U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., was at the Iowa State Fair on Friday speaking in support of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Voters concerned about federal agriculture policies will gravitate toward Barack Obama, said Nebraska senator Ben Nelson at the Iowa State Fair Thursday.

In an interview with the Iowa Independent Thursday afternoon, Nelson said that there are many important differences in the two major presidential candidates on farm policy.

The key difference, said Nelson, is on biofuels.

“Senator Obama supports corn-based ethanol and moving to other bio-based ethanol products as well,” Nelson said. Senator John McCain, R-Ariz., “has fought against, and does not support corn-based ethanol and has resisted it and voted against it.”

The Nebraska Democrat, who serves on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, played an important role in crafting the new farm bill that was passed into law earlier this year. He worked alongside Iowa’s senators, Democrat Tom Harkin and Republican Chuck Grassley, to bring the bill out of committee and ultimately to passage through an override of a veto by President Bush.

“Senator Obama comes from a state that’s rich in agriculture — Illinois,” said Nelson. “He understands agriculture and is willing to work with farmers and ranchers to find better ways. And he supported the farm bill.”

McCain, said Nelson, voted against the farm bill and is “still opposed to the farm bill and to any kind of government support for ethanol.”

He said voters in Iowa and in Nebraska who are concerned about agriculture will have a clear decision. “It’s a matter of what people decide to support, and what their agenda is, that will cause voters to decide who to vote for. Either in favor of the farm bill, in favor of supporting agriculture — or in favor of the positions of Senator Obama’s opponent, which in my opinion certainly should not be attractive to Nebraskans or Iowans or anybody in agriculture.”

Nelson went on to speak in support of Obama at the Des Moines Register building, where he discussed how he believes Obama’s health care proposals will benefit rural areas.

Some of those delegates to the county conventions don’t want to give up their candidates. They don’t like Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, so they plan to stick with their favorite-even if he doesn’t have a chance of being nominated.

One of them is Laurita Gatrelle of Ely who said she wants to stay with the candidate she’s been with for eight years: Edwards the former North Carolina senator. She doesn’t want to make a decision between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Gatrelle, a retired Ely resident, called Edwards “the total package” in an interview with the Iowa Independent this week.

Gatrelle said that a member of Clinton’s team left a message on her answering machine telling her: ‘You can no longer be a delegate for Edwards.’”

But after the county conventions this Saturday, delegates can remain uncommitted or with candidates who are out of the race, providing they meet the 15 percent cut-off for viability.

This was news to Gatrelle, who said she couldn’t decide between Clinton and Obama and that she would stay with Edwards as long as she can.

Gatrelle lives in Linn County, where Edwards will seat 174 delegates at the county convention. That’s one more delegate than Clinton has.

Unless they are able to form a separate group that clears over 15 percent, Richardson and Biden delegates will choose another candidate. Richardson and Biden, with only three delegates apiece in Linn County, are currently below the 15 percent viability to go to district conventions, the next step in the Iowa caucus process.

Johnson County’s Democratic Party has a history of sending second-tier delegates to district, state and national conventions. Iowa City Edwards supporter David Redlawsk is asking delegates to “stick together” for the candidate and the issues raised by the second-place Iowa finisher.

Edwards delegate Jennifer Trivedi of Iowa City said she was staying with the 2004 vice-presidential candidate because of his focus on issues such as “poverty, health care and not taking money from lobbyists.” She and other delegates told the Iowa Independent that they would “honor” Edwards and the issues he raised in his campaign.

Edwards himself remains uncommitted in the two-person contest, although he has privately met with both campaigns, who are seeking his endorsement.

Other candidates’ delegates are still deciding, too.

Several delegates felt it was time to choose and did not want to remain undecided.

Attending the event as her daughter’s alternate, Jean Sippy of Swisher is a Richardson delegate. She said, “it doesn’t make sense” to continue with her candidate or any other choices besides Obama or Clinton. She said she’s leaning toward Obama, but is not yet convinced.

Solon resident Barbara Weets-Caudill was “devastated” when her candidate, Biden, dropped out of the race. She’s an uncommitted delegate who feels that the election was decided by the “news media and corporations” who took the decision “out of the hands of the people.”

Although she joked that she might just call her alternate and let him decide, she said she was going to make a decision by Saturday.

