I attended the IDP's Caucus training Saturday...Ask Me Anything!

[Debi]

:bounce:

[CornField]

1. Would you...

sleep in a box? Would you do it with a fox?

[Debi]

2. Heh heh

I will not do it in a house - I will not do it with a mouse!

(However, I DID get the IDP's position on dress code, snacks and whether or not alcohol at caucus is a good idea :P)

[Bluzmann57]

3. Dress code?

Sorry, I just can't wear a dress. Ah never mind, just another feeble attempt at humor. But seriously, it'll be January, wear something warm. And as far as snacks, we had zero at our last caucus and no alcohol either. Alcohol is probably not a real good idea anyway.
Ask you anything? Hmm... I'm 50 years of age, will the Cubs ever win the WS in my lifetime? You said "ask me anything"...

[Debi]

4. Mr. Debi said it is unlikely...

IDP frowns on alcohol at caucuses :(

As for dress code....one guy wanted to go naked w/his candidate of choice's stickers all over his body....x(

[Counciltucky]

5. How many "Thank You Tom Vilsack" signs were there?

[Debi]

6. I have to admit, the UAW crowd that followed TV to the Clinton Campaign

were looking a little confused now that UAW endorsed Obama :wow:

Actually looking a little lost...Here's what loyal UAW members have been through in the last nine months:

#1 Choice) TOM VILSACK :bounce:

#2 Choice) Hillary Clinton :hi:

#3 Choice) Barack Obama :shrug:

and there's still 45 days to go...ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN!!!

[IA_Seth]

7. umm.. when's the next one?

Doh! I am supposed to be my precinct's caucus chair but I REALLY need a refresher course. Time to start lookin!

Cornfield, ye who knows all, am I screwn?

[CornField]

8. You'll be fine

There is a temp. caucus chair training set for Dec. 15 (Sat) at the Marion Public Library. I'm sure it will be an exciting day for all.

[IA_Seth]

9. Woo hoo!

I knew you'd save my butt.

I will definitely not skip that day! (as I wonder if our family has a holiday get-together planned...)

Oh well, I'll make it there come hell or high water.

[rurallib]

10. Serious question

I have a friend who is really worried about staffers. Can we slap a nametag on them so we can identify them easily and keep them from being counted.

[Broke Dad]

11. The bigger the name tag the better . . .

At the training in the Quad Cities, they said to clearly identify, label and segregate the prez campaign staffers and any other observers. Duct tape big "Staff" labels to them!

[Debi]

13. Are there other areas we can duct tape as well????

:evilgrin:

[Debi]

12. Hope I answered your questions on the other thread

:hi:

I think by the time the caucuses get here we are all going to know the staffers of each of the campaigns. I think it would be hard (and stupid) for them to try to caucus UNLESS they are already Iowa residents or intend on staying Iowa residents after January 4th.

(I know Clinton/Richardson/Dodd/Obama all have staffers who are from Iowa - I'm sure there are more)

[IA_Seth]

14. I have a question...

Ok, so 2004 was my first caucus year, and that was way too long ago for me to remember some things. I thought I had it down, but now I may be missing something:

During the re-alignment phase, can a candidate that was previously deemed not viable (they didn't meet the 15% threshold) combine with another to become viable?

For example, there are 100 people at your caucus. During the first preference phase 8 people support Biden, 4 support Dodd, and 6 support Richardson. None of these candidates would be viable as they don't meet the 15%. During the 2nd phase can these three groups combine and support, say, Biden (or any other group)? That would bring Biden's total to 18, passing the viability test. Or since all three of these candidates were deemed not viable during the first alignment portion, are they now not viable for the whole thing?

Thank you madame expert.

[Debi]

15. YES!! To answer your question simply and this is the very thing that is pissing me off

about the MSM and the pollsters. The presumption that if a candidate is non-viable after the first round that some how they are 'knocked off' and only the viable candidates divvy up the remaining voters is WRONG. :grr:

Non-viable candidate supporters can join with either viable groups or non-viable groups to make them viable (the only thing they cannot do is to remain w/the non-viable candidate...well they can but then they won't count).

Also, a supporter of a viable candidate can join with a non-viable group to make them viable (say - to keep a different non-viable candidate from becoming viable OR to keep a different viable candidate from getting a delegate..that's called strategy, so says the IDP).

The pollsters and MSM have been saying two things 1) that The Big Three will be the only candidates viable all across Iowa (which I disagree with) AND 2) that after the other five are deemed non-viable voters can only join w/The Big Three (which is totally false and I cannot believe the IDP hasn't set them straight).

(I wish I was the expert here, I'm not, unless I've become the expert by osmosis :P)

[walk softly]

16. PARDON MY IGNORANCE

but who or what is the MSM?
tks

[Debi]

17. Sorry, the Main Stream Media

All the news sources that babble on about The Big Three failing to realize that there are other qualified people running for the Democratic nomination. (Heck, today Matt Laur and Tim Russert pared it down to two Clinton/Obama). Why mention anyone else? x(

:hi:

[IA_Seth]

18. Thank you!

I thought that's how it worked, but I keep coming across people who contradict that so I wanted to make sure.

FYI, you are going to be quoted across the board now. Thanks!

[Debi]

19. What amazes me is that Russert/George Steph/Chris Wallace

all KNOW this stuff!

I wonder why Obama/Clinton/Edwards aren't screaming to clarify the rules :eyes:

[CornField]

20. One more thing -- it isn't always 15%

I believe that's what it is for most Iowa precincts, but it can vary.

[Debi]

21. Yep - gotta love the IDP for putting this stuff on line

Caucuses that elect only one county convention delegate:

If there is only one county convention delegate to elect, the delegate will be
elected by the caucus as a whole by majority rule. The caucus will not divide into
preference groups. Written ballots MUST be used. Note: All ballots must be
signed


The viability threshold is calculated based on the number of delegates the caucus is to elect.

Note: When calculating viability, always round UP to the next whole number.

a. In caucuses that elect two (2) delegates, preference groups must contain at
least 25% of the caucus attendees in order to be viable. This can be
calculated by using the following formula:
Number of Eligible Caucus Attendees x 0.25 = Viability Threshold

b. In caucuses that elect three (3) delegates, the total caucus attendees should
be divided by six (6) to determine the viability threshold. This can be
calculated by using the following formula:
Number of Eligible Caucus Attendees ¸ 6 = Viability Threshold

c. In caucuses that elect four (4) or more delegates, preference groups must
contain at least 15% of the caucus attendees in order to be viable. This can
be calculated by using the following formula:
Number of Eligible Caucus Attendees x 0.15 = Viability Threshold

www.iowafirstcaucus.org