Johnson County Democrats Draw 2,000 With Five Candidates

To the nationals, the big story out of Saturday’s Johnson County Democratic Party barbecue may have been George McGovern’s endorsement of Hillary Clinton.  But the locals were focused on the success of their five-candidate event.  The biggest ever, said party treasurer Gina Schatteman, by a factor of three times.  Other local observers say the event may have been the biggest political fundraiser ever in Johnson County.

The 2007 barbecue drew a crowd of over 2,000 for a program that featured presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Chris Dodd, John Edwards, Dennis Kucinich, and Bill Richardson.  The local party’s previous best crowd was 700 for a 2003 barbecue that featured Howard Dean, John Kerry, and Ted Kennedy.

Below the fold: a chronological look at the program.Dennis Kucinich

First speaker Dennis Kucinich got his biggest applause with his call to impeach Vice President Cheney, and Kucinich held out the microphone to amplify the applause.  But Kucinich’s support has faded since 2004.  "Edwards is the practical Kucinich," said local Edwards supporter Tom Carsner.

John Edwards

Edwards arrived with plenty of time to work the crowd in the food line before his speech, though sometimes he had trouble hearing questions because of his loud, enthusiastic claque.  Here, Edwards exchanges pleasantries with local political legend Dick Myers (even though Myers is backing Obama).

Edwards took the stage to Bruce Springsteen’s “Land Of Hope And Dreams,” making him the only candidate with stage music.  He was also the only candidate to enter through the crowd; the others did their handshaking on the way out.

As always, the Edwards speech began with the Elizabeth’s Fine reference, and Elizabeth was on hand to verify that.  She was the only spouse seen traveling with the candidates, much to the disappointment of Elizabeth Kucinich fans.

The Edwards speech was standard stump, though there was a “I run for president on behalf of…” cadence I hadn’t heard before.  During the war section, some local peace movement protesters began chanting “We won’t wait! Till 2008!”  Edwards responded with a quick “God bless you, I love that chant,” which went over well with both the peace folks and the party regulars.  He also threw in a little criticism of Senator Clinton by name for continuing combat missions.

Bill Richardson

The governor of New Mexico also allowed for plenty of schmoozing time before his speech, as he greets Gary Sanders, longtime fixture on the Johnson County political scene.

It was during the Richardson speech that the combination of humid weather and body heat started reaching discomfort levels.  The smart folks stood outside, sticking their heads in through open windows.

Richardson rolled out the usual lines (“With me you get experience and change,” etc.)  Big applause lines seemed to be his call for no residual force in Iraq and for scrapping No Child Left Behind.

The main critique of Richardson’s speech seemed to be its length.  Even the next speaker, Chris Dodd, commented: “I thought I was back in the Senate and Bill Richardson was giving a filibuster.”  But Richardson got off the best quip at the cattle call nature of the day, reports County Supervisor Rod Sullivan.  Richardson was leaving as Dodd was arriving, and he rolled down his window and yelled over to Dodd.  “Hey, Chris.  Chris!”  Dodd noticed and looked over.  “Chris!  What are YOU doing here?”

Chris Dodd

Dodd, also working the crowd pre-speech, meets Iowa City Council candidate Matt Hayek.  Dodd, sounding a touch hoarse, noted that he was the keynote speaker at last year’s much smaller barbecue.

The take-away line: “We need a candidate who can both govern and is electable.”

Forest Whitaker

The Obama campaign sent a touch of Hollywood to Iowa City, as Oscar’s reigning Best Actor Forest Whitaker spoke on behalf of the campaign.  Whitaker also attended a campus event before the barbecue.  Local Obama supporters also said Whitaker did a low-key event at Iowa City’s Broadway Neighborhood Center in one of the town’s most underprivileged areas.

Whitaker seemed to be a little under the weather, pausing often to cough, but he patiently autographed everything in sight, including shirts.  It was noted that Whitaker won his Oscar for acting and not for editing, as he ran long.

The Bidens

Darkness had fallen by the time Jill, Beau, and Hunter Biden were ready to speak, and the backstage atmosphere was thick with Secret Service buzz in anticipation of Hillary Clinton’s arrival.  Deputy sheriffs instructed spectators and photographers to move back.  Their boss, Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek, kept one eye on the situation while he chatted with Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden.

Biden Time was heavy on family, as Beau Biden recounted the Biden narrative: his father’s triumphant election to the Senate at age 29 followed weeks later by the death of his mother and sister, and severe injuries to himself and his brother, in a car accident.

The point of all this family stuff: Joe Biden has been tested and is ready to be Commander in Chief.  “John Kerry and Al Gore failed the Commander in Chief test, both unfairly,” said Beau.  “We can’t have a candidate who fails the Commander in Chief test.”

George McGovern

There was a post-Biden delay, either because Team Clinton was behind schedule or because the backstage area was blocked by an ambulance ferrying out someone who’d succumbed to the heat.  In either case the gap was filled with the band and with a chant war.

Either the peace activists felt more vitriol toward Hillary Clinton than the other candidates, or Team Hillary was more determined than the other campaigns to drown them out.

Things settled down relatively quickly as County Recorder Kim Painter handled the introduction to the introduction, calling McGovern "a real Johnson County kind of Democrat"  in reference to Iowa City’s liberal reputation.  The 1972 nominee spent five or so minutes introducing Hillary Clinton and reminiscing about this guy who wanted to run the McGovern `72 campaign in Arkansas.  They thought the guy was good, so they “gave him a very difficult job: trying to sell George McGovern in Texas.”  Oh, and the kid wanted a job for his girlfriend too.

Hillary laughed as McGovern talked about Bill’s haircut habits of 1972, saying he looked “like a buffalo.”

McGovern praised the strength of the Democratic field, but singled out only two: first Edwards, then Obama.  “I hope I live long enough to see an African American president,” he said.  “But there’s an old saying: ladies first,” he added, to a cheer with a higher pitch than a gender balanced response would indicate.  With that, he stepped aside.

Hillary Clinton

Given that she’d just picked up a high profile endorsement, Clinton led with piles of McGovern praise.  “He is above all a patriot, and someone the U.S. should thank,” she said after citing the bomber pilot biography points.  Much of the rest of the speech was a laundry list of issues, with some Bush-bashing thrown in.  There was a little non-disruptive heckling, as Clinton discussed ending the war and one peace person shouted “you voted for it.”  John Edwards might have reacted and said “I did and I was wrong,” but Hillary Clinton kept going.

Clinton on stage with Massachusetts Congressman Jim "No Relation" McGovern, George McGovern, and Kim Painter.

The speech wrapped up with the standard stump disclaimer: I’m not running to be the first woman president, I’m running because I’m the most qualified, but I hear the parents telling the daughters “you can be anything you want.”

The Rock Star Surge followed Clinton as she left through the audience, shaking hands for at least a half hour.  Back at the stage, county chair Brian Flaherty and vice chair James Moody tried to announce “wait, the program’s not over,” but even the sound guy had switched off the power.