For the first time in as long as I can remember there are some fireworks to be expected at the District Conventions as the delegates elect new members to the governing body of the Republican Party of Iowa, the State Central Committee.

I’ve always thought it is weird that 5 or so months before Election Day you elect new members to guide the party through an election. I have always thought you could elect these people at District Convention but make their terms begin the day after Election Day. That would in essence give you two sets of hands for every seat unless someone is bitter about losing a reelection bid.

So before we go district by district, I thought it might be good to talk about the actual job these people are running for. Sadly, the position is really what the person elected wants it to be, there are no requirements. Some of our past SCC members don’t make it to county meeting in their districts and I have even heard don’t always make the SCC meetings in Des Moines. Their punishment? There is none. They don’t get paid, but re reimbursed for mileage at the federal rate, and when they meet in Des Moines they get a hotel room and some free food. They also get free seats at RPI dinners but those are few and far between.

What they should be doing is building a solid grassroots organizations in every county, especially in a presidential year. The can do this by finding ways to promotes those counties that are doing good work, and encourage those counties that need some help. What happens all too often is they just make sure they get what they need one project at a time. So they bug the crap out of a county chair during the caucuses and county convention, but then ignore the county because they don’t need anything from them anymore. What we really need is votes on Election Day.

What makes this round of District Conventions unique is the number of people running for these positions. There are three SCC spots in each district up for grabs, but every district has more than that running, and as always someone will run from the floor on the day of the conventions.

First District

Retiring

Dan Nicholson, Dubuque

Running for another term
Karl “Big Killer” Gilbertson, Black hawk
John Ortega, Scott

Challengers
Brian Kennedy, Scott
John Hulsizer, Dubuque

The reason this is going to be interesting is because Hulsizer is a former SCC member and is a long time Dubuque County activist, and Kennedy is a former Congressional Candidates, Romney Consultant, former Chair of the Party. Gilbertson is safe, but Kennedy and Hulsizer are probably going to get elected.

Second District

Retiring
Bill Vernon, Linn
Marc Lucas, Monroe

Running for another term
Lisa Smith, Wapello

Challengers
Todd Ver Steegh, Johnson
David Chung, Linn
Robin Malmberg, Henry
Jim Conklin, Linn

Now if you are looking for a good show on Saturday this is the place to be because they have a contested primary, but also because of the SCC elections. Lisa Smith is a long time member of the SCC but I hear the natives are restless and are saying the work “change” more than a Democrat Senator from Illinois who’s running for President. I’m not going to act like I know anything about the district so I’ll say toss up, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see three new members out of this district.

Third District

Retiring
Ted “The Real Sporer” Sporer
Loras Schulte

Running for another term
Steve Scheffler, Polk

Challengers
Eldon Pals, Jasper
Gopaul Krishna, Polk
Mary Ann Spicer, Polk

Ted Sporer isn’t really stepping aside; he’s just taking a different approach. He has been very vocal in who he thinks should not be reelected. For those playing at home, it is Sporer's opinion that Bonnie Hall, Reid Houser, and Matt Randall need to be eradicated from the committee.

Sadly, I don’t think there are many good options in the third. Scheffler is a slam dunk, and Eldon Pals is a solid guy. I’m hoping for another option to fill the third spot in this district.

Fourth District

Retiring
None

Running for another term
Bonnie Hall, Boone
Matt Randall, Story
Larry Smith, Madison

Challengers
Isaiah McGee, Dallas
Stan Gustafson
Bill Schikel, Cerro Gordo

Another fun one. I don’t think you are going to see an entire new slate of SCC members out of the 4^th CD, but I think a couple of the incumbents are in trouble.

Fifth District

Retiring
Dave Raak, Sioux

Running for another term
Bill Anderson, Woodbury
Reid Houser, Pottawattamie

Challengers
Mark Lundberg, Sioux
Monte Shaw, Guthrie

First, Bill Anderson is an absolute rock star, and is probably the best member of the committee. I thin the two challengers have a great shot at winning. Shaw is a long time Republican activist who has run Grassley’s reelection campaign in 1996 and Elizabeth Dole’s campaign in 2000 here in Iowa. He is currently with the renewable fuels association. That’s a hard guy to turn down if you ask me, but so is a guy like Mark Lundberg simply because he is the chair of Sioux County, Iowa’s strongest Republican county.

Tough decisions in the 5^th.