Her precinct, like several others in Johnson County which had only four delegates up for grabs, evenly split among Edwards, Obama, Clinton and a fourth candidate.

And who would make up her “dream” ticket? Biden, of course, paired with a vice-presidential surprise: Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska.

Uncommitted delegate Matt Roberts went to the caucuses with a woman on his mind. That woman, Hillary Clinton, was not viable in his Iowa City precinct so he joined with other candidates also below the magic 15 percent line as a delegate with no name attached. Roberts has given up on Clinton, although he said he could still make “a strong case” for either Clinton or Obama.

He said that McCain’s emergence as the Republican de facto nominee soured him on Clinton’s chances in November, but he stressed that he was still undecided.

The time of the district convention is fast approaching.  On April 26, the delegates will advance and take their commitment to the next level.

He plans to be involved in an effort to do that.

“I’m very uncomfortable with this whole idea of superdelegates,” Harkin said on a conference call. “The reason it hasn’t bothered anybody is because it hasn’t meant anything.”

What Harkin is concerned about is the nearly 800 superdelegates at the Democratic Convention in August deciding the nominee — perhaps even overriding the will of people who voted in hotly contested caucuses and primary battles between U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.

“I just don’t think it’s right,” said Harkin, a superdelegate like other senators, members of Congress and certain powerful party leaders, all of whom have votes that count just as much as pledged delegates earned through campaigning.

About 4,000 delegates will attend the convention in Denver. Around 3,200 of those emerged through a competitive process in primaries and caucuses. But one fifth, or the 800, are simply there based on their insider status.

Conceivably, if Obama wins the elected delegates, as is widely expected, the Clinton campaign could pull more superdelegates and take the nomination.

“It’s just not right to give us that much power,” Harkin said.

Harkin said he plans to support a new system in which superdelegates are given alternate status and floor privileges. They should only be allowed to vote as alternates for elected delegates who could not make it to the convention, Harkin added.

Political science professor Cary Covington’s presentation on “God Talk on the Campaign Trail” outlined how he sees the pendulum of religious favor swinging back to Democratic presidential candidates, Senators Clinton and Obama. He said that for decades (with the exception of former President Jimmy Carter), anointed candidates have consistently been Republican.

Three videos from the event are below the fold.

Covington praised candidates Edwards (who bowed out last week), Obama, and Clinton.

“The Democrats seem to have the candidates who are more comfortable with and more genuine talking about their religious beliefs and how it impacts on their political positions.”

He also described the changes in a historically strong conservative voting bloc:

“The evangelical or religious right vote is not so monolithically concerned about a small set of issues … among generational lines you find younger conservative Christians who are voicing a deep concern about issues like AIDS, issues like poverty, global warming. They see those as religious issues, as moral issues and they want their candidates to take a position on them … that’s causing a fracture with the ‘establishment’ religious right leaders who want to maintain the focus on the standard social issues of abortion, gay rights, gay marriage, strong national defense, support for Israel.”

One of those young Christian voters is Samantha Honken, who said, “it’s very important that a candidate is religiously grounded.” She didn’t vote last month, but was surprised to see her dad become so excited standing for former pastor Mike Huckabee at the caucuses.

Religion and faith play a big part in her life. She feels she has a calling to ministry and is seeking to major in communications studies and minor in religious studies at the University of Iowa. After graduation, she wants to be a writer for a Christian magazine.

A recipient of the 2007-08 Jason Chen Faith and Learning Scholarship, Honken was named as the first student minister by the Geneva Campus Ministry and works with the group doing outreach.

Evan Fales hasn’t found God and stopped looking long ago. A professor in the UI Philosophy Department and an avowed atheist, he was concerned that faith is playing too strong of a role in politics. As a member of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union, he believes strongly in the separation of church and state.

In this video he talks about his impressions of the event and some of his concerns about the role of religious faith in politics:

Geneva Campus Ministry sponsored the event as part of a series entitled, “Finding God at Iowa.” The events are being held on the first Friday of the month on campus.

