John Norris to be Vilsack's Chief of Staff

From Iowa Independent...

Former Gov. Tom Vilsack, who was confirmed as U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tuesday, has named John Norris as his his chief of staff, sources close to Vilsack said today.

Norris served as Vilsack’s chief of staff during his first two years as governor. He also served as chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party in 1998, ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House in 2002 and was a national field director for John Kerry’s 2004 presidential campaign. He currently serves as chairman of the Iowa Utilities Board.

His wife, Jackie Norris, was named in November as First Lady Michelle Obama’s chief of staff.

The Norris's are now the second up-and-coming power couple from Iowa to be headed to Washington DC, following Patrick Dillon and Jennifer O'Malley-Dillon.

Vilsack Named Sec. of Agriculture

The AP reports that Tom Vilsack has been named Sec. of Agriculture in the Obama Administration.

**Update**
My first thought when hearing this was that Charles Grassley just took a sigh of relief. I don't see anyway Vilsack can turn around and for Senate against Grassley in 2010. Mike Johanns served almsot 3 years as Sec. of Agriculture before announcing his run for Senate in Nebraska in September of 2007. Vilsack would serve 8-12 months before having to announce his run and if he did that, I think there'd be some bad press coming his way for backing out of his committment.

With that said, Sec. of Agriculture isn't a bad gig for Vilsack for the next few years.

Poll Shows Close Race Between Grassley and Vilsack

Research 2000 released a poll commissioned by Daily Kos yesterday that showed Sen. Charles Grassley leading former Gov. Tom Vilsack 48% to 44%.

Research 2000 for Daily Kos. 12/8-10. Likely voters. MoE 4% (No trend lines)

Grassley (R) 48 
Vilsack (D) 44 

Woah, what? Sen. Chuck Grassley is vulnerable? Granted, it's against the state's top Democrat -- former Gov. Tom Vilsack, and there's currently no indication that Vilsack is planning on running. But the CW is that Grassley serves at will, and can hold the seat for life if he so desires. That belief is challenged by these numbers. Against the right Democrat, Grassley would face a tough fight.

Grassley 
Approve 57 
Disapprove 36

Vilsack 
Approve 55 
Disapprove 36

Their approval numbers are essentially even, and in the crosstabs, they both enjoy equal approval from independents. This would certainly be a battle of titans, pitting two popular politicians against each other. Expect incoming DSCC chief Bob Menendez to put Vilsack in his speed dial.

I still think Grassley will retire.  He will be 77 on election day in 2010 and being part of the minority party isn't as fun as being a committee chair.  A tough reelection battle might encourage Grassley to retire as well.

If Grassley retires, I see either Rep. Tom Latham, Rep. Steve King, or Chuck Larson run on the Republican side and either Vilsack or Rep. Bruce Braley running on the Democratic side.

Eyeing Grassley's Seat in 2010

This morning I wrote about the Democrat's chances in the US Senate in 2010. That got me thinking about Sen. Grassley, who is up for reelection in 2010. However, he will be 77 at that time and there's a good chance he migh retire.

Iowa Democrats have some very good options to run for his seat in Tom Vilsack and Bruce Braley. Depending on how the State legislature fares over the next 2 years, Mike Gronstal and Pat Murphy could emerge as good candidates for Senate as well.

Iowa Republicans gave Harkin a pass in 2008. With Culver running for reelection in 2010, as well, Iowa Republicans would need to find 2 solid candidates. Steve King, Christopher Rants, Bill Northey, and Chuck Larson are the leading names today.

It is looking like if Grassley retires in 2010 the seat would a great opportunity for Democrats to pick up.

Vilsack: Obama is Going to be the Nominee

From Political Wire...

"It does appear to be pretty clear that Senator Obama is going to be the nominee. After Tuesday's contests, she needs to acknowledge that he's going to be the nominee and quickly get behind him."

-- Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack, a national co-chairman of Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign, quoted by the Associated Press.

Vilsack: Clinton's Attack Dog?