As a fan of politics nothing excites me more than a good primary fight. I was hoping that some the U.S. Senate Primary between Reed, Rathje, and Eichhorn would provide some much needed discussion in Iowa Politics. Well unless something comes unglued tomorrow at the District Conventions it’s going to be pretty tame. I’ll vote for the guy who wants in the most.

The same can’t be said in the 2^nd District primary for Congress. It’s technically a 3 person race, but in all actuality it’s a two way battle between Funeral Director Peter Teahen and Ophthalmologist Dr. Mariannette Miller Meeks. The Third guy is Lee Harder whose slogan is “Working Harder for you” but it might be more appropriate if it was “Look Harder” because I can’t find anyone who has met the guy.

To my surprise it is the eye doctor from Ottumwa who has the fundraising edge over the businessman for Cedar Rapids. The common knock on Miller-Meeks is that she’s not from Iowa City or Cedar Rapids, but its Miller-Meeks who has built support in most areas of the district while Teahen can only find financial support in Linn County and has had to loan his campaign money to keep it afloat.

By the Numbers

Peter Teahen
Total Contributions: $34,109.00
Loans from Candidate: $31,663.76
Spent this quarter: $31,682.74
Cash on Hand: $34,090.02

Dr. Miller-Meeks
Total Contributions: $68,834.97
Loans from Candidate: $0
Spent this quarter: $216.14
Cash on Hand: $68,618.83

Teahen has been paying consultants since January, and Miller-Meeks has been banking her money to use at the end of the campaign. It’s such a simple concept but so few campaigns understand the necessity of not spending those dollars till the end. Unless Teahen has a lot of personal wealth I think his campaign is in trouble on the finance side.

This primary is going to get interesting, but I really believe that Republicans would be wise to nominate a female doctor to run against Congressman Loebsack in the 2^nd CD.

By Emily Geiger

So, I guess this is related to politics if you consider her endorsement of Barack Obama. I’ve been hearing a lot lately about Oprah, and what most people describe as her new “cult.” I’ve been hearing about it on talk radio, I’ve gotten an email from a friend about it, and this morning I even saw a pretty scathing article about it from an entertainment reporter on Foxnew.com.

Oprah’s been pushing a book called “A New Earth” by Eckhart Tolle, a creepy little dude with a German accent. She’s putting out weekly “seminars” on the internet which consist of her and creepy dude talking about his philosophies on life. They even promote us commoners getting together in “discussion groups,” which I take to mean their version of Bible study.

Creepy dude’s (hereinafter, “CD”) philosophy has been described by everyone I’ve heard talk about it as “New Age.” I saw some of a discussion on a You Tube clip, and CD was basically talking a whole bunch of gibberish, and Oprah was fawning over him like he was the second coming.

The funny thing is, for a cult leader, CD isn’t even a very good cult leader. When Oprah asked CD what he thought about death, he said he hadn’t really thought about it. I got news for you, dude, you better start thinking about it because you’re going to be dead a lot longer than you’re alive.

CD talks about things like “consciousness” and “awakening.” He also apparently wants to help people find their “body pain.” I can find my body pain just fine by myself, thanks.

I used to like Oprah. I thought she did a lot of good talking about important issues like child sex abuse and sharing her own story. I thought the schools she funded all over the world were an excellent idea.

But then she went all Barack on us and started giving speeches at his rallies using this weird voice and intonations that made her sound possessed.

And now, she’s pushing CD on us and talking about how “sacred” it is when they have their web seminars and so many people come together to study the writings of this crackpot, who seems to be an uneducated, formerly homeless wackjob who lies about having advanced degrees.

He’s teaching that we don’t need God (and certainly not Jesus), and that everything is all about “me” and how “I feel.” Selfishness like this is not going to make this world a better place. People looking for a savior in the form of CD are missing the boat by missing out on a relationship with the true Savior who can actually provide peace in your heart and answer the question of what happens after death.

By Emily Geiger

Another day, Another Tax

Your license and registration fees are going up dramatically for vehicles purchased after January 1 of this year. I hope all of you who voted for the Democrats enjoy giving them so much more of your money. The bill approving this tax increase was approved by the Senate, just passed in the House, and is on its way to Buzz Lightyear’s desk.

Dems: “Just Trust Us…”

So, it seems that now that the Dems are in control of almost every level of government in this state, they don’t want you to know what they’re up to. A House committee, according to the Register, “gutted” a bill that would have expanded Iowa’s “Sunshine Laws,” which are supposed to guarantee Iowa’s citizens access to government records and meetings. The Register reports that complaints of violations of Iowa’s current open meetings/records law have been rising. I also have to imagine that in the wake of scandals like CIETC, people might be more curious as to where their tax dollars are going and more willing to complain when they can’t get answers.

