Republican presidential hopefuls tried to intercept some Iowa voters on Saturday at the state’s highly anticipated game between the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones (which the Hawkeyes won).
Former President Donald Trump, who is trying not to blow a big lead in the state, visited a fraternity house before watching some of the game from his box, per NBC News’ Jake Traylor. Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy was also spotted at a pre-game tailgate, where he stressed that he expects to be his party’s nominee, adding that Trump “will end up as my advisor and mentor,” NBC’s Katherine Koretski reports.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis stopped by the Iowa State wrestling club tailgate before kickoff, and weighed in on his campaign in the Hawkeye State as he tries to force Trump to fumble his lead.
“We’re actually putting in the work that you need to, to be able to win,” DeSantis said, per NBC News’ Alec Hernández. “And I’m actually starting to hear a lot of people saying, because you’re showing up, I’m supporting you, because that’s the way you got to do it.”
Iowa has become increasingly important for DeSantis if he hopes to stop Trump’s march toward the nomination. And Trump’s own ground game in Iowa is raising some concerns among his allies, per NBC’s Dasha Burns and Katherine Doyle.
“I know there’s an operation. I’m hearing that there’s something going on. But it’s hard to see it,” a former Trump adviser in Iowa told Burns and Doyle. “They have not settled on an approach that works. What will happen is somebody is going to get surprised.”
But there’s plenty of time left on the clock before the January caucuses.
In other campaign news…
Looking toward November: Recent polls have shown Biden and Trump locked in a close potential rematch, and NBC News’ Sahil Kapur reports that Democrats have mixed feelings about it. Biden’s campaign, meanwhile, has continued to hit the airwaves, making earlier ad investments than the last two presidents who ran for re-election, per the Washington Post.
California dreamin’: The California GOP’s convention this month is shaping up to be a fight between Trump and DeSantis allies over the new delegate rules, NBC News’ Allan Smith reports.
Pandemic politics: Trump and DeSantis’ handling of the Covid pandemic could become “ an important wedge issue” on the campaign trail as DeSantis continues to highlight his Covid response, per the New York Times.
Abortion politics: Democrats scoffed at a new push from Republicans to distance themselves from the term “pro-life” when discussing abortion, per NBC’s Julie Tsirkin, Liz Brown-Kaiser, Kate Santaliz and Brennan Leach. And the New York Times delves into former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley’s approach to abortion as she calls for “consensus” on the issue.
Deportation debate: Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy said Friday in Iowa that he would deport children of undocumented immigrants who were born in America, raising potential concerns about violating the 14th Amendment.
Hurd hits hard on Ramaswamy’s 9/11 comments: Former Texas GOP Rep. Will Hurd blasted Ramaswamy’s recent comments about 9/11, arguing it “spits in the face” of the victims.
Office space: NBC News’ Jonathan Allen, Katherine Doyle, Lisa Rubin, Ken Dilanian and Jake Traylor have a new deep dive into former President Trump’s post-presidential office that’s “so hush-hush that his spokesman, Steven Cheung, claimed no knowledge of its existence.”
An uncomfortable call: Former President Trump told Arizona Republican Blake Masters he couldn’t win a Senate GOP primary against fellow Republican Kari Lake, the New York Times reports.
Johnson volunteers for tough fight: Semafor caught up with Tennessee Democratic state Rep. Gloria Johnson to discuss how she’s leaning on abortion rights and gun violence prevention in her longshot bid against Tennessee GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn.
She’s running: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Friday she’s running for re-election.
Battle lines: Politico reports on how the latest positive developments for Democrats in the redistricting fight could pay dividends as the party looks to take back control of the House.