From MSNBC's First Read...

the Clinton campaign has a new direct mail piece that includes a letter from former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D). The letter hits Obama on health care and uses Paul Krugman to do the hitting. Vilsack says in the letter, "Barack Obama's health care plan, which he often calls 'universal,' would actually leave as many as 15 million people without health insurance. That's not really universal coverage at all. And when questioned about the flaws of the plan, Mr. Obama threw back talking points worthy of Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney. But don't take my word for it; read the opinion of Paul Krugman of the New York Times in his op-ed piece entitled, ‘Mandates and Mudslinging.’” Of course, this is nothing that the campaign and candidate hasn't said themselves. But it's also telling that six months ago, the predictions were that the final weeks of the debate in Iowa would be over Iraq. Instead, it's over health care -- or at least that’s what Team Clinton wants to discuss.

**Update**
Here's a picture of what the mailing says.

How about an Obama - Bloomberg Ticket?

Marc Ambinder is reporting Barack Obama met with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg for breakfast this morning.

Sen. Barack Obama will set vice presidential speculation on fire with a brief stop to say hello to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, himself an occasional presidential flirt. The meeting appeared on Bloomberg's schedule, which was distributed to reporters last night.

An Obama aide said the meeting was scheduled because of "mutual interest" and did not know whether the two had met before.

You hear rumors all the time about possible Clinton Vice Presidential candidates, such as Wesley Clark, Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, Indiana Senator Evan Bayh, and former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, but this is the first name mentioned as a possible VP candidate for Obama. I think the perfect VP candidate for Obama would be Richardson. However, Obama could tout his bipartisan approach by appointing someone like Bloomberg or Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA).

Vilsack Says Clinton was the Face of the Administration on Foreign Affairs

Tom Vilsack made some interesting comments while being interviewed on MSNBC, saying Hillary Clinton "was the face of the administration in foreign affairs."

From the Washington Post...

But Vilsack -- who dropped out of the race early on and is now rumored by many to be seeking a slot alongside Clinton if she wins the nomination -- took it a questionable step further.

"There is no question she was the face of the administration in foreign affairs," Vilsack said.

Really? Hillary Clinton was the face of the Clinton administration in foreign affairs? More than, say, the secretary of state? Or his vice president? Or his, um, ambassador to the United Nations?

Au contraire, said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who served in the last of those jobs - -and is now seeking the presidency himself.

"Gov. Vilsack's enthusiasm for his candidate has clouded his judgment," Richardson spokesman Tom Reynolds said on Tuesday night. "Considering that Gov. Bill Richardson served as a Special Envoy and US Ambassador to the United Nations under President Clinton, we take some exception to this opinion. I also think Madeline Albright might disagree too." No word yet from former Pres. Clinton, who was known to conduct some foreign policy himself from time to time.

These comments seem pretty ridiculous and it has seemed to offend Richardson, who has been telling people to focus on a positive campaign.

Maybe Vilsack wanted to get his name out there since Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and Gen. Wesley Clark have been making the round for Clinton in Iowa lately.

Who are Iowa Democrats Giving Money to?

The Des Moines Register has a story about how much money candidates have raised from Iowans.

Here's the info on the Democratic candidates...

Among the Democratic candidates, Clinton, a U.S. senator from New York, is in first place, taking in more than $126,000 to date.

Her top contributors include prominent Democratic activists in Des Moines such as Ed and Bonnie Campbell; lawyer Jerry Crawford; former Gov. Tom Vilsack; and Andrea McGuire.

More than 70 percent of Clinton's money has come from Des Moines and its western suburbs.

Closely trailing Clinton with nearly $117,000 from Iowans is U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, while former U.S. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina is in third place with more than $105,000.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has collected close to $42,000 from Iowans, and U.S. Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware about $26,000. Iowans have given U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut and U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio about $10,000 each. Former Sen. Mike Gravel of Alaska has collected $415.

Vilsack: No Child Left Behind Leaves All Children Behind

Tom Vilsack posted an article on Open Left that outlines some of the things wrong with No Child Left Behind and what we need to do to improve education.

What is the purpose of public education? Simple - every child should have what they need to realize their talents and to contribute in a meaningful way to their community and nation. Rather than a nation of average standardized test takers, our schools should help produce a nation of creative, dedicated, and engaged citizens.

For that to occur the frame of the ESEA must be changed. Instead of a frame built around student achievement based on a single, high-stakes, multiple choice test, we should advocate for a frame based on student demonstration of an array of 21st century skills: core competencies, ability to communicate, technological proficiency, problem solving, financial literacy, global awareness, community responsibility, and capacity to work within a team.

