MORNING MESSAGE
Cherie Mortice, Dartanyan Brown
Bernie Stands With Iowans, We Stand With Him
I’m Cherie Mortice, and I’m Dartanyan Brown. We’re members of Iowa CCI Action and People’s Action, and we’re voting for Bernie Sanders. Here’s why: We believe people come before profits. We fight for Medicare for All, which means everybody in - nobody out. We fight for worker’s rights, civil rights, a Green New Deal, justice in the agricultural space, and clean, safe drinking water. We’re rural and urban people working together on the issues that matter most right now. And we know these issues matter to Bernie, too – because he stands with us. Over four decades, he’s held on to the same ideals and values. He’s got consistency of philosophy, and clarity of intent. You can’t fake that, and you can’t buy that! You have to live it - and Bernie Sanders does. There’s a groundswell of grassroots support for the things Bernie talks about. You’ll see it tonight when we cast our votes, and soon, all across the country. That’s why we stand with Bernie Sanders – he stands with us. We trust Bernie, and he trusts us, too.
What's At Stake In Tonight's Iowa Caucus
What’s at stake in the Iowa caucuses. NYT: "A historically large Democratic presidential field has been narrowed to 11, with these seven candidates mounting competitive efforts in Iowa. If history and the laws of mathematics are any guide, no more than four of them will emerge from the caucuses on Monday with a plausible case to be the Democratic nominee against President Trump. Public polling averages show Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. atop the field, with Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and former Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., bundled close behind. Yet there are few close observers of Iowa politics who feel confident in their prognostications. Other than a widespread belief that Mr. Sanders will place first or, at worst, second, the other three leading candidates could each place anywhere from first to fourth without it being a shock. Iowa awards just 41 delegates to the Democratic National Convention, a tiny fraction of the more than 1,900 required to become the party’s nominee. But all the candidates competing here agree that whoever wins, or at least overperforms expectations, will suddenly have momentum as the field moves to New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina and beyond."
Iowa's Green New Deal
What the Green New Deal could mean for Iowa. New Republic: "Since the idea of a wide-reaching plan to stimulate the economy, combat inequality, and curb climate change entered the national spotlight in 2018, Fox News and the Republican Party have suggested it might be at odds with rural America. Conservative pundits have cited its association with a democratic socialist from New York City, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or claimed leftists want to take away the nation’s hamburgers to eliminate cow farts. The Green New Deal is now one of the most widely recognized policies under debate in the Democratic presidential primaries. But many voters still aren’t sure what a Green New Deal is, much less what it’ll mean for their own lives and their communities. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have each released policy platforms laying out plans for climate-smart agricultural production, incorporating long-standing demands from farmers’ movements. But these haven’t exactly captured the popular imagination. Ahead of the Iowa Caucus, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement and the Sunrise Movement are trying to fill the gap, quite literally sketching out what life in this next Decade of the Green New Deal, as they’ve called it, will look like for Iowans and millions of others whose livelihoods revolve around agriculture. In a video released Monday morning, ahead of the caucus, the groups imagine that decade starting with a massive farm bill that includes fair price guarantees on crops, akin to fair wage laws."
Youth Vote Boosts Sanders Polls
Last poll before caucus shows Sanders with 7-point lead. Common Dreams: An Emerson/7 News poll released on the eve of the Iowa caucuses found that Sen. Bernie Sanders, buttressed by strong support from younger voters, is leading the 2020 Democratic presidential field in the state by seven percentage points heading into Monday's voting. According to the new survey, Sanders has the support of 28% of likely Iowa caucus-goers. Former Vice President Joe Biden polled in second place with 21% support, followed by Pete Buttigieg at 15%. 'The key to Sanders' lead is his overwhelming support among young voters, as he garners 45% support among 18-49 year-olds,' Emerson noted in a write-up of the poll results. The survey of 853 likely Iowa Democratic caucus-goers was conducted between Jan. 30 and Feb. 2 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.3%."
Final Senate Arguments In Impeachment
Senate set for closing arguments on impeachment. The Hill: "The Senate is scheduled to convene as a court of impeachment at 11 a.m. Monday to hear the closing arguments on whether to remove President Trump from office. Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) won a big victory Friday when they defeated a push by Democrats to subpoena former national security adviser John Bolton and other witnesses, suffering only two GOP defections on the key procedural vote. On Monday, senators will hear four hours of closing arguments, the time equally divided between the House impeachment manager and the president’s lawyers. The impeachment managers are likely to emphasize recent statements by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and other Republicans conceding that Trump ordered aid to Ukraine held in order to spur an investigation of Vice President Joe Biden. While Alexander said the action didn't warrant impeachment, he and other senators have criticized Trump's actions. The House managers will argue, however, if senators agree that Trump tried to use his authority to get a foreign country to influence the upcoming election, it is their constitutional duty to remove him from office for abuse of power."
Rural America Holds Key To 2020 Victory
For Democrats, the road to victory in 2020 runs through rural America. In These Times: "It’s just over three years since the 2016 election and it has become unsettlingly normal in liberal circles to dismiss "rural America" as "Trump country" and look elsewhere for Democratic electoral hopes―like the Trump-dissatisfied suburbs. A refreshing report from the advocacy organization People's Action, composed of 48 member groups in 30 states, starts from the opposite premise: If Democrats want to regain power―and this goes for the Presidency and the Senate as well as state governments―they have got to figure out how to win in rural parts of this country. The question, as we barrel toward the 2020 elections, is how. The People’s Action report, which is titled "Win Rural: How to Build a Progressive Populist Political Movement in Rural and Small-Town America," offers the beginning of an answer."