Dr. Ed Laarman, director of the Geneva Campus Ministry, introduced Covington and posted a schedule for future “Finding God” events:

“The Music of Lent and Easter: A Theological and International Approach”
Friday, March 7, 12-1 PM, River Room #1, IMU, University of Iowa
Koi Hin Samuel Kwok, School of Music DMA candidate and Director of Music Ministries at First United Methodist Church, Iowa City

“Qho Tolis Peccata Mundi? US Foreign Policy on Religious Persecution”
Friday, April 4, 12-1 PM, Penn State Room (#337), IMU, University of Iowa
Prof. Chris Rossi, Adjunct Lecturer at the School of Law, former Director on the National Security Council, Executive Director of Humanities Iowa

“The Human Dilemmas of Genetics and Genetic Counseling”
Friday, May 2, 12-1 PM, River Room #1, IMU, University of Iowa
Lih Yeen Tan, Genetic Counselor for UI Children’s Hospital

For more info, contact the UIowa Geneva Campus Ministry at geneva@uiowa.edu or call: (319) 341-0007.

Sometimes the warm-up speech is short and sweet, Hillary Clinton often had a local organizer read a few words, but sometimes she had the “Big Dog” Bill Clinton in tow.  Barack Obama had Oprah Winfrey introduce him a few times in Iowa, but he also had retired Air Force general Merrill Anthony “Tony” McPeak, who served on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, introduce him in Vinton, Iowa.

Mitt Romney recently had his wife, Ann Romney, publicly endorse him in Mt. Vernon, Iowa.

And Fred Thompson had his buddy, Congressman Steve King, give a warm-up in Washington, Iowa.

Below the fold, videos of three very different introductions for Obama, Romney, and Thompson.

Ann Romney is the wife of Mitt Romney, presidential candidate.  After her introduction of him, when an audience member told the candidate his potential first lady was “cuter” than he was, the former governor played along.

Candidate Romney said, “She’s hot too,” as he licked his finger and then made a sizzling sound before beginning his 10-minute speech.

That’s one way to thank the person who introduced you.

Here is Ann Romney on her man Mitt:

When Barack Obama was introduced recently by retired General Merrill Anthony “Tony” McPeak he asked the crowd, “What qualities do we want from a commander-in-chief?” He gave a list of characteristics and slanted the results to favor his candidate, Barack Obama. But McPeak likes the entire field of candidates and admitted that “If you look at the crowd of candidates, they’re all pretty smart, the people that are running on both sides.”

He talked about foreign policy and the need for “a new and a great commander-in-chief.”  McPeak then introduced a Vinton precinct captain for Obama, Elaine Harrington, who introduced the candidate.

Later, before beginning his speech, Sen. Obama said McPeak was “cool” because he resembled movie legend Clint Eastwood.

U.S. Rep. Steve King of Iowa’s western fifth district gave a testimony to the “fun” of campaigning by bus with former senator Fred Thompson. Part of King’s introduction concentrated on what he called “destiny” issues. He noted Thompson’s shepherding of Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts nomination.  He also told the crowd that Supreme Court Justices Stevens and Ginsberg were the most likely to retire next. His personal fantasy?  He wants to see Ginsberg and Stevens “fall madly in love with each other and elope to Cuba.”

King roused the crowd for Thompson’s entrance and once onstage, Thompson reeled off a series of jokes that had the audience laughing loudly for minutes.

Here’s part of King’s intro and Thompson’s comedy routine preceding his speech:

Thompson said King was, “not an average politician, he’s something special.”

The next “Highlight Reel” will focus on candidate endorsement videos. Stay tuned!

But after his speech, she said she had made up her mind and will caucus for Obama on Jan. 3, 2008.

Before the event, she was leaning toward caucusing for Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd and had made Obama her second choice after taking an on-line quiz to see who most closely matched her ideal candidate. The result from the website was Dodd. 

But after listening to Obama speak, Roepke changed her mind. She said that the Illinois senator has “a much better chance” than Dodd.

Sen. Barack Obama gave a 30-minute speech in Vinton, Iowa, on Thursday before a crowd of about 300. During the speech he said that some had questioned his experience.  Without naming them, he called out his opponents in the presidential race on the subject of experience and Washington beltway “seasoning”:

“You can have the right kind of experience and the wrong kind of experience. Mine is rooted in the real lives of real people, and it will bring real results if we just have the courage to change. I believe deeply in those words, but I have to admit those words are not originally mine. They were actually Bill Clinton’s in 1991 and 1992. …”

More videos from Obama’s speech in Vinton are below the fold.

Retired Gen. Tony McPeak, former chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force, and Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller were also at the event,  supporting the presidential bid of the Illinois senator.