While the debate will swirl around funds, pay for performance compensation schemes, and growth models, we won't get it totally right unless we are clear about what the purpose should be of our system. We must be wary of the language of accountability that comes straight out of a corporate culture to one that speaks of shared responsibility. If we expect our children to get it right, we have to do so first.

I worked as a substitute teacher two years ago and on two occasions when I was subbing, I taught lessons on how to fill in the circles on the answer sheets to prepare for upcoming standardized tests. As I was teaching, I was thinking about how these students will never use this skill when they are adults.

Is Grassley Mother Teresa?

Is Grassley Mother Teresa? The Wall Street Journal thinks so.

From David Sirota...

Never - and I mean never - underestimate the willingness of Beltway journalists to fabricate power-worshipping, politician-glorifying storylines out of thin air. I say that after reading the Wall Street Journal’s piece today that describes a top U.S. Senator as “A plain-spoken populist [who] is a frequent critic of powerful entities, including big companies, that he views as putting regular people at a disadvantage.” Is it a profile of Jim Webb or Bernie Sanders or Sherrod Brown or Russ Feingold? Why, of course not - it’s an article about Iowa Republican Sen. Charles Grassley, who over his career has served as one of Corporate America’s most steadfast allies in beating back almost every major piece of legislation that proposed to challenge the economic status quo.

Yes, the Charles Grassley who, as chairman of the Finance Committee, wrote the Medicare prescription drug bill that gave away billions of dollars to his pharmaceutical industry donors, the Charles Grassley who has championed every free trade bill that has ever come down the congressional pike and still issues press releases trumpeting NAFTA, the Charles Grassley who championed the Bush tax cuts and who has tried to use the veneer of closing corporate tax loopholes as a vehicle to open more corporate tax loopholes, the Charles Grassley who the very same Wall Street Journal article notes gets sky high ratings from the major corporate front groups in Washington - yes, this Charles Grassley is now suddenly “A plain-spoken populist [who] is a frequent critic of powerful entities, including big companies, that he views as putting regular people at a disadvantage” all because he owns a farm the size of a small town and because he came to the supposedly courageous conclusion that a certain set of ultrawealthy corporations should have to pay roughly the same tax rate as every other ultrawealthy corporation that have underwritten his political career.

What’s so truly amazing about this article, is that after praising Grassley as the second coming of Cesar Chavez, the Journal inadvertently admits that Grassley’s major motivation comes not out of any sense of principled populism, fairness or interest in challenging entrenched power, but out of a desire to preserve the overall disparity between income made on capital gains (aka. stock transactions, inheritances, etc.) and wages (aka. the income made actually doing real work) - the disparity that, for instance, allows Warren Buffet to pay a lower tax rate than the janitors who clean his office. “Mr. Grassley led efforts to reduce the rate on capital gains to 15% in 2003, and then to extend the lower rate,” the Journal notes. “He says that it should remain in place, but that if [the private equity loophole continues and] very wealthy people are seen as unfairly benefiting, Democrats will have a stronger argument for a higher rate.”

Grassley then goes on to actually attack the entire concept of populism. “What I’m doing is an effort to ward off the demagogues on Capitol Hill that can say this is just a way for the rich to get richer, and the middle class to be stung,” he said. “I would ask my Republican colleagues to look at it from that standpoint, that we want to make sure we aren’t feeding the demagoguery of class warfare.”

Just think of all the sweetheart deals Grassley had give Wall Street for the Wall Street Journal to write this piece. Grassley isn't up for reelection until 2010. There is a chance he retires, but if he runs Iowa Democrats need to put a big target on Grassley's seat. Hopefully, Vilsack has his eye on it.

Vice Presidential Candidates

Political Insider says vice presidential candidates rarely are named from people who have been running for president.

With many presidential candidates being touted as possible vice presidential nominees should they lose their party's primary, such as Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL), New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D), Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS), and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R), it is important to note that history is not on their side. Since 1932, of the 28 vice presidential nominees who were running for the office for the first time, just five of them were previously candidates for president that year: John Edwards (D) in 2004, George H.W. Bush (R) in 1980, Lyndon Johnson (D) in 1960, Estes Kefauver (D) in 1956, and John Garner (D) in 1932.

