A friend asked me yesterday if I was excited by Ted Cruz’s shocking Iowa victory? Excited, well no, as my candidate, Rand Paul, long ago self-destructed. I am for a government that is based, as the American Conservative puts it, on principles of federalism, decentralized political power, fiscal responsibility, a foreign policy of prudence, and respect for traditional liberties and communities.
As to shocking, also no. Cruz had in place a big time ground game perfect for campaigning in a caucus state like Iowa. Trump had virtually no ground game (much like the Pats) and was at a huge disadvantage. And as the new year got under way, Cruz held a comfortable lead. As the month unfolded, however, Cruz lost his lead to the point that final polls projected a Trump victory. So the polls missed the Cruz win? Not exactly. The final Cruz/Trump spread was within the expected margin of error.
OK, but still a big win for Ted right? To hear the flap in the media, a casual observer might conclude so. But you need to ask the big question. What did Cruz actually win? Why he won a single digit 8 delegates out of a total of 30 Republican delegates. As for Donald Trump, “the loser”? Mr. Trump garnered 7 delegates out of the total of 2472 Republican delegates who will attend the national convention. What? That sounds like is a pee hole in a snow bank. Indeed, absolutely little of lasting significance was achieved in Iowa. There was plenty of spinning, but not much weaving.
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