Newt re-adds two Iowa staffers

(Update: Schoenfeld will now be the senior adviser and Koberg his deputy.

"More paid staff announcements are pending as well as the opening of seven campaign offices statewide," writes NBC.)

Newt re-added two Iowa staffers today: Craig Schoenfeld, who had served as executive director of the Iowa team, and Katie Koberg, who was deputy director.

TheIowaRepublican.com had this to say about Koberg back in May:

Koberg is an exceptional hire for Gingrich. With so many of Iowa’s political operatives now working in state government since the state has a Republican governor for the first time in over a decade, there are not that many operatives with a resume like Koberg’s out there for presidential candidates to choose from.

Over a span of almost six years, Koberg has developed contacts and relationships with legislative candidates across the state through here work at Iowans for Tax Relief. Those relationships, and her knowledge of the political landscape across the state, will be an asset for the Gingrich campaign.

The same writer, Craig Robinson, said this of Schoenfeld:

Schoenfeld is a long-time veteran of local and statewide Iowa political campaigns. In 2004, he ran the Iowa Victory effort for President Bush, in addition to working on President Bush’s successful caucus effort in 2000.

...

Schoenfeld provides Gingrich with an understanding of how Iowa caucus campaigns operate.

Craig Robinson of TheIowaRepublican.com on Newt's speech Saturday

Robinson writes:

At times on Saturday night, Gingrich seemed like a man among boys when discussing the serious issues facing America. He not only had full command of the room, but also of the issues that he was addressing. While he shined when talking about fiscal issues and energy policy, he also artfully talked about key pro-family issues.

The reaction to Gingrich’s speech was unanimous. He more than impressed everybody that TheIowaRepublican.com talked to at the end of the event. One has to wonder where Gingrich would be today had he not stumbled out of the gate last spring. He is beginning to build an actual campaign team in Iowa. Sources tell TheIowaRepublican.com that he was interviewing potential Iowa staff while in Des Moines this weekend. Time will tell if he can take his good debate performances and at events like the one on Saturday night and become a real contender in Iowa.

Robinson reviews all the candidates performances -- he ranks Rick Perry as the winner, with Newt second -- but I will just quote his review of Herman Cain's night (in its' entirety):

Herman Cain’s campaign has turned into a comedy of errors. Cain arrived at the event site early, which would have allowed him ample opportunity to work the room of over 1000 caucus goers. Instead, Cain chose to stay in his tour bus parked near the event facility for close to an hour. When he did come in, it was only to speak and talk to the media for a bit. After that, he was on his way.

If that wasn’t bad enough, Cain’s campaign literature table sat empty while the majority of people entered the hall. By the time it was set up and staffed, it was too late to engage with attendees of the event. Not only did the Cain campaign miss out on people arriving, they also packed up and went home early. At 7:54 p.m., an hour and half before the event was over, the Cain campaign had cleared out. They did leave a few supporter cards, but most of those were still there as the final people left for the night.

It’s apparent that the Cain campaign simply doesn’t know what they should be doing. Having a veteran like Steve Grubbs on board should help. Grubbs is a veteran of numerous caucus campaigns. Yet Grubbs was nowhere to be found unless you were checking Facebook. While Cain’s campaign struggled with basic campaign fundamentals, Grubbs was living it up at a James Bond themed party in California with his wife. From the photos that were posted, it looked more fun than a candidate cattle call in Iowa.

As always, Cain’s speech was well delivered, but he did little to make up for his confusing statements on abortion that dominated the headlines last week. He devoted most of his speech to the topic of segregation. There is no problem with that if he had he tied it in with an issue like abortion. Had he done that, it would have been a powerful moment. Instead, he made a bus analogy, saying that he remembers signs on that instructed African Americans to sit in the back of the bus, and now he owns a bus with his face plastered on it.

It’s almost as if Cain didn’t realize that the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition forum was an opportunity to get past his recent abortion comments. Instead, he acted like being there was some sort of unpleasant chore that he was forced to do. Cain did nothing to help his campaign in Iowa. In fact, by basically ignoring the issue and the concerns of the people in the room, he may have inflicted more damage on his campaign than if he had not decided to show up.

(Video) Newt Speaking at TheIowaRepublican.com Soapbox

Link.

"What They’re Saying about Newt's Debate Performance"

The campaign put together this list of some of the praise Newt got for Thursday night's debate performance.

I will post a couple.

