possess.

And Roxanne, this is for you babe!

Speaking of the good Governor, he has made more than a few headlines by hiring outside counsel to defend him in the above mentioned lawsuit at $325 an hour (4x avg. rate).  Um, Brenna Findley is now your in-house “legal counsel”, so why must you hire outside counsel?  Exactly why are my tax dollars being double dipped by your office?  I’m asking because I defended your actions in this suit about two paragraphs ago.

For those of you who don’t recall, Brenna Findley ran unsuccessfully for Iowa Attorney General against Tom Miller.  She spent an unprecedented $1 Million dollars and all she has to show for it is a campaign t-shirt.  Perhaps Branstad is not comfortable with her as his lawyer when a million bucks is on the line given her track record with said amount?

The folks over at Under The Golden Dome did a story on this and once again I am starting to get pissed when I have to say this, but I agree with their take.  Son of a…

@UnderAUnGnome

Once again I will be live tweeting the Fox News Republican Presidential Debate in South Carolina.

Debate starts at 8 PM Central. I’ll have my weekly post up tomorrow. I’ve been out of town interviewing for a new job.