Top Ten Reasons we Lost Iowa -- Not for Faint of Heart
Submitted by Kyle in Flint MI on Fri, 01/04/2008 - 19:21
Only when you study your failures, can you improve. Here are my Top Ten reasons why we lost in Iowa -- not for the faint hearted.
1. NHQ did not see importance of Iowa: A month ago; polls showed us in a three way tie in Iowa. Someone should have had the insight to say, "Hey if we finish third in Iowa, that will propel us into major media coverage, major donations, and give us a major boost into NH." Actions do not show that was the case. Real Leadership sees an openning. Because they did not see the vision; a half hearted effort was made.
2. Ron was not there for the last days: Where was Ron. Well for New Years -- according to a sad AP story that went nationwide; while many of the candidates were having New Years in Iowa; Ron was "reading policy papers" back in Texas. Did Iowa think Ron cared that much? Of course he did and does, but NHQ should have had him campaigning there then.
Fred, Mike and John had buses going around the state -- Ron did what; one or two events? Again; NHQ -- for a presidential primary has to do multiple events. They are responsible for the schedule of the candidate.
3. Ron did not campaign there: Hillary touched down in each county; she had a hellicopter; Fred, John, Mike had buses and campaigned straight for days; Fred for almost two weeks; all around the state. I have seen press reports that Ron did not do this, and only actually visited a small percentage of the state's counties. He spent most of his time in eastern Iowa -- where he pulled in his best numbers. NHQ should have had him in a bus, and covering each county.
4. The Ads: I actually have not seen them. All I know is that from the constant and high volume of Daily Paul comments - they were ineffective and really bad. I have read here where the folks that did the Jesse Ventura ads, and other outside the box campaigns, wrote NHQ and offered to help -- oh, here we go again -- no reply.
Can't open the mail, keep track of it -- will not return emails -- will not return phone calls -- hey; fix this.
I have lost count of the comment "our youtube videos are better".
5. No State Director: Yes we had a "State Coordinator", but the press and volunteers react differently to a request by a Director than a Coordinator. Just look at the press coverage % quoting the State Directors for the other campaigns, compared to ours.
6. No State Media Spokeman: Same thing; same results. I followed the Iowa newspapers; always quoting Iowa campaign staff from the other campaigns; very little from ours. From what I am told; NHQ wants to handle all the media. This is hurting us. When 70% of the people have not heard much about Ron Paul; you need other voices. The local Iowa papers wanted to speak with someone from Iowa; not Jesse in VA. Iowa media want to speak to a local Media Rep.
7. Failure to address real issues affecting everyday persons: The Message; The MESSAGE. Why did Obama win; the message.
Yes; the Constitution hangs by a thread; yes -- we need to come home from Iraq; yes; fix the tax system -- but how about the price of gasoline; high credit card interest rates; banks taking back cars and homes -- everyday economic issues. Ron has to expand his message.
One blogger called him the "Pre-telegraph" candidate. If we want to move above 10% we have to expand the message to relate to the middle class, and their economic issues. NHQ has to expand the message if we are going to expand our base.
8. To negative -- what are you going to do?: Another trait that is poping up too often is the "angry old man"; too negative. The way to overcome this is to offer suggestions. For example: "We need to improve our relationships with other countries; one positive change I will institute, will be to require each Ambassador to be fluent in the language of the country they are assigned." Positives inspire.
9. Local offices; we had 2 and Obama had 27: From what I have read; we had 2 offices in Iowa; Obama had 27. He sent a message. And, he hired locals to manage his offices; and guess what -- they showed up at the caucus and they brought their friends. How you spend your money is more important than how much you raise. Hopefully NHQ will learn from this one.
10. Not targeting base with effective mailings and reach-out: This killed us in Iowa. Did we have specific mailers to Home Schoolers, and Gun Owners, etc -- I have not heard of them. The Huck -- from Press reports, created at least 9 new ways to make it harder for Home Schoolers -- yet -- according to the media reports -- it was the Home Schoolers that gave him big numbers; those should have been our votes. They don't know if you do not tel them.
11. Preceived ego of National Campaign staff: I have read so many stories on Daily Paul where phone calls and emails and suggestions to Ken, Lew, Joe, Don and Holly at NHQ go unanswered. This is just poor office management and leadership skills. In politics and in the non-profit sector, Volunteers are your life-blood. You uplift them and they work harder; you ignore or insult them, and they do not work hard, or worse -- they walk away.
No; Ken, Lew, Joe, Holly and Don cannot answer each phone call, each email, or letter -- but they should have staff that do.
Others have said they (NHQ) are closed to suggestions. Name one suggestion from the grass roots that they have implemented. A NHQ cannot be their way or the highway. They have to be open to ideas.
They should have a Daily Column either on Daily Paul, or as a Press Release to inspire the base -- the volunteers who are the grassroots. It should really be on the main campaign page.
Having led various computer based, or physical volunteer drives; if you want to motivate the base; do daily updates. Give them a shot of motivation each day if you expect them to volunteer each day.