I think Richardson or Obama would be ideal VP candidates. However, If we are looking outside the field of presidential candidates you can look at people that almost ran for president like former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, Senator Evan Bayh (D-Indiana), and Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wisconsin). Some others could be Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano, and first term Senator Jim Webb (D-Virginia).

Clinton/Vilsack 08?

The Des Moines Register had a story today about Tom Vilsack's role with the Hillary Clinton campaign.

Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack has assumed a role in Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign unlike any of the New York Democrat's other national advisers.

He campaigns for her in Iowa and other key states, spends hours each week on the phone with donors and elected officials and has helped forge policy ideas Clinton presents on the campaign trail.

The Register put out there that Vilsack is basically auditioning for the Vice President spot if Clinton is to win the nomination.

Aides acknowledge privately that Vilsack's work for the campaign has the look of a rehearsal for the role of running mate, should Clinton win the nomination.

You hear Vilsack's name as possible running mates and I think he is the best fist with the Clinton campaign. He is a Governor from the midwest and would balance the ticket well. The Register also named Sen. Evan Bayh and Gov. Mark Warner as possible VP choices for Clinton. However, this is a moot point if Hillary doesn't do well in Iowa. A poor showing in Iowa, would wipe Vilsack off her list and diminish her chances of winning the nomination.

The only other possible ticket that Vilsack might be able to be named to is with John Edwards. It wouldn't make sense for Obama to name another midwesterner and it wouldn't make sense for Richardson to name another Governor. I have Dodd, Biden, and Kucinich down as being to far of longshots right now.

Grassley to run again in 2010: Is a matchup against Vilsack looming?

Yesterday, on the taping of Iowa Press Republican Sen. Charles Grassley announced that he will run for reelection to the Senate in 2010. Grassley, who is 73, cited his senority and power that comes with it as the reasons why he would seek reelection.

From KCCI...

The 73-year-old Iowa Republican said he will seek a sixth term when he comes up for re-election in 2010. Grassley said with his seniority, he's worth more to his employer -- the people of Iowa -- than he was before.

He's the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee and plays a key role in budget decisions despite Democratic control of the Senate.

With a new farm bill in the works and lawmakers looking to tackle issues such as Medicare and Social Security, Grassley said his seniority can be crucial. Grassley has held elective office in Iowa continuously since 1956, serving in the Iowa Legislature and then moving to the U.S. House in 1974.

I am a little surprised Grassley is planning on running for reelection. I know someone who worked on his last campaign that said they didn't he would run again.

This week at our county Democratic Central Committee, we discussed Grassley running in 2010 and it was brought up that maybe Pat Grassley, a first term State Rep, might run for his dad's grandpa's seat. That would be an interesting move, but with a possible race against former Gov. Tom Vilsack, it probably isn't one that Republicans would want to make.

A Charles Grassley vs Tom Vilsack matchup would probably be one of the biggest Senate races in 2010.

Tom and Christy Vilsack on Clean Elections at DFA training

Tom and Christy Vilsack are speaking right now at the DFA training in the Cedar Rapids. They are focusing on clean elections and grassroots organizing.

Christy Vilsack is speaking right now about grassroots organizing and what she would call "going coffee shopping." When Vilsack first ran for governor in 1998, Christy was first responsible for visiting the second or third tier counties (Tom would go the larger counties). Christy would go into these towns without a schedule and would just stop where Democratic voters might be in the town. She would stop at the schools and talk to the teachers. She would stop at the library, the local small town newspapers, and eventually the stop at the coffee shop.

Tom Vilsack thanks the Dean family for bringing the grassroots democracy back into politics in America. He gives credit to Howard Dean for the 50 state strategy and says that is the only way to do it. It is the best way to grow the party. He thanks the activist who worked the grassroots here in the 2nd district to help elect Dave Loebsack.

The main part of Tom Vilsack's speech is about campaign finance and specificly VOICE (HF 805). He says his hope for his Presidential campaign was that he could win Iowa and New Hampshire and turn that into the money to run competively in the other states. However, when California, New Jersey and some of the other large states began to move up their primary dates it made it impossible for some to compete

Legislation being considered in Iowa that would put reasonable limits on state house races and for governor. You wouldn't have to raise the $8 million that Gov. Culver had to raise. At the beginning of the campaign people wondered where Culver was at. He was on the phone raising enough money to run. The legislation would give candidates a chance to actually go around and talk to the voters and hear what is their minds. It is the only way to get a system where the people's business is taken care of and not those of the special interests.

