Iowa Straw Poll Blog Posts | Comedy Central Indecision

5 Replacements for the Iowa Straw Poll

Tweet

Nov 21, 2012 11:53 AM by Ilya Gerner | Comments:

If Iowa's Republican Governor Terry Branstad has his way, one of the dumbest events in the presidential election cycle will soon disappear…

"I think the straw poll has outlived its usefulness," Mr. Branstad said of the 33-year-old GOP ritual. "It has been a great fundraiser for the party but I think its days are over."

Going back to 1979, Republican presidential contenders have flocked to Ames, Iowa in August to eat fried food, dance to country bands and wheedle votes from the party faithful in what amounts to an overblown party fund-raiser disguised as a trial run for the real Iowa caucuses early the next year.

But what will replace the Iowa Straw Poll as the over-hyped event of the political season?

The 56 Best Things About Michele Bachmann

Tweet

Apr 6, 2012 11:09 AM by Mary Phillips-Sandy | Comments:

michele bachmann birthday

As you are no doubt aware, today is a certain Minnesota-Representative-turned-failed-presidential-candidate's 56th birthday. To celebrate, we've drawn up this list of the 56 best things about Michele Bachmann. Don't say we never do anything for you, M-Ba!

1. She enjoys corn dogs.

2. She also enjoys "noodles, cheeses, chicken and bacon."

3. She's tough on Iran and knows our imaginary embassy in Tehran should be relocated to Krypton or Atlantis.

4. There was that one time she dressed up like Princess Leia at a debate. That was awesome.

5. She gets all her facts about HPV vaccinations from random women she meets, unless they happen to be scientists.

A Look Back at 2011 with The Daily Show – August

Tweet

Dec 27, 2011 10:13 AM by Dennis DiClaudio | Comments:

Hey, remember when Rick Perry got America pregnant with a breakfast sausage and then America had to get a free abortion over on Fox News and Tim Pawlenty was a person who existed?

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11/10c.

Tags: Iowa Straw Poll, Jon Stewart, TDS Looks Back at 2011, The Daily Show, Tim Pawlenty, Video

Some Guy Named Ron Paul Keeps Winning All the Straw Polls

Tweet

Nov 7, 2011 06:42 PM by Jess Dweck | Comments:

Have you heard of this "Ron Paul" guy? I haven't seen much about him in the news. I think he's a dog catcher or gold salesman or something like that. Apparently, he's running for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, and he just won the Illinois straw poll…

Texas Congressman Paul won 52 percent of the combined 3,649 online and in-person votes cast between October 29 and Saturday evening… Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney earned 7 percent of the online votes cast and 35 percent of the in-person votes… Businessman Herman Cain won 15 percent of the online vote and 29 percent of the in-person vote.

It's no wonder the media hasn’t been paying attention to this young 76-year-old upstart. The Illinois contest is only the fifth state straw poll he's won in the last two months…

Paul took second place in the Ames Straw Poll in August, finishing just 1 percentage point behind Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. Paul won a Values Voter Summit straw poll in October and a California Republican Party straw poll in September. On Saturday, October 22, Paul garnered 53 percent of the votes to win an Ohio GOP poll. Last weekend, Paul won an Iowa straw poll at the National Federation of Republican Assemblies in Des Moines, Iowa with 82 percent of the votes.

I don't know who this Ron Paul character is, but he doesn't sound like a promising candidate to me. Why is the media wasting all this time reporting on his straw poll victories when they could be profiling Jon Hunstman's hair products or Newt Gingrich's Tiffany bills?

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News/Getty Images

Tags: Iowa Straw Poll, Libertarian, Primaries, Republicans, Ron Paul, Texas