A lot has happened since I wrote about Iowa over a week ago. Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos defied the prognosticators and won Super Bowl 50. Cam Newton didn’t handle it well. The new Barbie doll got extensive press, appearing on the cover of Time magazine, on many television channels, and probably in retails stores everywhere. (I didn’t check this last point, but it seems logical.) And the various awards shows continued the controversy over the “whiteness’ of the upcoming Oscars.
Whether you’re into sports, contemporary culture, or film, it was an interesting week. It was an interesting week for politics too.
The presidential candidates left Iowa as quickly as Cam Newton left the stadium in San Francisco. They focused their binoculars and their money on New Hampshire, the Granite State, which claims to be the first primary in the nation, Iowa using the caucus method to reveal its preferences. There were more debates, more negative campaigning, and more town hall meetings.
Last night’s results weren’t particularly tense, since the front runners in both parties came in first as expected. Then there were more speeches, more analysis, and more grumps. Before the night was over, the winners and losers were all heading to South Carolina and then Nevada, the next states to take center stage.
I’m not sure I’ll report on every caucus and primary; political analysts already have that job. But all this does make me think there should be a time limit on campaigns. Running for office for a year or two means the candidates are probably not focused on their “real” jobs. And everyone is a loser.
Tomorrow: I comment on Barbie. Yes, that Barbie.
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