A live interview with Wolf Blitzer was broadcast to the standing-room-only crowd before Obama took the stage.

Obama acknowledged his staff and supporters before beginning his speech.  The speech took two familiar paths, addressing the experience of others compared to his own and the longtime Obama campaign theme of change. At one point, he asked, “Who can actually deliver change?” and continued:

“You can’t argue that you should be elected because you are the master of the broken system in Washington that’s not working for the American people and yet offer yourself as the person best able to bring about change.”

He also answered critics who have said he needs to show more anger about current U.S. politics: “We don’t need more heat; we need more light,” in Washington, D.C.

He reminded the audience of his work as a professor of constitutional law. “I will be a president who has taught the Constitution, who believes the Constitution and will obey the Constitution of the United States of America,” he said, and finished his speech with a passionate defense of his “hopeful” campaign theme:

“This is our moment; this is our time. … I believe that if you stand with me in seven days, if you will stand for change so that our children have the same opportunities that we had, if you stand to keep the American dream alive for those who still hunger for justice, who still thirst for opportunity, if you refuse to accept what the cynics tell you you have to settle for and instead reach for what we know is possible, then I believe that we will win this caucus, and we will win this election, and we will change the course of our country’s history. …  And I have no doubt that we can begin that journey right now.”

Obama will continue his campaign throughout Iowa until the caucuses on Thursday.

With his mother, Karen Koch, he traveled a half-hour to see Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in Washington, Iowa last week and listen to the presidential candidate give an address entitled, “Reclaiming the American Dream.” 

Calling Obama “a great man,” he said:

“He says what he thinks and what other people don’t want to hear but what he wants them to hear … he’ll bring all the people from the war back and we can trust him.”

Koch also told the Iowa Independent that he wasn’t going to sell his recently acquired Barack Obama autograph, he was keeping it.

More Iowa Independent reporting from this event can be found at: Obama, Loebsack Campaign in Washington, IA.

More videos, including Obama’s comparison of his and Clinton’s health care reform transparency and an outline of his education plan are at: Obama’s Health Care Plan: ‘Not Behind Closed Doors.’

And I.I. reporter Dien Judge has a video, Obama Criticizes Edwards’ Senate Record, from a campaign stop in Oskaloosa, Iowa.

From Obama earlier today:

“John, yesterday, said he didn’t believe in 527s. Those are these independent groups that raise money without disclosure … We found out today that there’s an outside group that’s funding $750,000, just bought three-quarters of a million dollars worth of television time, and the individual running the group used to be John Edwards’ campaign manager.”

This video is John Edwards’ first response to the questions from Obama on the so-called 527s or soft money groups:

He was asked about Obama’s 527 criticism following an event in Lisbon, Iowa, and said, “I found out about this probably after most of you did through the news media.”To begin the brief press conference following his speech and question and answer period, Edwards introduced a stimulus package to boost the economy.

He was joined at the event by James Lowe, Des Moines attorney Roxanne Conlin, and the Lakey family.

Obama responded by addressing two parts of the man’s question: “electability and governance.”

For the final part of his answer he drew a sharp distinction between his methods and the Clintons’ work on health care in the 1990s.

He said, “My plan is not that different from Hillary Clinton’s plan or John Edward’s plan or any of the other plans. The question is how do you move it forward … I admire Sen. Clinton and Bill Clinton for having tried in 1993 but they did it the wrong way … they went behind closed doors … the Clinton plan was dead on arrival … “

He went on to say he would try to work differently: “This is all going to be on C-SPAN, the American people will be watching, so it’s not behind closed doors, it’s open.”

Obama was joined onstage by Rep. Dave Loebsack. He recently endorsed Obama for president and introduced the Illinois Senator.

Obama fan Rachel McPherson teaches family literacy and ESL at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa City, Iowa.

She told the Iowa Independent that Obama would make her proud to live in the U.S. again.  She said sometimes she tells people she is from Brazil and has had thoughts of moving to Spain to get out of the U.S.

She met Obama at the 2007 Tom Harkin Steak Fry and said that he was her “man” for the caucuses.

In this video she describes that experience and her thoughts on his plan for education:

Another questioner asked him about funding for U.S. schools:

Obama said before the crowd in the Washington Junior High School gymnasium that he said he would “change No Child Left Behind, which left the money behind.”

I.I. reporter John Deeth has more from this event.