Iowa: Biden Closes In On Obama Endorsements

The following piece is published on Iowa Independent as well as HuffPost's OffTheBus.

Delaware Sen. Joe Biden has popped up another rung in race for Iowa legislative endorsements with today's announcement that Iowa Rep. Mary Gaskill of Ottumwa has thrown support behind his presidential campaign. The endorsement brings Biden's total to 13, two behind the campaign for Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, which has 15.

New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton continues to lead the pack with 16 endorsements. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards maintains nine endorsements while Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd has three. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich and former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel have not yet been endorsed by a member of the Iowa legislature. Twenty-seven Democratic members of the state legislature remain uncommitted.

Gaskill, a key endorsement in south-eastern Iowa, is serving her second term in the House for Iowa's 93rd District. She serves on the Environmental Protection Committee, the State Government Committee, the Transportation Committee and as chairwoman of the Local Government Committee. Prior to being elected to the Iowa House, she served 16 years at the Wapello County Auditor. As a legislator she has remained an ally to voting integrity activists, having sponsored legislation that would require random audits of voting machines and paper trails.

"I believe that Sen. Joe Biden has the breadth of experience on foreign policy and record of bipartisan leadership on domestic issues our country so desperately needs," Gaskill said in a prepared statement. "From the Biden exit plan for Iraq to his landmark Violence Against Women Act, Sen. Biden has proven he can build bipartisan consensus on the most important challenges facing our country. He is sincere, authentic and I believe he is the best candidate the democrats have -- and that is why I am supporting him."

Other state legislators who have endorsed Biden for president are Sen. Joe Seng of Davenport, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Des Moines, Speaker Pro Tempore Polly Butka of Clinton, Rep. John Whitaker of Hillsboro, Rep. Doris Kelly of Waterloo, Rep. Lisa Heddens of Ames, Rep. Jim Lykam of Davenport, Rep. Mike Reasoner of Creston, Rep. Dick Taylor of Cedar Rapids, Rep. Roger Thomas of Elkader, Rep. McKinley Bailey of Webster City and Sen. Herman C. Quirmbach of Ames.

Comments

[Tellmethetruth]

Let's remind everyone again - Obama wants to run against Hillary and not Joe Biden. Edwards wants to run against Hillary and not Joe Biden. Hillary wants to run against Obama and Edwards and not Joe Biden. Why????

Joe Biden - 35 years in the Senate - Obama 2 years in the Senate.
Joe Biden - 35 years in the Senate - Edwards 6 years in the Senate (2 of which were spent running for President).
Joe Biden - 35 years in the Senate - Hillary Clinton - 7 years in the Senate - no legislation to her name.

Obama would be the least experienced person ever elected other than George W Bush - no, no, no voting for him would be the most irreponsible vote ever caste in American History.

Joe Biden has it all -the ability to operate with respect and intelligence on the world stage and the ability to get laws passed into legislation and to reform the harm done by the Bush/Cheney years. Go Joe Biden!!!!!

[xanadubgh]

Biden without a doubt is the best candidate for President in either party The Repubs are all light weights compared to him.

I will take his humor and brillience any day of the week.

[poopdeck]

Iowa. Schmiowa. That election, sorry caucus is a puerile form of choosing presidential candidates. Unfortunately, the media love puerile elections. Other than that the Iowa caucus is a ridiculous exercise in the context of fair and equal representation. One solution is to bundle all small states (population less than,say, 5 million) to hold their presidential primaries on the same date followed by the larger states one or two every week.

[hannitizer]

Biden is awesome- a truth teller. But he is too brutally honest and controversial to gain the support of the sheepish wing of the Democratic party. I know he has the experience to take on tough porblems. He and Dodd are by far the best choices for president but by far the least electable unfortunately.

[armadillious2002]

Biden's grasp of foreign policy is invaluable, and he fears nobody. I believe he is without a doubt the best man for the job. I just can't understand why the rest of Dems can't see this.

[MRb1000]

Who cares about endorsements I seen many have a lot of endorsements and go no wear but down. So it means 0!!!