On the Iowa Straw Poll

It has been a weird, amazing, awful, and wonderful couple of days in Iowa.

The good news is that we went into a very hostile state where support for the war among Republicans is still over 80%, spent a fraction of the time that the other candidates did, and a fraction of the money, and still managed to exceed expectations. We pulled 9.1% and beat McCain, Guiliani, the Thompsons (Fred and Tommy), Hunter and Cox. The top five finish proves that our internet popularity translates into actual organization on the ground. The winner, Mitt Romney, spent about $2000 for every vote he received and we spent about $200 per vote. The conclusion: our message is 10x as potent as his, whatever his is!?!

The bad news is that Carol Paul, Dr. Paul's wife, became ill Saturday morning and had to be rushed to a Des Moines hospital where she is still recovering. Despite the setback, Dr. Paul made it to the event only a couple of hours late and gave one of the best speeches I have ever heard him deliver. The energy of our supporters far outshone those of the other candidates, even earning a "thank you" from the head of the Iowa GOP for bringing some excitement and life to an otherwise lackluster event.

The total votes cast were 10,000 less then they were in 1999, the year of the last straw poll, which indicates that what Dr. Paul has been saying about the shrinking base of the Republican party is true. If the party continues to doggedly support the illegal aggression in Iraq, they will lose HUGE in November.

As for me, I'm going home to Seattle to sleep and recharge my batteries before returning to Arlington to get back to work on behalf of Dr. Paul and the campaign. Cheers!