As he went around running for President he would go and talk to donors. He would go and give his speil about what he wants to do and the first question asked wasn't how he could govern or what he felt about a specific issue, but can you raise the money.

Vilsack mentions the need to pass HF 805 that is stuck in committee. He doesn't hold back, saying...

The party that is in power today should really be for this.

He is now doing his best John Madden impersonation and drawing how the money works in the Iowa House. He says that the House members have a limited number of dollars that they can raise within their own district. The Speaker gets all of this money funneled through them where they then give to House members and then makes sure the House member remembers where they got the money from. The VOICE legislation would take this out of our political system.

Now that Democrats are in the majority, they will be focusing on raising money. To raise the money they will not be spending time talking to their constituents. They will be talking to the big money donors and their insterests might not be the same as yours.

Vilsack says that we must contact our State Representives this week because this bill is going to be discussed in committee early next week. Here is the contact information for the leaders in committee that is working on this issue...

VOICE – HF 805

Rep. Dave Jacoby (D)

House District 30 -- Johnson County

David.Jacoby@legis.state.ia.us

Home Telephone: 319-358-8538

Rep. Jo Oldson (D)

House District 61 -- Polk County

Jo.Oldson@legis.state.ia.us

Home Telephone: 515-255-2805

Rep. Dwayne Alons (R)

House District 4 -- Sioux County

Dwayne.Alons@legis.state.ia.us

Home Telephone: 712-439-2479

Vilsack to Endorse Hillary

Like Chris at Political Forecast, I was surprised to hear that Tom Vilsack is planning on endorsing Hillary Clinton this early. Vilsack ran his short Presidential campaign being outspoken against the Iraq War, calling for the withdrawl of troops out of Iraq, opposing Bush's attempt to escalate the war with a troop surge, and even ending funding for the war.

This is nearly the opposite of what Hillary Clinton has pushed for in her position in the Senate. It is well known that Clinton voted for the war in the first place, unlike John Edwards she is unwilling to admit that her vote was a mistake, and she supports keeping troops in Iraq in definitely.

From MyDD...

In outlining how she would handle Iraq as commander-in-chief, Mrs. Clinton articulated a more nuanced position than the one she has provided at her campaign events, where she has backed the goal of "bringing the troops home."

She said in the interview that there were "remaining vital national security interests in Iraq" that would require a continuing deployment of American troops.

This is why I was surprised to read on iPol about a comment from a Hillary supporter at the Polk County off-year caucus...

Amanda said that she had been working for Tom Vilsack until his withdrawal from the race, but found it easy to join the Clinton campaign ... because of Hillary’s support for ending the war.

The main thing that Clinton and Vilsack have in common isn't the war, it is the fact they were both leaders in the DLC, the Centrist, pro-corporate wing of the Democratic party. Hillary has no desire to get out of Iraq, except that it might help her get elected. Vilsack endorsing her makes me wonder how serious Vilsack was about his anti-war stance as a presidential candidate.

New Poll in Iowa

There is a new poll conducted in Iowa out by ARG. This is the first poll that I have seen since Vilsack dropped out of the race.

Clinton 34%
Edwards 33%
Obama 16%
Undecided 10%
Others 7%

Most all of the other polls that I have seen has had Edwards in the lead. It seems that a lot of Vilsack supporters made the jump to Hillary. Obama has moved up much considering all of his visits he has made to the state. I think a lot of Iowans are waiting to hear Obama in a smaller setting and not in front of a crowd of 2,000 - 5,000 people.

**Update**
I knew there was 1 poll that had Hillary leading in Iowa and happened to be done by the same company as this one. That means that Hillary didn't pick up a majority of Vilsack backers, but Edwards did. Thanks to Chris Woods for pointing this out. Here's a story from Political Wire on the poll.

