The Caucuses Don't End

The Iowa Caucuses were more than a month ago. And, no, I still haven't recovered. But I found two Iowans this week who don't see to want to move on yet either.

Tim Albrecht served as Mitt Romney's Iowa Communications Director. He's one of the favorites of Iowa reporters, much like he was during his time in a similar role for then-House Majority Leader and, later, Speaker of the House Christopher Rants. I forgot to ask Tim his title these days, but he's traveling the country with Romney. I talked to him right before he jumped on a plane for a late add to the schedule. He (and Romney) had already started their day at the Pancake Pantry (my kind of place) in Nashville in the a.m. and then moved on to Atlanta. Because Romney was gaining ground in California, they added a late-evening rally in Long Beach. But to make best use of their time, they added one more stop, too.

The plane needed to refuel in Oklahoma City on the way to Long Beach. So the staff added a rally in Ok. City during the down time. It never stops. Tim says life is good on the road. He usually gets a day or two notice of the schedule. The California add was an exception. On Super Tuesday, he starts in Charleston, West Virginia and then heads to Boston, where Romney will cast his vote. They'll all have some sort of party/gathering tonight as the numbers come in. From there? Tim isn't sure. He didn't say it, but you would think the future will depend a lot on how Romney performs during this all-important day. Tim's hoping to move on, of course. He doesn't want this to end. Although, he needs to do some laundry he said, too. So some personal time Wednesday and Thursday would help. So would a super Super Tuesday.

Jackie Norris isn't living on planes like Tim. She's living, at least temporarily, with a close college friend in Denver. Jackie's not big on titles, she told me. But she's probably still considered a "Senior Adviser" to the Barack Obama campaign, much like she was here in Iowa. She helps make sure the staff/volunteers "get out the vote" and helps oversee any logistical issues that come up ("troubleshooting", she calls it). She'll end up spending about ten days in Colorado, after taking a little time off after Iowa to re-introduce herself to her hubby, John, and their three kids. She worries they're living on corn dogs in her absence and looks forward to flying back early Wednesday to check on their diets.

Jackie told me Colorado (which holds a caucus) has never seen this type of interest during the nominating season. Last week, Obama drew a crowd of 15,000 at a rally in Denver. In 2004, she said about 14,000 people took part in the Democratic Caucus. She expects between 100 and 150,000 this year. Iowans are apparently not the only ones excited about their choices this year.

etc.
Southern Illinois Unversity at Edwardsville (where I received my undergrad) hosted two interesting guests recently, on different days. Former Prez Bill Clinton and former porn star Ron Jeremy. Insert your joke here.

My beloved St. Louis Cardinals just signed Juan "Gone" (as in his career has been gone) Gonzalez. That's apparently how desperate things have become. Sad.