TRUMP’S IOWA GROUND GAME
Former President Donald Trump is lining up his 2024 campaign “blitz.”
On Thursday, the former president announced that he would make two back-to-back appearances, both on Jan. 5, in northern Iowa.
First, he is set for a 4 p.m. speech at Dordt University, a Christian college campus in tiny Sioux Center, Iowa, a city near the state’s western boundary.
A “commit-to-caucus” rally in that small city of about 8,500 people will serve as “the kickoff of a larger blitz across the state of Iowa,” his campaign said in a news release.
Then he will head about 150 miles northeast to Mason City, Iowa, population 27,000, where he’s slated to make remarks at 7:30 p.m. at the North Iowa Events Center.
Those two events are scheduled just 10 days before the first-in-nation Iowa caucuses, which set the tone for the 2024 presidential nominating contests in other states.
Trump has made far fewer in-person visits to Iowa during this election cycle than some of his fellow GOP presidential hopefuls.
But behind the scenes, he is benefiting from legions of volunteers who have been working to cultivate relationships with voters. And the former president has been engaging in a more targeted campaign, his surrogates say.
“This campaign has the best organization I’ve ever seen,” Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird told the former president’s supporters at a rally in Coralville, Iowa, on Dec. 13.
Attendees are asked to fill out a “commit-to-caucus” form, a nonbonding pledge to go to their local caucus and vote for the former president.
“We then follow up with folks. We get them to caucus trainings. We text them. We email them....we get them to like our our social media pages,” Iowa Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, a Trump surrogate, told The Epoch Times.
Volunteers and campaign staffers work to cultivate a loyal following of people who “will come and caucus for him, regardless of weather or circumstances, on January 15,” he said.
On that Monday night, citizens from nearly 1,700 precincts will gather throughout the state and begin a meeting at 7 p.m.
After speeches and discussions, caucus-goers cast votes for their preferred presidential candidate–and the votes are counted in their presence. Volunteers from the Republican Party run these events, unlike primary elections, which government officials run.
Trump’s campaign has designated spokespersons and meeting leaders for the caucuses. Each one has been issued a white hat with metallic-gold embroidered letters, “Trump Caucus Captain.”
A Trump caucus captain, Nathaniel Gavronsky, told The Epoch Times about his role on Caucus Night.
“I am literally going to load up two vans, and I am going to go around picking up all my neighbors,“ he said. ”We’re going to load up a bunch of signs, a bunch of pens, and we are going to get our little corner of the building set up for all four precincts in Wayne County.”
Gavronsky said he will give a short testimonial in support of the former president; he predicts Trump will draw 55 percent of the votes in Wayne County.
Trump told supporters in Coralville and elsewhere: Winning by a large statewide margin on Iowa Caucus Night would be important for his presidential run. It would solidify his position as the Republican frontrunner and validate his commanding lead in opinion polls.
—Janice Hisle
GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS UNDER THREAT
Just as global supply chains seemed to be recovering from the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, a new crisis has emerged that could have significant implications for the world economy.
In recent weeks, a surge in attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, orchestrated by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, has raised alarms in Washington and the international community.
The Red Sea, a critical passage for global trade, connects Asia and Europe via the Suez Canal. Every year, approximately 19,000 ships pass through this vital waterway, making it one of the world’s most important trade routes.
However, due to the escalating attacks, shippers are increasingly avoiding the Red Sea, opting for longer routes around Africa, primarily via the Cape of Good Hope.
Top companies like Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, and BP have announced plans to skip the Red Sea route, resulting in significant increases in shipping times.
For example, routes from India to northern Europe are expected to take 58 percent longer, while shipping from the Mediterranean to Southeast Asia will increase by approximately 74 percent.
The ramifications of these route changes are significant. Higher freight and insurance costs, shipping delays, and port congestion are anticipated. This disruption will have an immediate impact on supply chain operations during the crucial holiday season, affecting manufacturers and retailers in Europe and the United States.
According to Christopher Tang, a supply chain expert, as the United States shifts its sourcing away from China, most exports from India and Vietnam are shipped across the Red Sea via the Suez Canal. The United States now needs to reroute shippers from India and all other Southeast Asian countries through the Cape of Good Hope or through the Pacific Ocean. Rerouting through longer paths will lead to increased costs, delays, and ultimately higher prices, which could harm the U.S. economy, he warns.
The attacks on the Red Sea could continue until the conflict in Israel is resolved, making a swift resolution unlikely.
