I am not happy with Obama winning in Iowa

[blues90]

The media picked the candidates which is bad enough . Keeping Kucinich out and more or less silenced tells me the elections are still being rigged and completely unfair as well as keeping Edwards down , this tells me someone is afraid of real change across the board .

Obama may be able to excite a crowd but this is not really what we need , we need to be certain we will be put back on the tracks and end this corporate control .

What the hell happened to Iraq , is this now just some sort of virtual success , some sort of surreal back drop ? What about Pakistan , What happened to the big story or Scotty Mc moon face and his lies he was forced to tell ?

[xultar]

1. It would be smart for Obama to bring Kucinich onto his team and send him out

on the road. That would be BEAUTIFUL.

[MADem]

6. If he wanted to lose, and quickly, that might be smart. If he wants to win he'll keep as much

distance between himself and the quirky Kucinich as he possibly can, short of waving a necklace of garlic and a silver cross at the guy.

He doesn't need to have column inches of newspaper coverage or feet of B roll footage about his campaign digressing to talk about DK's young wife and her tongue stud. That's not how you attach gravitas to your efforts.

[xultar]

13. That's sad though. Kucinich did direct his folks to go to Obama. But I do agree

though it is kinda sad.

[theboss]

27. For Hillary maybe

What can Kucinich possibly offer Obama?

[TheWraith]

2. Do you think that the caucus goers didn't know Kucinich existed?

I love DK as much as anybody, but the reason he's not a viable candidate is NOT because of the media. It's because people DON'T VOTE FOR HIM.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

3. If Kucinich wanted Iowa he should have campaigned there.

I don't think he accidently forgot to open an office. And he said to vote for Obama, so hey... tough luck.

[Lerkfish]

4. I would have preferred Kucinich, Edwards, or Biden, but

I'm glad it came down like it did because it opens up the race a bit.

The worst thing that could have happened would have been a runaway victory for Clinton, because that would have only fed into the inevitability meme, and then the campaign would have derailed into the bizarre "electability" argument instead of focusing on issues.
Obama and Edward's showings are forcing back into the discussion what the differences are between the candidates in terms of issues again.
If Clinton had won, we'd have heard nothing about issues from now until election day.

IMHO

[butterfly77]

5. New Hampshire should have been first..

I watched the caucauses and the way it was set up, the best candidates didn't have a chance...

[Laura PourMeADrink]

11. Well, what seemed unfair was that you could eke out 15%

in one precinct and earn a delegate - but garner 14% in every other precinct and got nothing for it. Also, a whole lot depended on how
good your supporters were at gathering other people in. Richardson's
were very good - but fell a bit short. On C-Span, I didn't see anyone
drumming up votes for Edwards.

[ingac70]

7. "Kucinich Urges Supporters To Choose Obama On Second "Ballot"

http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/01/kucinich_urges_supporters_to_c.php

[Ioo]

8. I agree

[Bitwit1234]

9. As long as he has the republicans voting for him, he doesn't need

Kucnich. The want him to win so bad the are constantly messing their pants. It would ensure them a win.

[butterfly77]

17. Yes, Yes,Yes,Yes...

I am listening to ed schultz talking about if it is Obama and edwards it will be about what america was and what america is...I don't believe people will care...The CONS put him in so that the best candidates would be out..

[Alexander]

33. Actually Obama beat Hillary among Democrats, too.

Enough with the lies, already.

[Occam Bandage]

10. If Kucinich wanted to compete in Iowa, he should have campaigned there.

[book_worm]

12. I thought voters who came out in record numbers picked the winner in Iowa?

[Dawgs]

15. 'It's the media's fault' seems to be the meme for today.

[patrice]

14. The so-called Independents who should have been there for Dean finally showed-up.

It's been my experience that "Independent" is frequently a euphamism for un-informed, power-hound.

[skipos]

16. 18% of Dem voters describe themselves as "Very Liberal" and this is how they voted:

Obama 40%
Clinton 24%
Edwards 16%
Biden 7%
Richardson 5%
Kucinich 4%
Dodd 3%
Gravel 0%

From a CNN exit poll. MSM has a lot of power, but any "very liberal" person with an internet connection could have found out about Kucinich.

[Captain Hilts]

18. I'm STUNNED Kucinich and Richardson did so badly. Less so with Biden and Dodd. nt

[NeedleCast]

19. Why?

Neither of them did any campaigning at all in Iowa while Clinton, Obama and Edwards were there damn near non-stop.

[Captain Hilts]

24. Yes - and I'm surprised the importance that has been assigned Iowa - but I still...

thought Kucinich supporters would want to make a statement by voting for him.