Other things that are holding us back:
1. Not accepting Matching funds; Some say it is against a Libertarian principle to accept matching funds; my reply is that the principles of the Constitution -- which hang by a thread --- are more important.
NHQ needs to see this and do something; are we in this to win or to just make a statement?
2. Campaign website: Unless they really do not want volunteers visiting because of the costs of hits, then they should start using the website as a motivational tool -- you do this by having real daily updates -- a couple times a day. How this works is -- you want your volunteers to have a new infusion of motivation a couple times a day. This propels them to share the message with their friends and relatives, and people they come into contact with; AM and PM updates.
3. Office Manager: We need a Office Manager that tracks incoming mail (like the NRA debate invitation that was lost -- according to reports). Also tracks phone calls. If Ken or Lew or Joe does not want to respond to an email or phone call --- or not even read the email -- it should go to some staff person who can respond.
4. Media Spokesman/person: We need a real deal Media Spokesman/Person. I could not believe the Fox Forum Fiasco where NHQ issued several statements -- one saying -- "Fox is not returning our phone calls." A real deal Media Spokeman has the home phone numbers and cell numbers for media folks at all of the networks - because he already has a long term relationship with them. A real deal media spokesman already has relationships with the press reporters and assignment editors; that is why he gets "stories and press coverage"; it is all about relationships.
5. At the bottom of the home page (or top) of ronpaul2008, there should be links to Daily Paul, and other volunteer motivational sites.
6. I hope Ron, Rand, Lew, Ken, Joe and Don, and Holly are all in Wyoming for the caucus tomorrow for one last push -- then to NH for that last push.
End Notes: You only learn from your mistakes if you are humble enough to see your mistakes, and then take corrective actions to fix them. We appreciate the hard work of NHQ -- Ken, Lew, Joe, Holly, Don, Jesse, etc; we ask them to look, and consider what improvements can be made. We should have had 3rd; we needed third. Let us pray that NHQ will do the right actions.
Please vent and share your feelings why we did not do better in Iowa. And importantly, improvements that the NHQ can make.
Reposted this entry on my website
Hey Kyle, thanks for the great article. Since DailyPaul.com is not an admitted site for Digg submissions, I reposted this article on my website at chaosmotor.com. The direct link is
http://chaosmotor.wordpress.com/2008/01/07/top-ten-reasons-r...
I also wrote another post about Dr. Paul which you can find here:
http://chaosmotor.wordpress.com/2008/01/07/oil-the-dollar-an...
Sorry for not posting here immediately to let you know I cribbed your article to submit it to Digg, I hope you can forgive me.
Some of you may want to read additional entries I've written, hopefully you find my philosophies and opinions appealing.
chaosmotor.com
Only For The Serious
Over the weekend a handful of supporters from across America conferenced on a call.
This group includes people close to the Ron Paul family.
There are now several websites set-up to address all of the issues in this post. These are sites that go beyond talk. They are database servers that will support our efforts.
Our strategy is simple. We have a strong funding source.
If you are serious about participating send me an email:
America_Freedom@comcast.net
Grassroots: This Is Our Campaign - Own It.
Grassroots: This Is Our Campaign - Own It.
Can you tell us more
Can you tell us more?
Please provide links,
Please provide links, something to look at before people get involved in something and perhaps donate money to it.
Please don't take offense, but you're 2 days old and I've been fearing that there may be unscrupulous people out there who would take advantage of well-meaning supporters. That's not an accusation, I'm just expressing caution. Hope you understand.
----------
If you visit one link today, make it this one: http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/Fox_removing_Ron_Paul_s_na...
The campain, and the future of Freedom, is in your hands
The campaign and your freedom is not in NHQ's hands. It is in your hands.
Instead of asking why NHQ isn't doing X, ask instead what are you doing (Most Effective Contributions).
I love some of the ideas here, especially the local advertising.
Cut out the middle man in the Freedom
re[love]ution,
Dennis
Happy Dancing re[love]ution,
Dennis
Local Small Paper Ads Work - Jefferson, IA 35%
We need to learn from Jefferson County that advertising in local papers works. They had 35% for Ron Paul there just by running cheap ads in local papers week after week. Our founding fathers sold the constitution via local papers with the Federalist Papers. We need to do the same.
From one of the meetups in Jefferson County.
Few people in Jefferson County read the Des Moines Register so ad buys there don't reach the rural folk hardly at all. The small local papers have very little political advertising and would love to have the business. And it is CHEAP. We had an ad in the weekly paper 8 column inches for $55 a week for 13 weeks straight. And change the ad every week. We ran larger ads in the daily paper as well. Some are at: http://ronpaul.meetup.com/267/files/
We did a newspaper insert printed 2 sides letter size paper - RIDICULOUSLY CHEAP way to reach 2500 people - so much cheaper than direct mail. Those mail items the campaign sends must have cost a fortune, by comparison an insert cost us $150 to reach 2500 plus $120 for photocopying or under 11 cents per household. These local orientated messages I think are way more effective than direct mail.
