Iowa gov.: Front-runners can still lose Iowa
PELLA, Iowa -- Republican Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad has a message for Mitt Romney and Herman Cain, the current front-runners in the Republican race for the presidential nomination: Ignore Iowa at your peril.
Both Romney and Cain, who are statistically tied in the most recent Des Moines Register poll of Iowa Republicans, skipped a conference Tuesday on the economy moderated by Branstad. Romney was meeting with business executives in New York City to raise money for his campaign, while Cain was in Washington, D.C., courting national movers and shakers, although he spent far more time trying to explain away a years-old sexual harassment complaint allegedly filed against him.
"If you follow what's happened in recent years, the front-runners aren't necessarily the ones that have won on either party side," Branstad observed, talking with reporters during the conference. "So you look at what happens -- If you can put together a strong organization, if you can catch fire here the last couple months of this campaign, if you can win the Iowa caucus, that can make a real difference."
Neither Romney nor Cain has spent much time campaigning in Iowa, although Romney has said recently he plans to do more.
Branstad noted that in 2008, then-New York Sen. Hillary Clinton was favored to win Iowa in the Democratic primary contest, but lost to rival Barack Obama. On the Republican side, Romney was favored to win, but lost to former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who successfully marshaled GOP evangelicals to his side.
"Let me tell you, this thing is a wide-open race," Branstad said. " And I think the candidates that were here did themselves some good by addressing the issues directly."
The conference was hosted by the National Association of Manufacturers and moderated by Branstad. Most of the Republican field attended: Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia, and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania. Along with the two front-runners, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman did not attend; he was campaigning in New Hampshire, which he has made a make-or-break state for his campaign.
