What They're Really Saying About Governor Mitt Romney Winning The Iowa Republican Straw Poll
Fox News' Carl Cameron: "There's no doubt [Romney] leads the polls and he's won the Straw Poll, a stiff measure of organizational prowess in a state where getting people to come out in the Caucus is the name of the game. Getting them to the straw poll is what Mitt Romney did better than any other candidate on this day." (Fox News' "Live Event," 8/11/07)
Former RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman: "Ken Mehlman, the former RNC chairman who ran George W. Bush's Iowa effort in 1999 and who is neutral in the presidential race, said Romney's victory was impressive. 'I think that the results show that he made a serious commitment and that it paid off,' Mehlman said." (Marc Ambinder, "Ames: The Romney Victory," The Atlantic, 8/11/07)
The New York Times' Adam Nagourney and Jeff Zeleny: "Mitt Romney walked away with the first prize of the campaign. Mr. Romney, the former Republican governor of Massachusetts, won with 32 percent of the vote cast, Republican officials said." (Adam Nagourney and Jeff Zeleny, "Romney Wins Iowa Straw Poll By A Sizable Margin," The New York Times, 8/11/07)
The Washington Post 's Chris Cillizza: "The biggest political event of the 2007 calendar year gave former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney a victory... Romney did what he needed to do at Ames -- WIN! ... A win is a win." (Chris Cillizza, "Analysis," The Washington Post's The Fix Blog, http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/, Posted 8/11/07)
The Politico's Jonathan Martin: "Romney's 31.5% victory is almost exactly what then-Gov. Bush picked up at Ames in 1999, but Romney's margin over his nearest competitor was higher than what Bush won with. Romney bested Mike Huckabee by 13% while Bush defeated Steve Forbes by 10%." (Jonathan Martin, "Ames Results: Quick Notes," The Politico, 8/11/07)
The Washington Post's Dan Balz and Michael Shear: "With a convincing victory in the Republican straw poll here Saturday, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney vaulted himself into the next phase of a presidential nomination battle pitting his traditional early-state strategy against a more unorthodox approach by national front-runner Rudolph W. Giuliani." (Dan Balz and Michael D. Shear,
"Romney Victorious In Iowa Straw Poll," The Washington Post, 8/11/07)
ABC News' David Chalian: "Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney scored the first big voting victory in the battle for the GOP nomination at the non-binding Iowa Republican Party straw poll in Ames, Iowa on Saturday." (David Chalian,
"Romney Coasts to Iowa Straw Poll Win," ABCNews.com, 8/11/07)
Reuters' John Whitesides: "Republican Mitt Romney won the first test of strength in the 2008 White House race on Saturday, beating a field of lesser-known rivals in an informal straw poll in Iowa. ... The poll result, a Republican tradition in the state that leads off the nominating race for the November 2008 election, could begin to thin the herd of candidates and give at least temporary momentum to Romney." (John Whitesides, "Romney Wins Iowa Republican Straw Poll," Reuters, 8/11/07)
- Whitesides: "Romney, who leads opinion polls in Iowa and is one of the top fundraisers in the Republican field, showed his financial and organizational muscle during the poll." (John Whitesides, "Romney Wins Iowa Republican Straw Poll," Reuters, 8/11/07)
CNN's Mark Preston: "Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the Iowa Republican straw poll Saturday, giving his campaign a boost six months before the state holds its first-in-the-nation caucuses." (Mark Preston, "Romney Wins Early Vote," CNN's Political Ticker, http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com, Posted 8/11/07)
Chicago Tribune's Mark Silva: "Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, as expected, has claimed the most support in the Iowa Republican Party's Straw Poll. ... For Romney, this represents the first victory, albeit symbolic, of a long primary campaign." (Mark Silva, "Romney Rides Straw Poll Win For A Campaign Launch," Chicago Tribune's The Swamp Blog, www.swamppolitics.com/, Posted 8/11/07)
Real Clear Politics' Reid Wilson: "For Romney, who occupied the same tent space George W. Bush did in 1999 and duplicated his results almost identically, the results were a vindication of the high expectations placed on his campaign." (Reid Wilson, "Iowa Dispatch: Instant Analysis," Real Clear Politics, http://time-blog.com/real_clear_politics/, Posted 8/11/07)
Los Angeles Times' Andrew Malcolm: "The straws are in and counted and Mitt Romney accomplished what he set out to do -- win the Ames Republican Straw Poll, the first real test of statewide organizational strength for GOP candidates heading for January's caucus in Iowa. ... Straw poll wins do not guarantee success in the ensuing winter's Republican caucus, but historically no one has won the caucus without competing at Ames the previous summer." (Andrew Malcolm, "Breaking News: Ames Straw Poll Results!" Los Angeles Times' Top Of The Ticket, http://latimesblogs.latimes.com, Posted, 8/11/07)
KCCI-TV, CBS Des Moines Political Analyst Dennis Goldford: "You can read about it and discuss it in the abstract, but actually seeing the impact of the Romney campaign's money, organization and attention to detail is just remarkable. They were a huge presence here today." (KCCI-TV Website, "Mitt Romney Wins Straw Poll," www.kcci.com/news/13872905/detail.html, Posted 8/11/07)
WFXT-TV, Fox Boston's Frank Mallicoat: "A landslide in Iowa today for former Bay State Governor Mitt Romney. Romney overwhelmingly winning the Iowa Republican Straw Poll today. The field of candidates now will start to shrink..." (WFXT-TV, "FOX 25 News At 10," 8/11/07)
Chicago Tribune's Rick Pearson And John McCormick: "Displaying the breadth and wealth of his campaign's organizing skills, Mitt Romney won Iowa's Republican presidential straw poll Saturday, giving him a needed bump to compete on the national stage while forcing others to consider whether to go forward." (Rick Pearson And John McCormick, "Romney Victorious In Straw Poll," Chicago Tribune, 8/11/07)
Bloomberg's Hans Nichols: "Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, won the Iowa straw poll, securing his status as the leading Republican in a state that has dashed the ambitions of many would-be presidents." (Hans Nichols, "Romney Wins, As Huckabee Takes Surprising Second In Iowa Poll," Bloomberg, 8/11/07)
The New York Times' Jeff Zeleny: "The outcome of the Republican Straw Poll was announced here tonight, with Mitt Romney easily claiming the first prize of the presidential campaign." (Jeff Zeleny, "Romney Wins Straw Poll," The New York Times' The Caucus Blog, Posted 8/11/07)