Richardson's different. He's not all that good a candidate, but his resume - for foreign affairs is most excellent. Foreign policy issues didn't seem to go beyond "out of Iraq," so I guess that hurt him a bit.

No deep feeling here, I'm just a little surprised.

[EFerrari]

20. There is something going on with DK because I signed up for

a monthly donation two months ago and they have yet to collect. :shrug:

[theboss]

28. You are stunned that Kucinich did badly?

Why...because of his stellar record of success in presidential politics?

[Captain Hilts]

32. No. nt

[NNN0LHI]

21. Nonsense. That had very little to do with it

What really happened was that Obama got his supporters out and they kicked some ass last night. Got to hand it to them.

Don

[mrreowwr_kittty]

22. Well I am happy with it. So there. nt

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

23. That's too bad. I am hopeful and inspired!!!

I still intend to vote for Edwards in our primary. However, I think Obama's success in Iowa is a wonderful sign of where the American people want to go: towards greater authenticity and equality.

The issues you speak of haven't disappeared. There are many MANY serious issues faced by the people of this nation.

[blues90]

29. The issues have not vanished , this I know

But all the talk now as has been building up over the last year is the pesidential hopefuls . When people refer to Obama as a rock star then to me this brings it down to a level of Britney Spears or some other who cares star .

This is the part I don't like at all . I have not heard much that encourages me with what Obama has said so far . He talks about change but he does not explain what change . Sure he gives a nice MLK style speech but that's show , this is what he does well , it does not excite me the way it does others .

Iowa certainly does reflect the entire country . I feel people tend to put all their focus on one aspect rather than the entire picture . That's the part that can be dangerous , it's mass hype not reaistic views .

I don't have anything personal against Obama however he does not do well when confronted by issues .

The bush admin scared people into support and Obama steers them .

I want to hear real plans that are possible to the mnay issues we face . There alot of people out there who have been suffering for years now and in the next year many more will join them , this Iraq occupation is killing this country and the ME . A high profile speech will do nothing to change this . None of the politicians are faced with these issues of falling off the charts into poverty or death without healthcare .

Edwards has said what he will do and I think many voters are afraid of losing their secure positions in life who are also not threatened by poverty , they are all voters and all have motives so they are concerned Edwards may rock their boats .

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

25. How Does The Loss Of A Probable Sub 1% Candidate Equate To Rigged Elections?

Just not sure how you put those pieces together.

[blues90]

31. Because it is clear that the media is controlling what we hear

This is how we got into Iraq and this is why Kucinich is being ignored and Edwards is all but being ignored . Iowa is not the last word for the top candidates but it did in some pretty good ones . All along it's been Hillary , Obama and Edwards and now it is narrowed down to them but Edwards seems to have things stacked against him by the media .

So with this in mind I don't find it far fetched to assume the elections will be rigged since this part has not changed and it seems to be only the begining of the media swift boating .

I feel it's true that most people get their info and news off the TV media .

It's clear the Dems will shift their votes so at least a Dem gets the seat however Edwards and Kucinich are being left out by the media .

I don't know how else to explain this , I just don't feel good about the slant .

[TwilightGardener]

26. Oh well. We all have our crosses to bear, don't we?

[MGKrebs]

30. It's really a frustrating and fascinating phenomena that so many

people want so badly to believe that there are mysterious powers controlling everything. Why can't it just be that Obama is an inspiring candidate who did a very good job manipulating the media to his favor and then getting his people out? It doesn't have to be some big conspiracy theory.
The media loves drama. Obama has given them drama. Any candidate who doesn't understand that or can't give them their drama will struggle in the media.
Candidates do have to be good organizers and actually DO the nuts and bolts of campaigning. A candidate who stays home and uploads the occasional Youtube video just isn't going to have much of a chance, regardless of how much we like the message.

"Someone is afraid of real change"? Uh, ya' think? Of course they are! People and groups who are in power got there withing the EXISTING system. Why would they want to change it? They're not evil, they are just the successful exploiters of The Way Things Are. If we want to change that, they are the opponent, and it should be no surprise that they don't cooperate. We have to be able to change things without their cooperation.

[fujiyama]

34. Kucinich did not matter

Sorry, but he really wasn't all that relevant in IA. He barely campaigned there for one, and second he wasn't registering in the polls as it was. He was doing WORSE than he was four years ago and he did poorly then.

I'm not saying he should not have run or that he should drop out, but this idea that he would won the nomination if he had media coverage is overblown.

All that said, I think the thte way the party nominates the candidates is bizarre. The caucus system itself is undemocratic. And I would have preferred an Edwards win.

But Obama deserves FULL credit for what he accomplished in IA. He did something many, including myself doubted - bringing the younger people out to not just vote - but commit in a caucus. That's pretty damn impressive.