My Conversation with David Yepsen of the Des Moines Register on the Iowa Caucuses

I just had a conversation with David Yepsen, columnist for the Des Moines Register and a long-time observer of the Iowa caucuses. Here is what he had to say about the reasons behind Obama's momentum and what a loss in Iowa could mean for the leading Democratic candidates.

The entire conversation will be broadcast tonight on your local PBS station.

You can see it tomorrow on the Charlie Rose website.

Comments

[Pam4Waters]

Working link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TssQjqN02Ow

[Jacee]

What a night, what a speech. We are one nation we are one people...the time for change has come. Its OK to believe, trust and hope. Obama is our bridge to the 21 Century. Joy in 2008.

[eyecon]

Yepsen gets to feel like Yoda every four years. Otherwise, he is a rather mediocre staffer at a rather lackluster newspaper with a meager daily circulation of about 150,000.

[WADE]

PEOPLE - THIS IS JUST A CAUCUS, not the GENERAL.

Who can win in the GENERAL?

Who has the teeth to win, the money to win, the spirit to win?

Who can deflect the load of crap that the republicans are going to throw, the lies, the hysteria, all of it?

I know Obama inspires, but can you imagine a one-term Senator (who is African American - and, no, it's not an issue for me, but you KNOW the right will be running whisper campaigns) - do you think someone with a paltry amount of experience who has not been vetted and been on the world stage can win?

They are ALL good candidates, but we must WIN.

Do and say whatever to WIN, just WIN!

How many more times are democrats going to be the Charlie Brown to Lucy's football, that she promises she won't pull away - but does, at the last minute, and we land flat on our backs with another electoral loss to republicans?

President Barak Hussein Obama?

Just sayin.

[Oldtimer]

Charlie,
If Obama captures enough Hillary votes then
Edwards could come in second leaving Hillary with a very disappointing third in Iowa. Suppose the Obama-Edwards momentum carries over
to New Hampshire. If she can't show a strong
first place show there her candidacy is in deep trouble. TV pundits (what do they really know?) love to point to her national campaign and say she has staying power. Again, I think this is media herd mentality. California is a very progressive state. I predict Hillary has NO CHANCE here, especially if she shows poorly in the early primaries. The real story will be the rising importance of the big states - Florida,
California, New York, Illinois. Think Hillary
is going to solidify her supporters? I don't
think so. Independents are already looking for
a Democrat who is not Hillary. (Much like
Time looked for a Man of the Year who was not
Al Gore).

Democrats have to ask themselves which candidate brings the longest coat-tails.
Hillary's high negatives certainly suggest that
she is NOT the candidate who will win a landslide that carries super majorities in
Congress. If Obama, Gore, Edwards or Joe Biden
were the eventual Dem candidate then any one
of them would bring longer coat-tails and this
is important because America does not need more
deadlock. Too many Republican incumbents are
retiring. This is the best chance since the Nixon debacle for Democrats to gain super
majorities. Only then can AMerica shoot for
universal healthcare, new trade policies, new
tax policies, an end to privatization and
de-regulation, democratic media regulation and
a return to the fairness doctrine, an end to
the Iraq war, an Apollo program for national renewable energy, environmental conservation,
and much more...

[xrayman]

What if Obama comes in second or third? How come that question is not asked?

[mtrav]

Obama would be crushed by rethug, plain and simple.

[kyeblue]

Obama may be your post boy, but I don't see any substance from him, and his comments have shown his inexperience or lack of common sense dozens of times. He might say what you want to hear but he does not have a plan to back up what he says. It is so pity that such a candidate, alone with Hackabee are getting so much attention.

My dream candidate is Gore but will settle for Bloomberg if he jumps into the ring. Mayor Bloomberg is more progressive IN ACTION than any of the democratic candidates and has some real ideas on how to balance our budget, fix the healthcare problem, and clean our air. He talks no BS as Obama, Edwards and Hillary all do and he does not take a single penny from special interests.

[trailblazer]

I don't understand why he says if Edwards doesn't come in second, "it's over," yet if Hillary comes in third, it's only "very damaging."

[woundedduck]

I have yet to see a substantive difference between Clinton and Obama. They're both for private health insurance--which is what got us into the predicament we're in now--and they're both for only tweaking Bush policies. Obama wants to "fix" No Child Left Behind--really? Sorry, but Edwards' message of seriously curbing the influence of corporate monopolies is the only thing that's going to revive the middle class and save this country.

[davidly]

That the function of the primary season has come to mean nothing more than a death knell for candidates who don't win early is nothing less than scandalous.

[Jacee]

Obama is the right person, at the right time to unite this country and overcome the devastation of Republican rule. As he says there is not a left America or a right America there is the United States of America. This is the message of hope and healing that all Americans, except for the truly cynical and depraved, want to hear the most. What happens after the country is reunited is limitless.

Here's to Obama, his message and his mission. Time to look up America and look out. Time to raise your head with pride and determination. The era of fear, division and hate is over. Its going to be great. Obama 2008