Jonathan Martin has some good observations about being on the ground in Iowa that are worth a read (here, here). My favorite:
I trailed a cowboy hat-wearing Fred Thompson today as he did a "Main Street Tour" of Tipton, just east of Iowa City and the home county of Herbert Hoover's West Branch.
Stopping into a local cafe to say hello to a handful of supporters, he was met by Stacy Tharp.
Tharp, a 23 year-old flight attendant who had driven a good piece down the road from a county north, was bursting with excitement at the prospect of meeting Thompson. She had her picture taken with him and then, seperately, the candidate's wife, Jeri (whom she called "the future first lady")
Chatting with the former Law & Order star, Tharp told him how much she thought of him and how excited she was to vote (she'll turn 24 on caucus day, January 3rd).
So after the Thompsons and their entourage left, I asked her just what it was about the Tennessean she liked so much.
I should have known better.
"I'm still considering [who to support]," Tharp said. While she liked that Thompson had picked up the support of Steve King (who, mind you, represents a congressional district hundreds of miles on the other end of the state), she was still shopping and hoping to meet all the candidates.
"Electability," she observed "is a significant issue."
"I like Huckabee, but I don't know how he's going to fare in the general election."
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