Saturday, August 11, 2012
Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of The Family Leader, said this weekend's Family Leadership Summit is a chance for like-minded conservatives to gather and discuss "church, the family and government."
If you ask Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of The Family Leader, this weekend's Family Leadership Summit in Waukee is nothing more than a chance for like-minded conservatives to gather and discuss what's important to them. While Vander Plaats was mum on the subject of any possible agenda at Saturday's Summit, he did say there would be a special announcement around 2:30 p.m. that day. He did not provide a hint of what that might entail. Vander Plaats is a familiar and powerful presence in Iowa Republican politics. He has run unsuccessfully for governor three times, but two years ago was able to harness opposition to the Iowa Supreme Court's ruling that allowed same-sex marriage. That opposition ousted three members of the court who …
Monday, August 6, 2012
The Family Leadership Summit will be held at Point of Grace Church Saturday with guest speakers Govs. Rick Perry and Mike Huckabee and former Sen. Rick Santorum in attendance.
A third former Republican presidential candidate was announced today adding to the lineup of speakers at the Family Leadership Summit scheduled for Saturday at Waukee's Point of Grace Church. Texas Gov. Rick Perry was just added to the roster that already includes Sen. Rick Santorum and Gov. Mike Huckabee -- both winners of the Iowa caucuses. The three conservative leaders will join New York Times best-selling author Joel C. Rosenberg, Dr. Laurence White, Sen. Chuck Grassley, and Congressman Steve King at the podium. In a news release today, Bob Vander Plaats, President & CEO of The Family Leader said, “We are glad to welcome Governor Rick Perry back to Iowa. We encourage all fiscal and social conservatives to come out for The Summit to …
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Speaking from South Carolina, Rick Perry concludes that there is "No viable path forward" for him in the 2012 bid for the presidency and suspends his campaign.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry is throwing in the towel on his bid for the presidency. In a press conference held this morning in Charleston, S.C., Perry said he was suspending his campaign for the GOP nomination and endorsing Newt Gingrich. "I always believed the mission is greater than the man," said Perry. "Therefore, today I am suspending my campaign and endorsing Newt Gingrich for president of the United States." Perry finished a disappointing fifth place in the Jan. 3 Iowa Caucus after starting off his campaign in August by immediately vaulting to the front of the pack the day he announced. He entered the race the day of the Ames Straw Poll — which was won by Michele Bachmann, who dropped out after placing sixth in the Caucuses — stealing her…
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Caucus Rewind: Truly, we loved having you here. But we’re not all that sorry to see you go.
Goodbye, you and yours. By you, we mean the candiates, and by yours, we mean the national and international press corps, who move with the candiates amoeba-like, changing in shape and size as campaign intensity heightens. And by we, I mean Iowans. That no one was trampled to death during the Caucuses surely must count as one of this rich Iowa tradition's successes. One last time, some favorite images from the Iowa Caucuses. View the gallery – with editorial comment. There was a moment the other day at a Ron Paul rally when, trapped in the media vortex, I seriously wondered if "The Who" concert in Cincinnati meant anything to any of those people. Probably not. This was a young crowd. Wedged against a portable cube-shaped riser one of the …
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
The aftermath: Beginning in Ames and ending in Clinton County, the candidates hit the road.
Oh, Iowa, what a long, strange trip it’s been. Remember August? That was the unofficial beginning of the journey to the caucuses, marked by Michele Bachmann’s victory at the Iowa Straw Poll in Ames. The unofficial end of the campaign? Perhaps it was when Edith and Carolyn, two precious caucus volunteers out in Clinton County, provided CNN with the final Caucus tally after waking up their friend, another volunteer, to find out how many votes she had counted for each candidate. (If you weren't awake to hear them, you really ought to click here. Honestly.) The day after the caucuses, though, seems more like the real unofficial end. For the candidates, it’s the time for getting out of Iowa and into New Hampshire and South Carolina or, in …
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Experts say Mitt Romney did what he had to do in Iowa, and is on a clear path to the nomination. Paul and Bachmann among the losers.