From Kevin Hall of IowaRepublican.com:

The former House speaker was fired up and had a terrific debate. Substance on the issues has always been his forte and Newt showed that. He was also combative with the moderators, demanding they ask substantive questions. The audience responded very strongly to that. Gingrich showed a fire and passion that conservatives are longing for. He would utterly dismantle Barack Obama in a one-on-one debate. It was a terrific performance.

Craig Robinson of the same website:

...his grasp of history and his ability to reference it in some of his answers is incredible…The best moment of the debate came when Gingrich took Fox News Anchor Chris Wallace to task. Doing so was risky, but Gingrich came off as the most serious candidate on the stage last night.

Iowa Radio Talk Show Host Steve Deace:

[Newt Gingrich] was forceful without looking undistinguished, aggressive without losing his self-dignity, informed, informative, and put leadership ahead of policy. This was the Gingrich of the 1994 Republican Revolution.

Craig Shirley:

Gingrich was simply head and shoulders above the rest. This is the Newt people have been waiting for; an articulate and forceful conservative who knows the world he lives in.

Go onto Newt.org and read the rest. Lots of great quotes.

My take on today's Iowa poll by PPP

Public Policy Polling (PPP) released a new survey today of Iowa Republican voters.

Back in April, Newt was at 9%, good for fourth. Today he was at 12%, which is still fourth place. (One thing that is interesting, and goes against the media's "conventional wisdom, is that 21% of those polled have not formed an opinion of Newt, which is higher than both Sarah Palin (by 10 points) and Mitt Romney (by 6 points).

If Sarah Palin does not run, Newt's support rises to 15%, moving him to third.

Truthfully, however, there is no clear order after Mitt Romney. With Palin out of the race, it would probably be more accurate to say that the next three -- Hermain Cain, Newt, and Michelle Bachmann -- are tied for second. If Palin runs, the hierarchy is a little more clear but still muddled.

With Palin:

Romney: 21%
Cain: 15%
Palin: 15%
Gingrich: 12%
Bachmann: 11%
Pawlenty: 10%
Paul: 8%
Undecided: 8%

Without Palin:

Romney: 26%
Cain: 16%
Gingrich: 15%
Bachmann: 14%
Paul: 11%
Pawlenty: 10%
Undecided: 8%

While Romney is the frontrunner now, it is to be seen if his poll numbers will erode should he choose to, if not altogether skip Iowa, then downplay the first contest. Another factor is how much a drag Romneycare will be on him once more voters become aware of it.

The Ames Straw Poll on August 13 will be the first big test of the different campaigns' ability to organize their supporters. And in that regard, Newt -- according to both Craig Robinson and Kevin Hall of The Iowa Republican -- is at the top.

Hall, on May 23, wrote: "The other presidential candidates would love to be able to draw crowds the way Gingrich did last week."

Robinson, back in April, had this to say: "That story went out the window when nearly 200 people showed up on a Friday night to see a documentary that has played on FOX News numerous times. Turning out that kind of crowd on a Friday night in downtown Des Moines was impressive. It was also something most other potential 2012 candidate have yet to do in Iowa."

Robinson also wrote that if Newt can "meet or exceed expectations" at the Ames Straw Poll, "he could use the numerous debates that follow to propel his campaign to a victory in Iowa and elsewhere."

The Iowa Republican touts Newt's latest hires: "exceptional" and "impressive"

Earlier today, Newt rolled out his latest hires in the state that will hold the first nominating contest.

Of Katie Koberg, who was the Vice President of a Iowan fiscal conservative think tank until recently, Craig Robinson of The Iowa Republican said:

Koberg is an exceptional hire for Gingrich. With so many of Iowa’s political operatives now working in state government since the state has a Republican governor for the first time in over a decade, there are not that many operatives with a resume like Koberg’s out there for presidential candidates to choose from.

Over a span of almost six years, Koberg has developed contacts and relationships with legislative candidates across the state through here work at Iowans for Tax Relief. Those relationships, and her knowledge of the political landscape across the state, will be an asset for the Gingrich campaign.

Robinson had the following to say about Iowa House Speaker Pro Tempore Jeff Kaufmann:

Gingrich also announced that Rep. Jeff Kaufmann will serve as his senior policy advisor on Iowa related issues such as rural economies, agriculture and energy. Kaufmann is another impressive addition to Gingrich’s Iowa team. Kaufmann has a large following in eastern Iowa and was a huge asset to the campaigns of Dr. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Terry Branstad.