----------------------------------
"The essence of freedom is the proper limitation of government". ~ Founding Fathers
We could done all those above 10x fold...
but still the vote could be tampered with...
This guy is on it...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUJZnKPInhA
Ron Paul's Iowa mistakes--and how we can learn from them
Many very good points!
Even if we could not have won Iowa, there is no doubt that our campaign could have improved its performance to a degree which would have given our hero a credible third, perhaps in the mid-twenties, breathing down Romney's neck, and even giving the Huckster a run for his money in some Iowa counties.
Live and learn. I hope the good advice cited above in that post is taken well before Super Tuesday next month.
PEACE AND FREEDOM!!
David K. Meller
You missed one
You missed the only one that really counts: The Vote Count.
The votes weren't counted in the open as promised by Republican Party officials. Unless votes are counted in the open the political bosses will never allow Dr. Paul to interfere with their cushy little racket.
Dr. Paul and his Staff did a fantastic job with the money and resources available. They do not have the forces of evil to prop them up at every move and promote imagined virtues for them. Ron's status and integrity grows by the day. I'm proud to be one of his patriots.
For Freedom, Prosperity, and Peace
For Freedom, Prosperity, and Peace
Amen, the most important
Amen, the most important reason of all. It all boils down to who actually counts the votes.
In Australia
Where I am now, the whole shebang is government funded. BUT, the ballots are all on paper and, at EVERY voting place (whatever they are called), there are volunteer party scrutineers whose job it is to just stand there and lean over the shoulders of the people counting the votes. There is no news that I hear here of the votes being rigged or anything (and there is always some smoke with these things) so I think paper ballots are the way to go. And they obviously think it is necessary to have someone standing there watching the vote count. And this is not a corrupt country. This is a very old practice, so I am told.
Good to know.
"What does conservatism today stand for? It stands for war. It stands for power. It stands for spying, jailing without trial, torture, counterfeiting without limit, and lying from morning to night."
Lew Rockwell
Thanks for the input. This
Thanks for the input. This is exactly what needs to be done here. Where the public eyeballs and VERIFYS the actual totals. Where the problem seems to be is when the count totals from each precinct are called in to a 'middleman' tabulation service. Totals don't always coincide with the initial count.
Need a Drudge Banner Ad
.............continually.................
BIG NO
1.
EVANGELICALS + Huckster = Victory......That was Iowa for Republicans..
BIG NO....................WE HAVE PRINCIPLES.....
Not accepting Matching funds; Some say it is against a Libertarian principle to accept matching funds; my reply is that the principles of the Constitution -- which hang by a thread --- are more important.
BIG YES..........
11. Preceived ego of National Campaign staff: I have read so many stories on Daily Paul where phone calls and emails and suggestions to Ken, Lew, Joe, Don and Holly at NHQ go unanswered. This is just poor office management and leadership skills. In politics and in the non-profit sector, Volunteers are your life-blood. You uplift them and they work harder; you ignore or insult them, and they do not work hard, or worse -- they walk away.
No; Ken, Lew, Joe, Holly and Don cannot answer each phone call, each email, or letter -- but they should have staff that do.
#4 is certainly true, in spades
#4 is certainly true, in spades, that's for damn sure.
#8 is also true, and part of the problem is that RP is basically breaking the bad news to people who for the last 25 years have known nothing but bull market. Even though it's now out of real gas and running on the fumes of freshly printed money, it's a lot easier for most people to hear the other guys' happy talk.
I think you may have missed the one think people (who aren't ardent RP fans) tell me most, and which I think is a fair assessment: In many of the TV interviews, especially the ones of the ambush kind where RP is forced to think on his feet, he comes across as weak, both in body language and verbally. The George Stephanawfulous interview is one good example, where RP served up the obvious straight line for George, who OF COURSE was going to say he was willing to bet every penny in his pocket.
RP does a lot better in his speeches, but most people never see them.
A lot of the those who lean more toward the right (no the hard core types; they're hopeless) also think RP is a total weakling as far as fighting that mythical war on terror that they've had drummed into their heads. I'd sure like to see RP regularly explain why, as I like to put it in slogan form:
"Osama bin Forgotten is the problem.
Marque & Reprisal is the solution."
Otherwise, all they think they know about RP is 'he wants to let the terrorist win'
The problem might be framed as this: "What are many mainstream Republican voters still waiting to hear from Ron Paul?"
In order for Ron Paul to break through to (for the lack of a better term) "ordinary Republican voters," many of whom aren't used to thinking too deeply about most issues, he is going to have to do a better job of staying on topic in TV interviews, and sharpen his message considerably.
Like it or not, it's a sound bite world, and in order to get their attention, Ron is going to have to start using quick snappy terms to at least accentuate & punctuate his message, framing each issue with a catchy soundbite.
