With 96.94% reporting in Iowa, it’s between Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg

Iowa

The caucus count has tightened considerably (figure 1) while Bernie Sanders has maintained a lead in the popular vote (figure 2).

Fig. 1. Screenshot of Associated Press Iowa caucus count, 3:14 am.^[1]

Fig. 2. Screenshot of Associated Press Iowa popular vote, 3:16 am.^[2]

It’s still not over. But maybe today?

I will have to say that I am surprised by Pete Buttigieg’s strength. I figured the fact he is openly gay would doom him. Apart from that, he has the sort of appearance my grandmother would love.

Joe Biden’s performance was terrible, and inexcusable for a supposed front-runner. It’s a pretty safe bet that the neoliberals will now coalesce around Buttigieg. If some candidates’ times have yet to come, Biden’s is long past. He should drop out, retire, and put an end to this futile misery. Unfortunately, he seems to be driven by the same sense of entitlement as Hillary Clinton.

Elizabeth Warren is still in the race, but clearly, trying to fit somewhere between Sanders and the rest of the pack pleased relatively few. Even the capitalist libertarian Cato Institute is having to acknowledge that capitalism has become unpopular among the young;^[3] but Warren billed herself as a capitalist.^[4] She will need strong performances that I’m not hearing are in the cards.

The rest should be out of the race. Period. I have some sympathy for Tulsi Gabbard for being on the receiving end of Clinton’s assholery,^[5] but this is not her year.

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1. ^[1]Associated Press, “Iowa Elections Results,” February 6, 2020, https://elections.ap.org/dailykos/results/2020-02-03/state/IA/race/P/raceid/17275↩
2. ^[2]Associated Press, “Iowa Elections Results,” February 6, 2020, https://elections.ap.org/dailykos/results/2020-02-03/state/IA/race/P/raceid/17278↩
3. ^[3]Emily Ekins, “Socialism Is Legitimately Popular,” Cato, February 4, 2020, https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/socialism-legitimately-popular↩
4. ^[4]Ali Donaldson, “Why Elizabeth Warren Still Calls Herself a Capitalist,” Bloomberg, February 1, 2019, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-02/why-elizabeth-warren-still-calls-herself-a-capitalist↩
5. ^[5]David Benfell, “Hillary Clinton needs to just shut the fuck up,” Not Housebroken, October 22, 2019, https://disunitedstates.org/2019/10/22/hillary-clinton-needs-to-just-shut-the-fuck-up/↩