To address this growing threat to the global economy, the United States has formed a coalition with allies and partners to secure safe marine transit in the Red Sea. The countries that joined the effort include the UK, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles, and Spain.
The Biden administration is conducting a review to determine whether the Houthis should be designated as a terrorist group. The Houthi rebels claimed that the current attacks are in support of the Palestinians.
—Emel Akan
DEMOCRATS BEST GOP IN NOVEMBER FUNDRAISING
The fundraising arms of the Democratic Party collected more money than those of the Republican Party through the first 11 months of the year, according to Federal Election Commission disclosures.
Combined, the Democratic National Committee, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee brought in about $25.4 million in November. The Republican National Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee, and National Republican Congressional Committee brought in about $21.8 million.
The DNC reported it had brought in about $105.3 million in total receipts in 2023 between January and Nov. 30, according to federal filings. Its counterpart raised about $81.9 million during the same period.
The DNC brought in about $12.3 million in November. The RNC raised about $8 million.
In terms of cash on hand, the DNC holds a sizable lead. The DNC holds about $20 million, while the RNC has about $10 million. Both parties have debts. The RNC owes more than $2.3 million, while the DNC owes about $287,000.
Democratic congressional committees raked in about $22.8 million more than the Republican committees through the first 11 months of 2023. Plus, the Democrat’s committees retain about $16.7 million more than their Republican counterparts.
The NRSC collected about $68.3 million in total receipts, through the first 11 months of the year. The NRCC brought in more, coming in at $84.2 million.
The NRCC has about $41.4 million in the bank. The NRSC holds about $7.7 million.
The DCCC led all organizations with about $108.9 million, during the same period. The DSCC reported total receipts of $66.3 million. The DSCC has about $17.1 million on hand, and the DCCC has $48.8 million.
The NRCC brought in about $9 million in total receipts, in November; the DCCC, about $7.5 million; the DSCC, about $5.5 million; and the NRSC, about $4.8 million.
—Austin Alonzo
Note: The Constitution Ave team will be taking a break over Christmas. The newsletter will not be published next week, but will return to your inboxes on Jan. 3, 2024.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
WHAT’S HAPPENING
- President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visit a children’s hospital in Washington, D.C.
BOOKMARKS
The controversy over Claudine Gay, the president of Harvard University, began when she wouldn’t tell Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) that students calling for the genocide of Jews were in violation of Harvard’s code of conduct. Harvard’s board supported the black studies professor amid calls for her to step down earlier this month.
A close observer of Chris Rufo, the conservative anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) activist who works the news cycle like it owes him money, might have foreseen what was coming:
“Conservatives need to create a strong association between Hamas, BLM, DSA, and academic ‘decolonization’ in the public mind. Connect the dots, then attack, delegitimize, and discredit. Make the center-left disavow them. Make them political untouchables,” he wrote on X on Oct. 13, days after the Hamas attack that touched off the current war in Israel.
On Dec. 10, Rufo and conservative journalist Chris Brunet revealed evidence of Gay’s alleged plagiarism on Rufo’s Substack. The story has snowballed from there.
While the liberal establishment could dismiss stories from the likes of Rufo, Brunet, or other right-wing sources, things may have changed on Dec. 20. The “Gray Lady”—the New York Times—reported on evidence that Gay committed plagiarism in her scholarship. You can already imagine the brows furrowing over mocha lattes in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Westchester County, New York, and Bethesda, Maryland—the places whose inhabitants get to decide how we live our lives.
It remains to be seen whether the Gay saga will end in a victory for conservatives and DEI skeptics or additional carve-outs within a “woke” regime. It’s certainly worth watching, in part because it illustrates that Democrats are in a tough spot as they try to appease various groups within their coalition. Newsweek reports that Biden’s handling of Israel is costing him support among young people, potentially setting him up for a loss in 2024.
On another front of the culture wars, Minnesota is moving closer to replacing its state flag with a design some say resembles the flag of Somalia’s Puntaland province. The Epoch Times’ Darlene McCormick Sanchez unveils (unfurls?) the details.
And Rep. Mark Green (R-Texas), the Republican leading the House’s homeland security committee blames the Biden administration for low morale among Border Patrol agents: “Processing and releasing illegal aliens into the interior is not the job they signed up for.” The Epoch Times’ Savannah Hulsey Pointer has more.
—Nathan Worcester