For example, let's take an issue on which I think Ron has made his point pretty clearly, his support for the second amendment, and how that might have interfered with the success of the 9/11 hijackers. I'd tie this into Ron's stated goal to eliminate the Dept. of Homeland Security, with a soundbite like this:
"We don't need a Dept. of Homeland Security if we uphold the Amendment of Individual Security."
On the issue of the North American Union & NAFTA superhighway, an issue some have used to try to portray Ron as some sort of kooky conspiracy therorist, I'd say this:
Long version: "The North American Union won't be a conspiracy unless a grand jury hands down an indictment. Until then, it's just a business plan."
Short version: "The North American Union is not a conspiracy, it's a business plan."
Quit living in the past and
Quit living in the past and focus on the future! We have 14%, 3rd place now according to the latest Ras poll.
We need to be our own HQ
Each state needs to get focused and find a plan to win -- with or without HQ help. We need some leaders with experience in winning elections to step up and say lets figure this thing out. We need to win. We don't need to look good or do better than expectations. We don't need to tell each of us to pass out a few more fliers. The grassroots one person at a time will get us to where we are and not much further.
To make it to the top, we need a plan of attack that will be more than the sum of each of us as individual parts.
That's my feeling anyway. If we are going to win then we need to forget about trying to get HQ to do what we think they need to, and do it ourselves. If they do end up getting it right, then even better.
poor staff choices?
so, is the fact that the national campagin staff is not very good an indication that if RP does win the nomination and subsequent election he would have trouble assembling a decent staff? Or, is this just how the cookie crumbles?
I would say
just that. If by some miracle he does win, then yes I have a real concern about these people behind him. I think Ron and the campaign are two different animals. I think the various factors that attract us to Paul (i.e. integrity, understanding, resisting greed, or whatever else it is) don't filter down to the campaign and he is also not aware of any of this...maybe cause he is too naive (and I don't mean that negatively...just as fact) or just too busy with traveling and whatever else. But my sense the staff that he would assemble would not reflect Paul equally.
Revolutions can be messy at times......
but I don't think HQ was ready for just how big this would become. There is always room for improvement, and valid points have been made. General Washington didn't fair to well in his early campaigns, but grew in the position and was victorious. This fight is no different. General Cornwallis had the best Army and Navy in the world at his disposable, but we beat him anyway.
For God and Country!
For God and Country!
Wow
You know, I was thinking exactly the same thing (about Washington's failures and self-doubt) right at the exact moment I began to read your comment.
Yes, Washington was critized heavily, he was being betrayed by those close to him, but he stayed the course. It was not until he crossed the Delaware that he re-surged.
Hang in there, my fellow Paulites! Don't desert your general just yet, he just might have a crossing of the Delaware planned.
WHY RP NHQ AVOIDED IOWA
I see a lot of you out here criticizing the campaign staff, but did any of you stop and think why they didn't care about Iowa? In my opinion, IT WAS A WISE DECISION TO SPEND MINIMAL TIME AND EFFORT IN IOWA!
Why should the campaign waste valuable time, effort, and OUR money on a state with a caucus that has a proven track record of fraud and is also considered a poor indicator of future primary success? The answer is, that they should not. They would be smart to focus more on WY, NH, and NV early on rather than trying to rally more people from Iowa to stand up and NOT be counted. I have 100% faith now after seeing these results that our man Paul is on his way to the top BECAUSE of his responsible campaign staff. Think of it this way:
In IOWA, we were able to get 10% and the campaign hardly did ANYTHING!!! This was, for the most part, from local grassroots efforts that we got this. ALL IOWA SUPPORTERS SHOULD BE THRILLED that they got RP to double-digits DESPITE FRAUD! NHQ was SMART to save the money we've donated for the states that MATTER! You have to understand that this is why RP was pleased with 10%. He KNEW there would be fraud in Iowa and did not expect much.
http://www.dailypaul.com/node/21221
He knew because "The Iowa caucus results were tallied in 2004 by a company that is headed by a man whose company was bought by Elron Electronics, the Israeli defense firm. I suspect that it will be the same this year. Don't expect to see any grassroots political activists doing the tally in Iowa. The Israeli defense establishment takes care of that part of the American "democratic" election process." (last paragraph from the above hyperlink by user "eilif")
I feel that the last thing we need is NEGATIVITY! The Iowa caucus was a SUCCESS and we need to focus on the positives. Don't get me wrong Kyle, I do appreciate your analysis and you make some good points. Reviewing past performances and analyzing what can be done better next time is absolutely necessary. BUT when you offer negative criticism of the campaign staff without understanding what their methods are, you give the impression that they are not being responsible and are doing something wrong. Is Ron Paul a stupid man? Of course not. Would a smart man like Ron keep stupid people on his staff? No again. Let them do their jobs, offer praise where it is due, and focus on your successes and what can be done better next time. Negativity of any kind only serves as a hindrance to our future success. Don't give everyone a sour taste in their mouth! Let them have the sweet sweet taste of victory! Let them close their eyes and picture what it will be like to REALLY be free of this tyranny that has been placed upon us, where our people are once again looked upon by other nations as a role model for standing up against oppression!
