Iowa Caucus update: Perry in, Walker leads

Rick Perry has jumped into the Presidential contest in earnest, with an entrance speech focused on restoration of American greatness at home and abroad – a sort of Reagan-esque play for the traditional conservative vote.

This is not Perry’s first run for the White House, either. In 2012, he was considered the alternative to Mitt Romney until a series of bad gaffes and atrocious debate performances scuttled his campaign.

In recent years, Perry has faced a few health issues, and now a couple of criminal indictments for abuse of power stemming from his tenure as the Governor of Texas which may or may not be a political witch hunt.

Meanwhile, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is polling ahead in Iowa according to a poll last week conducted by the Des Moines Register. Now, his support stood at 17%, and the poll was of 16 declared and likely candidates.

Perry can run on a platform emphasizing his military experience, and Texas’ unemployment rate, which is fairly consistently below the national average. Walker’s claim to fame is going to the mat against government employees unions in a budget fight.

The Republican field is getting crowded, but the campaign won’t get rolling until the Iowa State Fair, running August 13 – 23, which is the natural place for a Presidential candidate to go in the run-up to the Iowa Caucus. That’s when the fun on both sides will begin – the snide swipes at opponents, the vague promises, the substance-free speeches, the photo opportunities for candidates to eat fried vendor foods like us “normal” people.

This campaign is going to set new records for vicious political discourse, made more vicious by what I predict will be a general lack of substance. This weekend found Perry and Walker riding motorcycles, which is one way to campaign for President I suppose… there was no biker gang rumble between the two camps, but we’re probably one generation from choosing a President through a mixed martial arts/karaoke/cooking contest.