Campaign buzz at the coffee shop

[Feanorcurufinwe]

Cafes in Iowa have a special this time of year: A presidential candidate, served with a firm handshake and unlimited trips to the promises buffet.

Politicians arrive in campaign uniform - blue dress shirt (top button undone) and tan slacks - and are circled by jittery older folks, hopped-up on caffeine, who nod at the pandering.

<snip>

Bud Robbins of nearby Melcher-Dallas wears overalls, which makes him a popular photo backdrop. It's the first time he's been in this place. The gourmet coffee venue has grown in small-town Iowa since the last stampede of candidates trampled through four years ago. Coffee Connection owners Kevin and Terri Stauner opened in April and see new faces today.

"I don't get to these places much," says Robbins, "because they are for the rich folks."

<snip>

A latte is $2, cheaper than in Des Moines, but more than a Hy-Vee coffee.

Bud Ebert visits Hy-Vee with the "old guys" in the mornings, and it's also his first venture to The Coffee Connection. "The retired guys hang out there to get the free refills even though they've got all the money in the world," he muses.
http://www.dmregister.com/news/stories/c4789004/22604240.html

[tsipple]

1. Dumb Article

Snarky, vacuous, and cynical.

Did this run as a news item? I'm getting really tired of reporters working to a preconceived narrative, in this case "politics is stupid."