Good. Now that you've all got that in your heads, keep it there and let's get this man elected.
THANK YOU ALL AND GO RON PAUL!!!
You're Obviously A Supporter --
Vote RON PAUL 2008
______________
And that's good, nothing wrong in that, me too. But STOP trying to find reason (excuses) why we didn't take a firm hold in IOWA. Thinking like that will have us all standing around and smiling at each other at the finish wondering the same thing, I'm afraid -- we are playing with the BIG BOYS here and they don't play nice // giving them any room for 'a win' and they will. Allow them to push their way to the front, and they will. Allow them to 'cut' us from an ABC forum, and they will; allow them to 'cut' us from a Fox forum, and they will. Understand?
Keep up the commendable support, that's very important, but STOP trying to find excuses for why we were not number one -- there is only one reason and that reason is the deck has been stacked against us and we need to understand that (all of us) and play hardball with the BIG BOYS if we are to play at all -- that's the only way to win here, the only way. What's that old saying (??) // oh yeah, nice guys finish LAST.
Vote RON PAUL 2008 -- and make damn sure we throw the gangsters out of office (speaking of current incumbents and those that are closely related) and put an honest man (RP) behind the wheel for once and for all.
Entirely my thoughts. No excuses necessary to be a winner.
Vote RON PAUL 2008
TO ME
It isn't ABOUT whether THEY did enough to win Iowa, it's about what the SUPPORTERS in Iowa did or did not do. My feeling is that we should have enough smart and talented folks in each state who can put together a plan to win, whether or not the main guys have it right or not. Ok, so we may never have won 1st in Iowa, but 5th?
Anyone who says we couldn't have organized ourselves better and gotten a few thousand more people out is full of shit, so my message to each of you or any of you is how do we come up with a plan in YOUR state to WIN?
Matching funds? Are you nuts?
If you're suggesting that Dr. Paul take taxpayers' money for the campaign, then you need to find a better crack dealer. The guy you're using now is selling you something really nasty.
If Ron Paul took federal matching funds, he would lose 70%+ of his supporters, starting with me. Fortunately, he's a man of integrity and that's not going to happen.
-jcr
"The problem with trying to child-proof the world, is that it makes people neglect the far more important task of world-proofing the child." -- Hugh Daniel
At this hour this is the most important qwan before the campaign
I appreciate and respect your opinion on Ron Paul not taking federal matching funds. I respect that for you it is a matter of principle.
I would say this is the most important qwan before the campaign at this hour.
As I said in my article; we are caught in the middle; on one side the Constitution hangs by a thread, and each day more and more of our civil liberties are being taken away. What do we do; how can we get our message across? On the other hand we have the principle of not taking federal matching funds; which I respect.
I think this is an issue we need to revisit after Feb 5th. Let us see where we stand then; I am not sure if we qualify. The point is, we do need money to get out our message. If we can raise funds; great; if not --- because people cannot afford to give much more -- then we have to consider the principles involved. Please don't walk away if he does; this is going to be a close race in November; we need everyone.
Thank you for all of your hard work on the Ron Paul campaign; let us see what brings us together. Debate is a healthy sign that democracy is alive.
Black Hawk County
The caucus for this county was held at Central Middle School located on the western edge of Waterloo. I went at 6:30 and parked 1 mile away. There was zero parking and zero organization. You had to wait in some of the lines for 1-2 hours just to get your paperwork. There were people waiting in line at 8:45 just to get registered. In my group I identified 3 agents of the world order and they appeared nervous at my presence. The votes for our small group were Mitt 7, Mike 4, Paul 3 and Fred 3. I would say that many people simply went home or to their favorite bar after seeing the BS you had to put up with and did NOT participate. Compare to the Democrats in this county that used many places to caucus and had double the turnout.
a Solution!
"slim jim mini-campaign" has the right idea..along with some others,and will be one of the stratagies posted on "our own" 'Ron Paul WarRoom'/ Anyone? (salt of the earth) if indeed it is created. I guess we should not be worrying what HQ is doing or is NOT doing, they're ignoring us anyway. We're all on the same side ! We are all wondering what we can do to make a more efficient push for Ron Paul. A grassroots "Ron Paul WarRoom" is an excellent way to do this. It would give all the meetup groups more cannon fodder. Salt of the earth...what can I do to help?? mugwampbro@hotmail.com
Go RP2008 !!!!
RonPaulWarRoom.com
Find a tech-savvy geek to put it together, a server to host it, and $$ to fund it (I don't have any). Sounds like a cop-out, perhaps--but true :-{. Oh...and somebody who understands website management to help me run it. Not asking much, huh...?
I'm a white-bearded old fart who still sharpens a goosequill when I want to post anything....real messy on the keyboard, but old habits die hard...
Ideas are cheap; performance is what counts. I guess I'm as guilty as anyone of suggesting ideas that I wish "the other guy" would carry out---but still, I would be glad to collaborate with anyone who has the smarts, drive and $$ to get RonPaulWarRoom.com off the ground and running.