So what is the Dem Response to all this? Heels in the dirt. According to the Register, the (Dem) governor, the (Dem) attorney general, the (Dem appointed) Board of Regents, media groups, and state and local governments have all been among many groups that have “raised objections or concerns” about the proposed tightening on the Sunshine Law.

So ask yourself, what are they trying to keep hidden? Are there more Archie/Ramona scandals out there waiting to be found?

Indoctrination Bill Passes House

This one I can’t blame on just the Dems. This week, the House passed a souped-up version of the Model Core Curriculum bill by a vote of 97-3 (and yes, there are actually more than three Republicans in the House, so, like I said, there is a lot of blame to go around on this one).

This version is even worse than the originally proposed bill because it includes not just a general requirement that certain subjects be covered, but rather a more strict requirement that certain specific content be taught. The House’s version also did not provide an exemption for private schools, who were concerned that the new state mandate might force them to teach on abortion and homosexuality from a perspective contrary to the religious beliefs of these often parochial private schools. Dept. of Education officials (who would have control over what “content” must be taught) say that won’t happen. In my opinion, it’s only a matter of time.

Science is one of the topics subject to content requirements, so I don’t think it’s too much of a reach to think that the state is going to mandate teachings on subjects such as evolution and health, which, as I’m sure we all remember, included a few days on reproductive health, which is often taught by Planned Parenthood, who thinks abortion is A-OK (and a great money-maker!) and that homosexuality is just another healthy lifestyle option. So, I think these private schools have good reason to be worried.

It’s funny, you never really hear people talking about the sorry state of the private schools in this state. THERE’S A REASON FOR THAT. They are doing something right, and if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

Even for public schools, this is a scary thing. It takes away even more power from local school boards and parents to decide what is appropriate to talk about in school (and at what age) and what is not. Put this together with the collective bargaining legislation, and we might as well disband the school boards altogether and stop pretending that the teachers’ unions aren’t in charge.

But Ed Fallon out raises everyone but Boswell and Latham

Top Spot: Leonard Boswell, Incumbent

Raised: $259,933.55 taking his total this cycle to $985,739.65

Spent $121,611.79 during the first three months of this year.

Cash on Hand: $840,945.02

The Boswell money machine is raising money in full force and they will need it as Ed Fallon, even with a limited budget will give the Boz all he can handle.

Second Place: Tom Latham, Incumbent

Raised: $180,420.50 taking his total this cycle to $756.300.58

Spent $49,517.05 during the first three months of this year

Cash on Hand: $677,601.82

Latham understands the importance of banking money from year to year which insulates him from big name would be challengers.

Third Place: Ed Fallon, Challenger

Raised: $171,618.70 the first 3 months of this year.

Spent $121,885.01

Cash on Hand: $19,733.61

The Boswell campaign will obviously rejoice in Fallon’s low cash on hand number, but this guy isn’t running a campaign that requires a ton of paid media. Instead, Fallon has a large staff that is organizing every county in his district. In addition, if Fallow can raise enough to pay his staff and devote $100k to media he might put himself in a position to be successful on Primary Day.

Fourth Place: Steve King, Incumbent

Raised: $145,422.00 taking his total this cycle to $529,987.82

Spent $109,037.89 during the first three months of this year

Cash on Hand: $243,387.88

King has improved dramatically in the fundraising department but unlike Latham he spends it. It’s the luxury he has with his Western Iowa seat, but he must begin to insulate himself for redistricting in 2012 unless he’s going to do us all a favor and run for Governor.

Fifth Place: Bruce Braley, Incumbent

Raised: $75,004.22 taking his total this cycle to $564,475.00

Spent $62,679.75 during the first three months of this year

Cash on Hand: $350,653.54

People talk about Braley like he’s Tom Harkin. I don’t buy it. If I’m David Hartsuch I’m looking at that $350k in the bank and thinking I have a chance. Braley could be in trouble if Hartsuch can raise the funds to mount a solid campaign.

Sixth Place: Dave Loebsack, Incumbent

Raised: $67,418.33 taking his total this cycle to $626,034.89

Spent $23,951.73 during the first three months of this year

Cash on Hand: $425,500.87

I’m amazed that Loebsack has been able to out fund raise Bruce Braley for the cycle. I think it’s a sign that he knows he might have a race on his hands especially if he is running against a doctor in a district with the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics.