Christopher Reed, who narrowly won a three-way Republican primary to challenge U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin in 2008, will officially become a candidate for the U.S. House on Thursday, with a planned announcement in Ottumwa. Following the first stop, Reed also plans to visit the communities of Solon, his hometown, and Cedar Rapids, a part of the metropolitan area where he and his family currently live.

The tour, which the campaign has dubbed as “Defending our Children’s Future Tour,” will set the stage for a campaign that Reed said will focus on fiscal issues.

Christopher Reed was the only political candidate to take part in an anti-immigration rally in Postville following a massive 2008 immigration raid at a meatpacking plant. Reed, who was then a U.S. Senate candidate for Republicans, will announce his candidacy for U.S. House this week.

This appears to be a switch of tactics from his campaign against Harkin. During that race, Reed made national news for his personal attacks on Harkin, especially his proclamation that Harkin was the “Tokyo Rose of Al-Qaeda” during an October 2008 debate.

Reed, however, is not the only individual who has been mentioned as a Republican candidate for Iowa’s 2nd district.

Steve Rathje, a Cedar Rapids businessman who faced Reed for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, has also been making statements on social networking sites that seem to indicate an interest in a congressional run. Although the titles of the pages on Rathje’s website continues to reference his past U.S. Senate aspirations, the overall theme of the site now simply references Congress, leaving open which chamber he is considering.

Ottumwa ophthalmologist Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who served as the 2008 Republican nominee for the 2nd district race, has also remained active — especially in the area of health care reform. While the domain associated with her former campaign site remains active, it automatically redirects to her personal blog, Doctor’s Notes, where she writes on numerous topics that are consistent with someone who is considering a second run.  Further, it is widely anticipated that she will be making her own announcement in relation to the 2nd district in the near future, and the fact that Reed has chosen her community of Ottumwa to spark his own campaign launch does little to tamper such speculation.

Since there doesn’t appear to be any Democrats positioning themselves for a primary run against incumbent U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack, it is nearly certain that the Republican chosen during the primary process will challenge the Democratic incumbent. The 2008 election ended with Loebsack claiming 57 percent of the vote and, according to the Cook Political Report, Iowa’s 2nd district is considered the state’s most solid Democratic voting block with a partisan voting index of  D+7.

The Republican Party State Central Committee is expected to pick a new leader Jan. 10.

Several members of the party’s Central Committee said Gopal Krishna, who served as the party’s co-chairman in the late ‘90s and currently serves as its treasurer, and Danny Carroll, the former speaker pro tempore of the Iowa House, are both close to garnering the number of votes needed to win the seat when the committee convenes Jan. 10.

But enough of the 17 committee members remain undecided that the door is still open for another candidate.

“I’m not sure there is a clear front-runner right now,” said Jason Hutchinson, a member of the party’s State Central Committee.

“I know there are some members who see a couple front-runners right now, but I honestly don’t. I think it is still too early to be determined. There are still several candidates who can get there.”

The names that come up most often as other potential chair candidates are Matt Strawn, co-owner of the Iowa Barnstormers arena football team, and Paul Pate, former Iowa Secretary of State and mayor of Cedar Rapids.

Several committee members said the voting process could be long and drawn out, with no candidate easily getting the majority needed to win the position.

Committee member Isaiah McGee, who also serves as a councilman in Waukee, said he is pleased with all the candidates but hasn’t heard enough from any one of them to make a decision. Additionally, he said if no one emerges who fits the qualifications the party needs, the process should start over.

“If at the end of the day, no candidate meets all the qualifications that we need as a party chairman then I think we should go back to the drawing board and keep looking,” McGee said.

Every candidate has pluses and minuses, McGee said, and if the vote goes to multiple ballots, it could be anyone’s race.

Hutchinson agrees, saying the committee members he has spoken with are open to any candidate, even if they say they already have a preference.

“A lot can change before we finally vote,” he said. “Once we see everyone’s plan for the party’s future, that could change everything. I personally remain completely undecided, and I think a majority of members feel the same way.”

Central Committee will host a forum from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Dec. 27 at GOP headquarters for the public to meet the candidates for chairman and co-chairman. But McGee said many members won’t be able to attend due to the meeting being scheduled so close to the holidays.

Party seeks unity

Several common themes emerged in conversations with committee members about what they are looking for in the next chair, the first and foremost being an ability to unify a fractured party.

Moderates within the party are arguing that the RPI’s drift to the right has hurt party in recent elections. Social conservatives counter that a party thrives when it sticks to its core principles, and in Iowa the GOP has been defeated of late because it has forsaken those values.

Each of the declared candidates seems likely to appeal to the social conservative wing of the party, but each has also expressed a desire to make the party more inclusive.

Hutchinson said the ability of the next chair to bring everyone under the same tent would determine the party’s success for years to come.

“This has become a fractionalized party,” Hutchinson said. “The last two cycles haven’t been particularly kind to Republicans, and when that happens, frustration develops. It tends to make us bicker back and forth. I’m looking for someone who will be able to unite us in a common mission and push forward. I don’t think the divide is as big as it has been made out to be.”

Krishna, the consummate party insider, has become a lightning rod for criticism from the conservative blogosphere, with most critics pointing to his tenure as co-chair, when his fellow Republicans accused him of trying to undermine the party’s leadership. Krishna is dismissive of the bloggers, saying they are trying to create a rift in the party.

But every candidate has his downside, McGee said. The question is what can they bring to the party, and that is what has to be measured, he said.

The party has fallen behind its rival in use of technology, Hutchinson said, which is another thing a party chair must address.

“But technology goes beyond simply having a Facebook page,” McGee said. “You should be able to answer why having a Facebook page is important. How can things like Twitter help us advance our party?”

Fundraising ability will also be key, Hutchinson said.

“Labor injected a lot of money into this last election cycle, so we have got to fund-raise heavily to make up for that advantage the Democrats have,” he said.

With a gubernatorial contest just around the corner, Hutchinson said it is important for a strong leader to be in place in order to ensure the GOP has a viable shot at taking back Terrace Hill.

“Right now our activists, our donors, even our leaders within the party are kind of waiting and looking for leadership to emerge,” he said. “I’m sensing there is a lot of energy out there to move the party forward, but everyone is waiting for a leader to move us forward.”

Ideology aside, the next chair has to be someone who can win elections, McGee said.

“That might be the most important thing,” he said. “You can be against abortion all you want, but you have to be in a position to do something about it.  You can be against the tax policy all you want, but you actually have to be in a position to change the policy. Winning is important, and it’s critical to find someone who understands how to win in the future.”

The Republican Party of Iowa is selecting a new chairman to replace Stewart Iverson.

While the party’s bylaws state that the State Central Committee vote on the chairmanship is to take place in January, some believe the matter could be taken up Saturday when the group holds its December meeting.

Republicans have already selected new leadership in both the House and the Senate, leaving the state party chairmanship as one of the final pieces to the puzzle in determining the future of a GOP that has fallen on hard times in Iowa.

Former Speaker Pro Tempore of the Iowa House Danny Carroll confirmed to the Iowa Independent that he is running for the position. Carroll served six terms in the Iowa House before being defeated by Eric Palmer in 2006. He was defeated a second time by Palmer in November.

“I saw an opportunity to offer my experience over the last 20 years in elected politics,” he said.

Carroll declined to comment further, saying he wants to respect the process of the State Central Committee.

State Central Committee member Mathew Randall also confirmed to the Iowa Independent that he wants to be the next RPI chairman. Randall is vice president of operations for Randall Corp. in Ames. He also declined to comment further, saying he did not wish to alienate any of the other candidates or his fellow Central Committee members.

Polk County Republican Party Chairman Ted Sporer has made his intentions to run for state chairman public on several occasions, both on his blog and on the radio program of Christian conservative Steve Deace. Sporer did not respond to several requests for comment.

Paul Pate, who has previously served as Iowa’s secretary of state and as mayor of Cedar Rapids, announced his desire to serve as RPI chair in an e-mail to several Central Committee members and county chairs. Included in that e-mail was his outline for “victory in 2010.”

Another candidate for the position is Christopher Reed, who ran an unsuccessful campaign to unseat U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin. Reed, who owns a telecommunications business in Marion, said several Central Committee members have contacted him about running, and while he is interested and will serve if elected, he will not be actively campaigning for the position.

State GOP Treasurer Gopal Krishna has been the center of several rumors saying he is seeking the position. Some conservative bloggers, like Grant Young and anonymous blogger Krusty Konservative, had suggested Krishna and Sporer had partnered to try to push a vote on the chairman position before January.

Krishna told the Iowa Independent that there is no truth to the rumor, adding that the bloggers are trying to divide the party.

“We can express opinions without bashing people,” he said. “I try not to pay attention to them.”

Krishna added that while several members of the State Central Committee have approached him about running, he has not decided whether he will enter the race.

“Right now it’s too premature for me to even talk about it,” he said.

Carroll, Randall, Reed and Krishna all said they believe the vote on the chairmanship should follow the party’s bylaws and take place in January.

John McCain picked up a relatively rare newspaper endorsement Saturday from the Cedar Rapids Gazette. The eastern Iowa daily also backed incumbent Democrats Tom Harkin for U.S. Senate and Bruce Braley in the 1st Congressional District, but chose Republican challengers Mariannette Miller-Meeks over 2nd District Rep. Dave Loebsack and Kim Schmett over Leonard Boswell in the 3rd District.

“Obama has offered no clear plan to deal with our country’s staggering debt,” wrote the Gazette editorial board, citing McCain’s economic policies as the main reason for the endorsement. “(Obama’s) tax plan could stifle the economic rebound we desperately need.”

But the Gazette expressed disapproval of McCain’s vice presidential choice. “Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin might well shake up Washington’s entrenched politics as usual, but she obviously lacks working knowledge and understanding of foreign policy and many national issues, which raises valid questions about McCain’s judgment in choosing her.”

The Gazette cited Harkin’s seniority in its endorsement and noted that his Republican challenger, Marion businessman Christopher Reed, did not meet with the editorial board.

Likewise, Bruce Braley’s challenger, state Sen. Dave Hartsuch, did not meet with the editorial board, which said Braley “quickly gained a reputation in his first term as a smart, bulldog questioner who does his homework.”

“We were pretty comfortable with endorsing Loebsack for a second term … until we met Mariannette Miller-Meeks,” writes the board. While praising the Mt. Vernon freshman Loebsack, the endorsement calls Miller-Meeks a “dynamo” who can “say no to requests and programs that can’t be funded without more taxpayer debt.”

In contrast, the Gazette had little praise for the 3rd District candidates and said Boswell offered few specifics. Schmett “didn’t exactly wow us… but it’s time for someone else to represent the 3rd District.”

The Gazette has a policy of no endorsements in caucuses and primaries.

The Press-Citizen endorsed Republican Greg Ganske in that race. But this year they had nothing but negatives for Harkin’s opponent, Christopher Reed.

“Six years ago, we thought Iowa Republicans had a candidate who might be worth a temporary drop in Iowa’s senatorial clout,” the editorial reads. “This year, we worry about what Reed’s nomination says about the future of Iowa Republicans.”

“All he seems willing to do is to repeat the perennial complaint that ‘Washington is broken,’ without explaining the practical steps he would take to fix the problem,” wrote the editorial board. “Reed said he wanted to reduce the size of government, but then told us it was ‘unfair’ to ask him what types of programs he would like to cut in order to accomplish this.”

As for the incumbent, the Press-Citizen cited Harkin’s pragmatism and seniority. “He continually puts Iowa front and center in the fight for good farm policy, agricultural research funds and in discussions on international agricultural trade.”

Reed appears to be holing the Republican base vote, despite dissent in GOP ranks and a lack of support from the state party, simply by being Not Tom Harkin. He performed nearly as well as Republican presidential nominee John McCain, who had 44 percent in the same survey to Barack Obama’s 52 percent.

The poll was conducted Thursday, the same day Reed called Harkin the “Tokyo Rose of al Qaeda and Middle East terrorism” in a debate. Rasmussen’s previous poll, a month earlier, showed a similar margin, with Harkin leading Reed 54 persent to 40.

In other findings, Rasmussen found Governor Chet Culver, not on the ballot until 2010, with good or excellent marks from 45 percent of Iowa voters, while 22 percent rate the governor’s performance as poor.

The statement came during a debate aired on Iowa Public Television and moderated by the Des Moines Register columnist David Yepsen.

“We’re taking advice from somebody who has an eight-year history of becoming the Tokyo Rose of Al-Qaida and Middle East terrorism,” said Reed, a political newcomer from Marion.

Yepsen asked what Reed meant by the term “Tokyo Rose.”

“Providing aid and comfort to the enemy,” Reed said, later adding Harkin has sided with the enemies of the United States.

Tokyo Rose was the name given to female broadcasters of Japanese propaganda during World War II. Their intent was to destroy the morale of Allied forces.

Writing on his blog, Yepsen described how Harkin reacted immediately after the debate.

After the cameras were turned off, Harkin calmly told Reed: “You’re a nice young man and I thought you had a political future ahead of you but that just ended your political career right there”  and walked away. Reed said nothing.

Yepsen also said that in his 34 years covering Iowa politics he has “never heard a candidate make that kind of serious charge about his opponent.”

The hour-long debate had several contentious moments. At one point, Harkin quipped that it looked like he was just going to spend the entire broadcast fending off attacks from his opponent. Reed then broke in, “They’re not attacks if they are true.”

Reed said Harkin has accused the U.S. military of committing acts of torture, citing a speech Harkin made last year in Washington, D.C. During that speech, Harkin demanded the military prison at Guantanamo Bay be closed, saying it betrayed the ideals and values of the United States by not providing prisoners with the protections of the Geneva Conventions.

Harkin later called Reed’s attacks “beyond the pale.”

“It’s something that ought not be part of our political discourse in this state or any place else,” he said.

Thus it is in politics. Both parties, in cold political Darwinism, leave the weak to die. It happened to me in my own legislative race 12 years ago. But at the moment, the grumbling appears louder on the Republican side.

Iowa’s conservative blogosphere is grumbling that Christopher Reed, the long-shot challenger to Senator Tom Harkin, is being triaged out. The latest controversy centers around Reed’s charges on Steve Deace’s WHO radio show that that Caleb Hunter, executive director of the Republican Party of Iowa (RPI), is “actively telling Iowa voters not to support my candidacy because I have no chance to win.” Reed also said Hunter was telling donors their efforts were better spent on trying to win back the Iowa House, where Democrats now hold a 53-47 edge.

“The only groups that I have seen attempting to support Reed at all are the Iowa Right to Life and Iowa Christian Alliance,” writes the Iowa Defense Alliance blog, saying that the treatment of Reed reflects on the Republican State Convention’s battle over National Committee seats. “These are the same people that claimed that (Iowa Right to Life head) Kim Lehman couldn’t be a national chairwoman because she wouldn’t support all Republicans. Now the shoe is on the other foot. These same people are now doing what they claimed that Lehman would do,” Iowa Defense Alliance writes, calling RPI leadership “the Romney Party of Iowa.”

“Reed’s information is second or third hand,” writes Republican state central committee member David Chung at the Hawkeye GOP blog. “I do not know exactly what was said or where but it sounds as if it lost something in the translation.”

“(Former state Rep. George) Eichhorn was definitely the ‘insider’ candidate with more ties to party leadership, and I’m sure they weren’t too happy when their buddy got beat,” writes Nathan Greene at Battleground Iowa. “I don’t think Hunter was telling people not to vote for Reed, but he was certainly telling people he doesn’t think Reed has a chance, so people should send their money and their volunteer hours over to (House minority leader Christopher) Rants.”

“It’s one thing if the party doesn’t have the money to financially support Reed,” writes Greene. It is another thing altogether to actively attempt to sabotage his volunteer and fundraising efforts.”

The multiple posts on the party’s support, or lack thereof, have led to comment wars on the blogs. “You, Christopher, have raised less than $20,000 for your campaign for US SENATE – you need to just curl up and hide your pitiful, pitiful self — you are an embarrassment,” writes an anonymous ‘Steve’ on Battleground Iowa. “Go buy yourself another suit or haircut with your campaign funds,” he adds, repeating an often-noted criticism of Reed.

Clayton County Republican Chairwoman Gwen Eilers has gone so far as to send out a mass email urging Republicans to write in third-place primary candidate Steve Rathje instead of voting for Reed.

“It is no secret that RPI has limited funds this election cycle,” writes Chung. “I supported the decision to target these funds to those races where they are likely to be affect the outcome. These chosen few are not chosen for their ideological purity. If it were so, Reed would be at the top of the list. But a dispassionate view, looking to target key races, the U.S. Senate race is not one of them.”

Despite his near-invisibility, Reed is reaching as high as 40 percent in some polls, simply by being Not Tom Harkin. Yet, with Republican presidential nominee John McCain in the state Saturday, Reed’s name was not mentioned from the podium in Davenport, and no Reed signs were visible in the hall.

Instead, underscoring the Republican Party’s apparent priority, state Rep. Steve Olson said, “I believe we can take over the Iowa House.” Also speaking were state Rep. Jamie Van Fossen and two legislative challengers: Ross Paustian, House 84 challenger against first-term Democrat Elesha Gayman, and state senate challenger Shawn Hamerlink, opposing Sen. Frank Wood.

And with the presidential candidate of his party in his home county, sitting state senator and 1st Congressional District challenger Dave Hartsuch did not speak. National handicappers all rank the 1st District as safe for freshman Democrat Bruce Braley.

Here is the Harkin news release on the endorsement:

DES MOINES, IA – The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States Political Action Committee (VFW-PAC) announced that it has officially endorsed Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) in his bid for re-election to the United States Senate.

In a letter to the Iowa Senator, Director of the VFW-PAC Larry Rivers wrote, “In addition to comments received from VFW leaders in your state, this endorsement is based on your strong support for veterans, national security/defense, and military personnel issues.”

The Veterans of Foreign Wars Political Action Committee is the nation’s only major Veterans Service Organization PAC. VFW-PAC provides 2.2 million members of the VFW, its auxiliaries and their families, with an opportunity to collectively support candidates for federal office. VFW-PAC endorses only those candidates for federal office who support our nations’ veterans and stand in support of a strong national defense.

“It is a great honor to receive this endorsement,” said Harkin. “I have a long history of working for our veterans, for those bravely serving our country abroad and for military families here at home. Many steps have been taken at the Federal level to provide the best care possible for these individuals, but we still have a long way to go. If I have the privilege of being re-elected to the Senate, I plan to continue fighting for those who have sacrificed so much for our country.”

Harkin saw two of his crucial veterans bills become law during this Congress. The Senator joined with another member of the Iowa delegation, Congressman Leonard Boswell (IA-3) in pushing for passage of the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act.  This bill – which is named for a soldier from Grundy Center, IA who took his own life after returning from Iraq – directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to step up screening, counseling and other mental health services for returning war veterans.  The bill passed unanimously in the House and Senate and was signed by the President in November 2007.

Harkin also recently introduced and ensured passage of the Coming Together for Guard and Reserve Families Bill. This legislation will increase support for families of those deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, especially members of the National Guard and Reserve.

Harkin served in the Navy as a jet pilot on active duty from 1962 to 1967 and then continued to fly in the Naval Reserves. He is a member of American Legion Post 562 in his hometown of Cumming, IA.