Romney blaming Iowa and South Carolina problem on religion?

I have written previously about the apparent strategy of Mitt Romney to not "play" in Iowa and South Carolina. Two recent columns -- one by Craig Robinson of the IowaRepublican and the other by Ben Smith of Politico -- discusses that strategy.

Robinson, in writing that the former Massachusetts Governor has not been in the Hawkeye State for 195 days, destroys that claim by Romney's camp and the mainstream media -- including Smith of Politico -- that Romney does not do well in conservative states because he belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints. If conservatives were such bigots -- to a religious group, by the way, that is one of the most conservative -- Robinson asks wouldn't have Orrin Hatch faced such criticism when he ran for President? And if Iowa Republicans were so opposed to Mormons, how could Matt Schultz have won a "contentious primary" against the Republican favored by the establishment in the 2010 race for Secretary of State? (Robinson does not mention him, but Jon Huntsman, who will likely be running for President this cycle, has not been dragged down by being a Mormon either.)

So, Robinson asks, maybe it's not Romney's religious faith but his record? His record of flip-flopping on abortion and marriage. His health care bill that is essentially the same as Obamacare. (Romney supporters who distinguish the two bills by saying one was a state and one was a federal statute miss the point of federalism. If government is controlling your life, it does not matter much if the bureau is located in your state capital or the nation's. Federalism is essentially a legal argument: the states have domain over certain issues and the federal government has domain over a few, which does not include forcing citizens to buy health insurance. That makes Obamacare unconstitutional -- on top of bad policy. Romneycare is not unconstitutional -- just terrible policy.)

Robinson quotes Chuck Lauder, a former Executive Director of the Republican Party of Iowa, saying: "The entire fiction [that Romney is being dragged down by his faith] is a twin of the same loser argument that to be opposed to Obamacare means you're a racist."

If Romney hopes to do better in Iowa and South Carolina, along with other states with large numbers of conservatives, he would be well served to not have his campaign hint that the only reason people could possibly have to oppose him is his religion.

The Iowa Republican: "Gingrich Puts Presidential Campaign in Motion -- Announces Iowa Team"

Craig Robinson of The Iowa Republican has the scoop on Newt's Iowa campaign staff:

TheIowaRepublican.com has learned that Iowa House Majority Leader, Rep. Linda Upmeyer, has agreed to chair Newt Explore 2012 in Iowa.

...

Upmeyer, who is the state’s first female House Majority Leader, gives Gingrich a high profile endorsement that he can tout around the state.

...

Gingrich is also adding two political veterans to his Iowa team. Craig Schoenfeld and Will Rogers will be his Iowa points of contact. Schoenfeld is a long-time veteran of local and statewide Iowa political campaigns. In 2004, he ran the Iowa Victory effort for President Bush, in addition to working on President Bush’s successful caucus effort in 2000.

...

Will Rogers is a Des Moines native, Army veteran, and Drake University alumnus. For the past 15 years, Rogers has been involved in helping elect Republicans in Iowa beginning with Congressman Greg Ganske’s first campaign. He subsequently served as the Executive Director for the Polk County GOP, worked for Congressman Tom Latham’s campaign in 2004, and served as the Co-Chair of the Polk County GOP during the last election.

...

Schoenfeld provides Gingrich with an understanding of how Iowa caucus campaigns operate. Rogers brings a wealth of activists’ contacts with him to the campaign. His extensive work in Polk and Story Counties could pay huge dividends at the Iowa Straw Poll this summer. The two have also worked on the same campaign before. In 2004, they both worked for Ganske’s U.S. Senate campaign against U.S. Senator Tom Harkin.

Last week I linked to a tweet by Kathie Obradovich that Upmeyer would be joining the campaign in some capacity.

Back in March, CNN had this to say about Rogers:

Will Rogers, the former chairman of the Des Moines-area Polk County Republican Party, told CNN that Gingrich is certain to run 'a high level campaign operation here' if he decides to move beyond the exploratory phase.

"My feeling is that he looks like his somebody who is going to run," said Rogers, who has known Gingrich for six years and plans to work for him if he embarks on a full-fledged candidacy. "He is doing the things that people need to do in order to become a frontrunner in the state of Iowa."