"It's better to stumble in the right direction, than dash in the wrong one."
salt-of-the-earth
The doc had 300 meetup members in 20 groups
In Iowa (I tried to count off the map). They volunteers from other states plus the NHQ had folks. Obama and Edwards and Clinton were "top down: operations in Iowa. The doc was strictly grass roots.....why?
You have a big country with a lot of primaries. You have one guy who can't be everywhere at once. HE CAN'T. Don't start wondering why Dr. Paul isn't in a damn bus riding from stop to stop. Get off of that and leave it be...it ain't gonna happen.
I don't care what the other campaign's did and this is why.
Obama thought he could beat Hillary in Iowa...so did Edwards. They beat themselves to death trying to win and they did. Whoop de do. They took all the damn corporate money they got and spent it.
NHQ knew that Iowa was only worth so many damn resources. DON'T COMPARE THE "EFFORT" OF TWO WELL FINANCED AND DESPERATE CANDIDATES TO US. Stop it. We will lose every time.
I do not buy your "three way tie quote." You can't believe in the polls one minute and say they are clap the next.
If you want to give that quote credibility, Rudy had 26% in Iowa in July. So how did that "poll" work out.
This summer NHQ had about $27 and a ham sandwich to spend on a national campaign "build out." Obama had $60,000,000. What would you do? Spend it on NH.
Now we have NH. There are 3000 RP people running around up there now.
In the next months the NHQ is going to become the whipping boy. Whip away. If you think it is going to get us one DAMN VOTE then do it.
This website is a place for people to get together and get recharged for the next push.
I am praying for you guys in Michigan. Don't worry about Romney. We need some delegates. Give it your best shot with what you got.
Unify
Traditional campaigning is still a must
I think that the above post is very well thought out and gets down to the nitty-gritty of real campaigning. Even though this Ron Paul Revolution is a grassroots driven campaign, traditional campaigning is still needed and necessary. No matter how many of us "Paulites" are out there telling our neighbors, friends, and family about Dr Paul, no matter how people sign wave, no matter how many slim-jims we pass out, a majority of Americans simply will not get interested in Presidential politics. That is why the message has to be proclaimed and the people need to hear it from Dr. Paul.
What is a campaign? It's actually a military term for a military operations for a specific objective. That objective being: getting elected to the office of President of the United States. Campaign headquarters should see themselves as the Pentagon, Dr. Paul as Supreme Commander, and individual states' headquarters as battlefield HQ's staffed by Colonels and Generals.
There is only so much we can do, but we must do it. How many of you reading this has done something for Dr. Paul other than donate money or read Daily Paul and post a few comments? Are you sitting on the sidelines, watching the rest battle for freedom or are you engaging?
Just my two cents...
I agree with this post. I sadly believe however that change is not coming. The HQ is not run well. They don't relate well and it seems some possibly have ulterior motives. Personal desires and wishes seem to be in the way of what is important. They're not efficient and don't seem to prioritize well. They seem to lack a basic level of sociability that is important to anything. They work real hard but maybe at the wrong things. A lack of urgency and a healthy anxiety may be missing as well. They have yet to implement a plan on tackling the enormity of emails and basically have given up on that. Now is not the time for mistakes and many have been made. If you are still learning from your mistakes in the First Quarter instead of in practice then get out of the game.
Consider also that they never ever expected to be where they are now. However, all of that is the result of us. Not them. So they are really riding our wave and frankly I don't think they genuinely know (or have known) deep down what to do with all that. I mean I don't think any campaign would know but this campaign specifically I think has much trouble in simply coming to terms with the situation.
Anyway, essentially I think this a great post for people to read and absorb. The saddest part is what Kyle outlines in number 11. I believe that is crux of all the other problems. It's very unfortunate but what can you do. If all goes badly Tuesday, hopefully there will be rollover from this effort and groups will sustain themselves after this campaign and continue to try to keep this movement healthy and effective. However, I sadly don't think the HQs will do much in change. It's probably too late for dealing with stuff like that anyway. Either way, we will know everything by Tuesday.
Slim Jim Mini-Campaign
Kyle, I agree with everything you wrote, HQ needs better campaign coordination and advanced planning. But untill then, it's up to us as messengers of liberty to get the word out to the American public.
I plan to hand out the Slim Jim that states Dr. Paul's support for removing tax on tips (HR 3664) to every restaurant waitress/waiter in my locality.
I plan to visit every police station to talk about RP's bill (HR 3304) to allow a tax credit to police officers who purchase their own body armor. Currently employee expenses are allowed to be deducted only when itemizing deductions. By offering a tax credit, every police officer can take advantage of the credit when they purchase their own protection.
Both of these pieces of legislation are good 'intros' to other talking points about RP's platform.
"Death is inevitable; but life in my America without freedom and liberty for all is unacceptable."
On the same track?
I've been watching CSPAN alot the last couple of weeks and it seems that I see almost all the other candidates (even Chuck Norris :) ) but I have not see a Ron Paul rally yet. Hope it is just bad timing on my part. I hope the people running this show get his face out in front of the people more.