**Update 2**
MyDD has the results of the latest poll and the numbers from the last ARG poll.

Iowa
Clinton: 34 (35)
Edwards: 33 (18)
Obama: 16 (14)
Biden: 2 (2)
Dodd: 1 (1)
Richardson: 1 (1)
Kucinich: 1 (2)
Gravel: 0 (0)
Other / Unsure: 12 (27)

According to the poll, the big movement came from former Vilsack voters moving to Edwards. However, I don't buy that, because it is not supported by any other Iowa poll. The far, far more likely scenario is that Edwards was never down 17 points to Clinton in Iowa, the previous ARG results were inaccurate, and that this poll just moves ARG results into line with other Iowa polls. Then again, if Edwards is tied with Clinton in ARG, maybe he has pulled ahead of Clinton in reality. Also, one does have to wonder if Vilsack's endorsement of Clinton puts Obama at a severe organizational disadvantage in Iowa, since Edwards can use his 2004 structure and now Clinton can use Vilsack's. We will have to wait for other polls to confirm if Obama truly is this far behind in Iowa. Even if he is, he caucuses are still over nine months away, and he has more than enough time to catch up.

Vilsack, Loebsack, Spencer to Speak at DFA Training

On Saturday, March 24th Governor Tom Vilsack, Rep. Dave Loebsack, and Selden Spencer will be speaking at the Democracy for America (DFA) training in Cedar Rapids. Spencer is scheduled to speak at breakfast starting at 8:30. Rep. Loebsack will be the speaker at lunch beginning at 12:30. Gov. Vilsack will speak that night at 7:00.

The training takes place from 9-6 on Saturday, March 24th and 9-6 on Sunday, March 25th.

Here is more information on the training...

Have you thought about running for office and wondered what was involved?

Would you like to be more helpful in supporting your favorite candidate for office?

Do you wonder about how elections are run and why campaigns do what they do?

If any of the above applies to you, please think about attending the Democracy for America Training Academy to be held March 24-25 from 9AM-6PM at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids. National and local experts have been recruited to conduct sessions, and progressive political activists from around Iowa and the Midwest will be in attendance.

A contribution of $70 the day of training or $60 in advance is requested, but low income individuals and students may pay $30. A limited number of scholarships are available. Lunch will be provided. Visit the Democracy for America website for more information or to register.

Harkin Hires Staff for 08 Re-election

Last week, the rumors were that Tom Harkin was not going to run for re-election and Tom Vilsack was going to step in. Jane Norman of the Des Moines Register writes that Harkin has hired some staff and has been raising money for re-election. Norman writes...

In case you harbored any eensy-weensy shred of doubt that Sen. Tom Harkin is running for re-election, word comes that he has hired veteran Democratic operative Jeff Link as his general consultant for the 2008 campaign.

Matt Paul, who works for Link as vice president for public affairs at the Des Moines political consulting firm Link Strategies, said that a strong organization and campaign staff for Harkin is being put together.

"The senator is actively raising resources, and is energized, and looks forward to the campaign," said Paul, a former aide to former Gov. Tom Vilsack.

Translation: Harkin is out and about raising money like crazy and issuing blizzards of news releases, even if no prominent Republican appears ready to announce a challenge to the four-term senator. He's also looking to secure the hard-working 20-somethings not already scooped up by presidential campaigns.

I hope that Harkin does run. He is a strong voice in the Senate and holds an important position as Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee. As for Vilsack, I hope he has his eyes on running against Grassley in 2010.

Vilsack: Mission Accomplished?

John Nichols writes in the Nation that Vilsack's run for president was really to run competetively in Iowa and then get out of the way for Hillary. Nichols writes...

Vilsack launched his run early and made as much noise as could be expected from a nowhere-in-the-polls candidate with a vague message and even vaguer hopes of raising the funds needed to mount a truly national campaign. But his brief candidacy -- which was quietly advised and encouraged by Democratic strategists with long and close ties to the Clinton camp -- never really amounted to much more than a blocking move for the New York senator with whom he worked closely as a leader of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council centrist.

For his trouble, the Iowan will earn a little bit of speculation about his vice presidential prospects -- nil. And, if Clinton actually wins the presidency, about his Cabinet prospects -- pretty good, if he's willing to settle for Secretary of Agriculture; a bit slimmer if he wants something muscular like Energy.

From the start, Vilsack's job was to present himself as a respectable alternative to the other Democratic candidates who, while he would go nowhere in states other than Iowa, could remain in the running with his fellow Hawkeyes until it was time to get out of Clinton's way.

The fact that Vilsack dropped out 2 days after the forum in Nevada makes you wonder if a deal was brokered while Vilsack was there.