Mason City Iowa Visit

This may come as a surprise to many, but I actually DID work on a campaign this year. I went to Mason City, Iowa in support of Barack Obama's bid for the presidency.

Now, being that I also volunteer for an opposing political party, this might seem very odd. But I have followed his career for years - especially after he won his bid for senate in Illinois. He is a spiritual progressive who is unafraid to speak of his faith in the political sphere. He also believes in the liberal rights of others - even if he disagrees with them, unlike those on the right.

His vision of hope and bipartisan coalitions are what America needs in the coming years - especially as the economy collapses under the weight of Peak Oil, the National Debt, and military overspending. The sooner we address these concerns the better.

Obama wants to expand ( but not increase the tax rate) of those who pay the FICA/Medicare tax to those making above $90,000. Currently if you make more than this amount, you have maxed out on your payment to this socially progressive system. By including all income, the tax burden on the middle class will diminish long-term.

His health-care plan is not perfect, but it does not force everyone to have an account. America needs a unique health plan that complements our society, as the one in Europe does for them.

Okay, enough about his issues - because there are some I disagree with. The primary reason is that I do not want to see Hillary Clinton in the White House - though her candidacy might help the Green Party more than any other candidate long-term.

So, I was recruited by Matthia Little-Smith to go down to Iowa. After replying with an affirmative, I was then was told that Obama would actually be there for a rally! Amazing luck that we would go down and be in the last town in Iowa he would have a rally in before their caucus.

While I could divulge the minutiae of the trip, I will make some shorter comments:

-The team I was with had never seen porches before! They were also "scared" of this cute Iowan town. Oh what to do! Coming from south Minneapolis, this was not something very new. And I am glad these suburbanites and Uptown yuppies were able to see where the rest of America lives.

-Brian Jessness, another Iraq War veteran, doorknocked with me. He was reluctant to go to a home on our list because it had a Hillary sign! This did not deter me, but galvanized our mission to seek our her voter disposition. When she answered the door, we met the friendliest person of our entire evening! Goes to show lawn signs don't indicate absolute support.

-Made several phone calls to other Iowans telling them about the rally. It was interesting hearing supporters of Kucinich and Richardson and even Edwards. But few had anything bad to say about Obama, just they supported someone else. But primarily, we reached voice mails. ( don't we almost always?)

-Our Minnesota team was the largest of any that the Mason City Obama campaign had ever seen. We enabled their team to get the word out about the rally and prepare for it.

-We were told not to take away from Iowans time with Obama. Of the entire Minnesota entourage, I was the only to fulfill this. I sat 6 rows back and was able to hear one of his powerful speeches live and in person. I consider myself very lucky to have been there, days before he would win the Iowa caucuses that few believed he could win.

You don't need to shake someone's hand when he's being rushed at from all sides. He needed more space! I don't know how any politician does it! While many got autographed signs, books, and posters - I would have a memory. And know I had the integrity to not stand in the way of Iowans wanting to get a closer glimpse. After all, we were there for the Iowans - right?