#HoyasinIA: Biden and Klobuchar’s Failure to Step Up
The Iowa caucus results are complete (!?) and while Pete Buttigieg is an obvious winner having earned 13 delegates to beat Bernie Sanders for the top spot, the same cannot be said about his fellow moderate candidates Biden and Klobuchar, who walked away with 6 and 1 delegates respectively.
This race has arguably been split between two factions of the Democratic Party: Moderates v. Progressives. Biden, Buttigieg, and Klobuchar have positioned themselves in a more moderate standpoint, disfavoring Medicare-for-all and the ambitiously high tax rates that Sanders and Warren propose to introduce. This strategy arguably puts the three in a position where they can more easily appeal to previous Trump voters, Republicans, and Independents. However, Buttigieg seems to have a monopoly over this demographic and unless Biden and Klobuchar are able to make some serious gains in New Hampshire they may risk dropping out of the primaries.
The answer to Biden and Klobuchar’s failure to step up may lie in their most recent performances delivered just before Iowans caucused Monday evening. Over this past weekend, I was able to attend Klobuchar, Warren, Buttigieg, and Biden rallies in Des Moines, Iowa, while on a trip with GU Politics. Perhaps by coincidence, I just so happened to find Biden and Klobuchar’s speeches to be the largest turn-offs due to their one shared talking point: Trump.
Whether it was trying to discredit President Trump’s qualifications or taking a stab at his unpresidential conduct, any time Biden or Klobuchar spent framing him as the enemy meant to be defeated, they lost the opportunity to explain why they themselves should be the ones to do so. Two days before caucus night, the Iowans that show up for democratic candidates are either hardcore supporters or undecided on who they ought to caucus for. However, they are certainly not undecided on their intentions not to vote for Donald Trump. While Klobuchar and Biden could have been distinguishing themselves from other candidates and giving those undecided voters reasons to support them, they ended up wasting time preaching to the choir.
Klobuchar tried to make an emotional appeal to her audience as she told the story of her encounter with a midwestern cattle farmer that had voted for Trump in 2016, was appalled by the statement he made at the Boy Scout Jamboree in 2017, and consequently vowed to support Amy Klobuchar in 2020. However, she never gave any reason why she was more qualified for that man’s vote than Biden, Buttigieg, Warren, or any other candidate in the race. Biden fell down a similar hole and spent half of his total time on stage (23 minutes) ranting about Trump’s inexcusable behavior which arguably incited “Nazis (who) came out of the forests in Charlottesville!” By that point, you are telling the people what they already know; that either makes them believe they are seen as incompetent or brings about awkward feelings of shame they might carry from their previous voting choices. It is in no way a tactic that can bring people together or attract them to yourself.
Lis Smith, Buttigieg’s Communications Director that we were also able to speak to over the weekend, seemed to have a firm understanding of this concept. At his rally, Buttigieg did not even mention the sitting president once and instead took the time to tell the audience about himself, his plans, and his credentials. This created a shared sense of hope for everyone in that sweaty gym and, suddenly, I realized why they had all endured an extra hour of waiting to hear this man speak at a middle school on Saturday afternoon. When Pete Buttigieg speaks he actually makes you feel good. He not only took an optimistic stance but was effectively able to bring people of different political ideologies together by reassuring them of his good intentions and strengths rather than Trump’s questionable morals and weaknesses. I believe the numbers from Iowa truly reflect upon his success while Biden and Klobuchar’s numbers (or lack thereof) represent theirs.
MacKenzie Grimm one of six students who joined GU Politics in Iowa as part of #HoyasInIA.