Thanks for reading.
Thoughtful post
I agree with much of it and presume much of the rest has validity as well. I know NHQ has NOT been generally up to the quality standard of our candidate nor the grass roots nor the money available. I, also, have been frustrated by the unresponsiveness of HQ to email communications. Given the amount of money I've donated (and they have no idea how much additional I've donated to grassroots and promotional material purposes), if nothing else, I think I deserved better...and I think the campaign would have been stronger, earlier as a result.
We can only hope the folks at NHQ accept their feedback now and *volunteer* to make massive upgrades to their tactics and performance.
Obviously MOST of the people in the US - and inarguably Iowa - are NOT deeply philosophical but vote, more or less, from their "lizard brains"; A deep thinker wouldn't vote for someone primarily because s/he took a fast train ride through some backwater town. I think the philosophers and philosophy behind our rEVOLution is vital for the long term, but we clearly need to do a much better job of meeting the average person in a way they can better relate.
One of the key attributes of a winner - and a winning movement - is the ability to accept feedback "from the market" and improve. Let us hope HQ has it in itself, on some level, to upgrade itself to at least match - ideally exceed - the quality of our message, candidate, and grassroots. This is not an issue of primarily hard work; it is mostly a function of "look; see; tell the truth; take authentic action."
Mike Huckabee
I think Rush Limbaugh hit it right on the nail. He said that the MSM, CNN (AKA Clinton News Network) especially, is propping up Huckabee because the Democrats need an easy candidate to beat. MSM is propping him up now, but if he were to get the nomination, they will do a 180 degree turn and go against him. The MSM will portray him as a bible thumping Jesus freak who wants everyones kids to go to Sunday school. They will make him out to be a conservative hypocrite becacuse he a big government conservative.
Fortunately, evangelical Christians will not be picking our president like they did in the past two elections. This election is going to be won by independants, young people, and racial minorities.
You Listen To Limbaugh???
Vote RON PAUL 2008
____________
I suppose it takes all kinds. Seems to me that Rush Limbaugh and RON PAUL are like oil and water // they don't mix too well.
Vote RON PAUL 2008
lol
I know, I know, Limbaugh is not the best conservative. However, I agree with him somewhat. I agree with a lot of his criticism on liberal america. If I only listened to talk shows that I agreed with 100%, then I wouldent have anyone to listen too, lol.
Orwell missed one tool of Big Brother...
talk radio. Be careful out there.
Noted -- 1984
Vote RON PAUL 2008
_____________
Yeah, my son says the same things to me. Unfortunately, he's not fully awake to the truth about our current administration yet either (you see -- 9/11 was in fact an inside job, in case Limbaugh failed to pass this on to you and his devoted followers) //
No offense intended BUT THE ANSWER TO 1984 is 1776. Smile.
Vote RON PAUL 2008
It's not a total lost. Learn from it..
Don't dwell on it too much. Let's move on. To WY first, then NH.
"He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it." Confucius
"He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it." Confucius
Who said we LOST???
Take a look at what's going on today....NH GOP making a stink that gets press attention...Blogs blowing up...Target on HUCKS back...Supporters are Doubling their efforts in getting the message out....10 percent was better than any "real" poll had shown and he campaigned about as much there as Guilaini....this is OUR REVOLUTION...Ron Paul can not satisfy all people by being everywhere for everyone...BUT You Know Who Can? YOU!!!! We are resposible for this message being spread much more than just out of RP own mouth....
RON PAUL! RON PAUL!
Some truth......
to all these reasons. But Hucks rise seem to be by design. Rudy had no chance, Mitt spent more money, Fred ? McCain has a moderate following no suprise there. If Huck wasn't in the picture we would be patting ourselves on the back. Iowa may be the first, but does it really represent the rest of the country ? You have to wonder if the RNC propped up Huck to keep the others from blowing Rudy off the map. Most people are not passionate about primaries, so if you drag them in on busses and shuttles, feed them coffee and doughnuts it will help with the numbers. I would expect RP to do better in states with major metropolitan areas.(Have you ever driven throgh Iowa?)
How much could a nice Coach Bus Cost for 60 days?
RP needs to get all over the place in SC and Florida.
Good way to put our
Good way to put our donations to effective use. People respond better to the Man himself. We should inquire with HQ to see if there are any plans to do so.
Knock Knock -- Anybody Home?
Vote RON PAUL 2008
______________
There has to be a simple REASON Obama & Huckabee did better than us in Iowa // If we are to be serious in this endeavor of ours, it's important to discover what those reasons were and then capitalize on them ourself --use the tools of the enemy, if those tools are in fact more effective.
We see this in military superiority // in that fashion it stands out like a sore thumb when one is compared against the other -- jets and missile technology come to mind in me saying that. Think USA; Think Fiji.
There HAS to be a REASON we didn't do as well as many of us had hoped // I wanted RON PAUL to come out of the gate so damn fast and hard that the others would have cause to stare open-eyed in utter amazement. This didn't happen.