Political watchers say Mitt Romney did what he had to do in the Iowa Caucus and has a clear path to the Republican nomination for president. While former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum virtually tied Romney Tuesday, he lacks the general appeal to truly contest the former Massachusetts governor, experts say. Meanwhile, for third place finisher Ron Paul, the results were a setback. Now Romney heads to New Hampshire. Santorum may—or he could just focus on South Carolina. Romney continues to stay clearly in the lead in New Hampshire. A University of New Hampshire Christmas Day poll had Romney well in front with 39 percent of support followed by Gingrich and Paul, who were tied at 17 percent each. In two polls released on Dec. 29 and Monday, …
Santorum and Romney both gave victory speeches as their backers celebrated, while things were somber at Perry, Bachmann parties. With almost all of the vote counted, Romney and Santorum are tied, while Ron Paul takes third.
As the votes were being counted Tuesday night in a tight Republican caucus battle, supporters gathered at parties scattered throughout the Des Moines area to watch the results come in — and to wait to hear from their candidates. Because of the closeness of the race, backers of candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum had to wait hours before the two men addressed the crowd. The other four running in Iowa — Ron Paul, Michele Bachmann, Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry — took the stage earlier in the night to thank their supporters. The mood at the candidate parties ranged from jubilant to somber, depending on how each candidate fared in the voting. Here is a look at what the scene was like Tuesday night at the candidate parties: Rick Santorum: …
Santorum, Romney in closest race in GOP caucus history.
Mitt Romney lost the support he had four years ago in huge swaths of rural Iowa but managed to win big in the state's largest population centers to claim victory by a mere eight votes over Rick Santorum in the closest GOP race in the storied history of the Iowa caucuses. Ron Paul finished a strong third. Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who finished a poor fifth, behind former U.S. Speaker Newt Gingrich, said he would return home to "assess the results," politicial speak for his probable decision to drop out of the race. Iowa native Michele Bachmann, who failed to win even one of the state's 99 counties, finished in sixth, just ahead of Jon Huntsman, who did not compete. In percentages, the results showed Romney and Santorum with 25 percent each, …
Here are my picks for the finish in tonight's caucuses. What are yours? Use the poll below to vote for a candidate and the comments section to tell us why you think that person will finish on top.
About a month ago in this space I told you, Iowa, that the end was near. Today, the end is here. After dozens of town hall meetings, hundreds of candidate campaign stops and way, way too many political commercials, the 2012 Iowa GOP caucuses are all over but the voting — and the counting. Which means there’s still time for some predicting. We want to know who you think will win the Iowa Caucuses -- and we want to know why. Vote below in our poll, then go to our comments section to tell us why you think that candidate will win. Here is a disclaimer (also known as a pre-emptive excuse) regarding my picks: I am an Ohio transplant, and not a real Iowan — something like an Ohiowan — so I am not to be completely trusted. I’ve done a lot, though…
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Final Des Moines Register Poll Before Tuesday's Caucus: Paul, Santorum, in striking distance of Romney.
- ELECTIONS
- Deb Belt
-
Saturday, December 31, 2011
The Des Moines Register's final Iowa Poll before Tuesday's Caucuses shows former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney leading the presidential candidate pack, but Ron Paul and a surging Rick Santorum are within striking distance. The poll, conducted Tuesday through Friday, shows support at 24 percent for Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts; 22 percent for Paul, a Texas congressman; and 15 percent for Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania. Most striking was Santorum's surge and the continuing crash of former U.S. Speaker Newt Gingrich. While the poll was taken over four days, when the last two days are considered separately, Santorum rises to second place, with 21 percent, pushing Paul to third, at 18 percent. Romney remains …
David Leonard
8:42 am on Thursday, August 9, 2012
I can practically guarantee that if you attend this summit you will hear statement after statement that would make Jesus want to vomit. more ›