The Iowa Republican on Newt's Iowa staff

Kevin Hall and Craig Robinson write:

House Majority Leader Linda Upmeyer is a big backer of the former U.S. House Speaker, but she has been very busy with the legislative session. Gingrich already has a large staff that works for his various groups, and they can easily be transferred to Iowa to build his ground game. Gingrich is another candidate likely to pick up field staffers once the legislative session ends.

Given that Iowa's legislative session will likely end by April 28 and that Newt could very well officially be in the race just a couple of days after that, the last sentence of that quote looks to be right on the money.

From the Iowa Republican: Recent turnout at Gingrich-only event was "impressive"

Craig Robinson:

Iowa should be a place where Gingrich thrives. On Iowa Press last weekend, he jokingly said, “I’ve been coming to Iowa I think since the early 80s. I may have even come to Iowa before Terry was governor, the first time.” Gingrich went on to say that he’s attended the Iowa State Fair six times.

Gingrich is not exaggerating his fondness for Iowa or the amount of time he’s spent here helping the Republican Party of Iowa raise money and helping candidates like Jim Nussle and others with their campaigns. No candidate will be able to match the time, effort, and interest that Gingrich has given the state. What is yet to be seen is whether or not Iowans consider Gingrich as a presidential option.

Despite all of the time that Gingrich has poured into the state, surprisingly, he has very little infrastructure here in Iowa. He has a big backer in Majority Leader of the Iowa House, Linda Upmeyer, but due to her leadership role, she is unable to help him make inroads around the state.

...

Last week, I decided to attend Gingrich’s event where he was showing his film, “Rediscovering God in America,” at the Des Moines Marriott. I chose to attend that event over the Johnson County Spaghetti Supper with Haley Barbour because the 2012 candidates have yet to do many events that they organize themselves, and the movie event would be such an event. Even though Gingrich’s soiree was co-sponsored by Citizens United, it was the first stand alone, non-Republican organization sponsored event that has been held in Iowa since the 2010 election.

I went to the Marriott early on Friday night to meet with Congressman King and his staff the night before the Conservative Principles Conference. By happenstance, I got on an elevator with David Bossie of Citizens United. Bossie partnered with Gingrich to produce a series of films, including the one that was going to be viewed later that night. While I was traveling to the 30th floor, Bossie chatted with his associates about his concerns about the attendance at the viewing later that evening, especially since FOX News and NBC were both going to cover the event.

As I listened in to their conversation, I couldn’t help to start putting together some thoughts for an article. All week I had thought that Gingrich’s Iowa effort was floundering a bit. Despite hitting a homerun at the Iowa Renewable Fuels conference in February, Gingrich struggled to excite the crowd at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Conference. A lackluster event on Friday night and a ho-hum speech in front of King’s conservative audience could have raised questions about whether Iowans would see him as a serious presidential candidate.

That story went out the window when nearly 200 people showed up on a Friday night to see a documentary that has played on FOX News numerous times. Turning out that kind of crowd on a Friday night in downtown Des Moines was impressive. It was also something most other potential 2012 candidate have yet to do in Iowa.

Gingrich also did well at King’s event on Saturday morning. It didn’t hurt that instead of following Herman Cain, a dynamic speaker, like he did at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition event, he followed Haley Barbour. Barbour was no slouch, but his speech only addressed one of the three tenets of conservatism -- fiscal policy.

Gingrich’s speech focused on the three areas needed to re-center America: family values, the economy, and national security. He spoke about each segment with authority. He scored points with King by backing his idea to defund Obamacare. Gingrich said, “We have to draw the line in the sand this year.” He then encouraged the crowd to encourage the rest of Iowa’s delegation to follow King’s lead.

Another topic that was surely music to King’s ears was when Gingrich cited a Gallup Poll from December that found that 80 percent of Americans think that America is exceptional. Gingrich noted that the 18 percent who disagree that American is an exceptional county are largely made up of our elected officials and members of the media. Gingrich did very well on Saturday with King’s crowd, even though Michele Bachmann and Herman Cain received a greater response during and after their remarks. For what they provided in excitement, Gingrich matched with substance.

Nobody doubts that Gingrich will do well in the debates later this year. The problem he and every other candidate have is that they have to get to those debates. That means Gingrich needs a strong ground game in Iowa so that he can do well at the Iowa Straw Poll in August, the first test of a candidate’s organizational strength. If he is able to meet or exceed expectations there, he could use the numerous debates that follow to propel his campaign to a victory in Iowa and elsewhere.