Former Governor Terry Branstad’s last campaign was in 1994 — way before weblogs — blogs. The modern day candidate must survive in the Electronic Age and Branstad may be getting his first dose of that reality: a meeting he held with a small group of conservative leaders has been written about, in detail, on the web. It provides a clear glimpse at the difficulties Branstad faces in the upcoming primary.
Pastor Mike Demastus writes the Masterpastor’s Blog and here is his post about the meeting.
Branstad just ignored my concerns and didn’t even respond to them. All in all, if Branstad wins reelection, he will simply be a Republican version of Culver. He is a politician through and through.
The people in this state need to take a stand and not keep getting force-fed candidates who don’t have a backbone. We need leadership. We need someone who will be a true champion of conservative values…Basically what we need in gubernatorial leadership in Iowa is something that Terry Branstad is not able to deliver.
The blog “Caffeinated Thoughts” has AUDIO of a good chunk of the meeting, courtesy of Shane Vander Hart. Vander Hart summarized his thoughts on the meeting near the end of his post:
In all the meeting, in my opinion, didn’t go well for (Branstad). Social conservatives are looking for tangible ideas on items of concern for us. He was unwilling to provide them. We are looking for principled leadership, and instead we saw political maneuvering.
These are all things that Governor Branstad will need to address if he is to win the Republican nomination, let alone become the next Governor.
About O.Kay Henderson
Kay is a founding member of the Radio Iowa network newsroom. In 1994, she became the network’s news director. She’s a featured reporter and commentator on Iowa Public Television’s “Iowa Press,” and the 2002 recipient of the Shelley Award.
Happy Birthday Kay!
Gopal