If this (Iowa example) was the actual final election process -- guess who won? // it sure in the hell wouldn't have been us, that's for sure.
Use the tools of the enemy against them -- if they are effective tools -- and they sure in the hell appear to be that. There's no excuse. None.
I suppose some out there will just shrug and say, 'well, we'll do better next time'. Forget the shrug, forget the lame attitude -- get serious, get mad, get angry, get organized, get prepared, get ready -- GET -- or be gotten -- and worst yet, soon forgotten.
Hey, I want this fine man (RON PAUL) as our next president. You guys out there in positions (the counterparts to those running the Obama & Huckabee campaigns) -- get serious. Please. Pretty please.
You in your own heart must surely KNOW where your weakness lies -- accept that and get serious here if we are to have RON PAUL as the next president of these United States of America. He's not running for a lesser office; He's running for the highest office in the land; He's running to be the leader of the free world. Make it possible for him to be that.
Please do that in every way, please do that. For him; For You; For us; For our country.
Thanks for reading -- We're certainly counting on you out here.
Not everybody can drive the bus (it doesn't take everybody to drive the bus -- just the right person with the right skills and desire). Is that you?
Vote RON PAUL 2008
who is ron paul?
its still the issue..my sister came over for X-mas & saw the yard sign..who is Ron Paul? nuff said on that..burn freedom to fascism CD's..loose change 2nd edition.. & hand them out.. carry 10 wherever you go..tell everyone you run into about the Ron Paul freedom message..folks are TV paralyzed & brainwashed..I was too..it takes some time to wake up..we should do well in Wyoming today & will do well in NH
randy n.
loose change?
Yeah... THAT ought to help! Are you sure you aren't a shill for another campaign?
Yeah, loose change represents Ron Paul's positions. The only person that would believe something so stupid is another candidate's supporters.
If you 9/11 truthers really support Ron Paul, you would STOP trying to attach YOUR agenda to his campaign.
All coordinators need to start throwing these people out when they show up with their "9/11 was an inside job" T-Shirts to a Ron Paul rally.
This isn't the "truth movement" it is a political campaign. And if you are running around representing things that have absolutely nothing to do with Ron Paul, then it is best that you are not there.
The biggest reason? Because when you jackasses show up with your T-Shirts, you make it look like ALL the people around you agree with you. They don't. There is one thing that unites us ALL at a rally, and that is Ron Paul.
Is there someone from Iowa
Is there someone from Iowa who can talk about how the caucuses work? I've heard radio (NPR) reports and read articles about how vote skimming works at many of these caucuses.
So, basically McCain people and Thompson people will go over to Giuliani's supporters and say "Hey if you don't come over to us then Ron Paul is going to take third place and we don't want that."
It's as easy as that. That's how it works and it's perfectly normal there. It's really not hard to skim a few thousand votes from the other candidates, just to make sure Ron Paul stays low. I'm not crying conspiracy, but these little county caucuses are exactly well organized. Anything can happen.
From Iowa...and Here's Your Answer
Yes, I’m from Iowa and voted in the Republican Caucus.
You probably heard about the DEMOCRATIC caucus, which is more complicated. Everyone stands in a group with other supporters of the same candidate. Then, after the groups are initially formed, the lowest supported candidates are weeded out. If your candidate is cut (considered “nonviable”) you can choose to go to another candidate’s group, so there is a lot of courting and conspiring by the different candidates. Also, simply because people physically get into groups first, everyone can see the size of the groups before its final, so there is a lot of manipulation (people joining or convincing others to join a candidate they don’t support just to oppose another candidate, for example).
However, the REPUBLICAN caucus went pretty much the same as every vote you’ve ever had. You get into your precinct group (my county had a central location where all the precincts met) and then get a small paper ballot. You circle your candidate, and then put it in the big empty popcorn tub at the front. They count up the votes and then report the results to the Iowa GOP. Since it’s a private paper ballot, there’s really not an opportunity for people to manipulate the results too much.
My honest opinion (remember, I’m FROM Iowa), is that the reasons listed on this post for our failure to get 3rd are RIGHT ON THE F’ING MONEY!!!!! Ron Paul was NOWHERE to be found within the state. When he was, he only spent time in Des Moines, doing national PR. If he had taken the bus around like Fred Thompson, he would have gotten 3rd! I know many Iowans who will not vote for a candidate if the candidate doesn’t come to their town.
I also agree that a 3rd place showing in Iowa, would also propel the New Hampshire vote to be better than just focusing on New Hampshire would.
I appreciate the candor of this post, and the NHQ should take this to heart.
Thanks to the Iowans for
Thanks to the Iowans for clearing that up. It's amazing how different the voters are in different states. And then you've got the difference between primaries and caucuses. I mean, I'm from Massachusetts and I don't think we even have a Republican in the Senate or the House! And then you go across the border to NH and you've got lots of independents who know what it means to be Republican.
Anyway, thanks for explaining the Iowa process.