Denison and Onawa, Iowa

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Well, off to a mixed start here in Denison, Iowa. Reported in yesterday afternoon, after having driven from Mt. Vernon, where I’d had breakfast with Becky. Marlene, my boss and the head of a several-county area (which will no doubt become clearer to me as time goes on) asked if I could do some door-knocking in a nearby neighborhood that afternoon. She’s fabulous, smart, focused, dedicated. So of course I had to say yes.

Well, I had one guy fill out a voter registration form (anyone can do that here!) and three people filled out vote-by-mail (VBM) requests for ballots, which I’d been told to stress. We keep track of who requests them (of course we first ascertain that they’ll vote for President Obama!) and will use that data for our last 4 days of get-out-the-vote before the election. I checked off the info that I gleaned at various houses – Obama supporters (or not), who’d moved, new residents, etc. I’d canvassed for about an hour and a half. Marlene was really pleased. Yes! I’m a canvassing star!

Fast forward to today, when I spent an hour driving to Onawa, IA, then about four and a half hours on my feet and in the car  canvassing, and an hour driving back to Denison.

NO one agreed to fill out a VBM request. NO ONE! No new voters registered. I did see ONE Obama-Biden sign, but no houses on my list had an Obama sign. To be fair, though there were lots of Romney signs, still not nearly as many signs overall as we see at home.

Even the voters on my list of “definite supporters” weren’t necessarily voting for President Obama, and the list of “potentially persuadable” voters were pretty much pro-Romney.

Now, I fully realize that the reason Organizing for America (OfA) sent me to rural southwestern Iowa is that it’s heavily conservative, and in order to win Iowa we have to convince every Democrat in the conservative areas to vote so the cities can carry the state. So, I should be ready for day after day of mostly Republicans, that’s the whole point. But I just have to whine for a minute or two about how demoralizing that felt a few times today.

Low point: I go to the house of a “persuadable” voter, introduce myself and ask for Tom X. The 40ish-year-old guy in the front yard tells me I probably want his father, who isn’t there. We talk a little about how nice the leaves he’s burning (on the front lawn! this is Iowa! it’s okay!) smell, and I say I could talk to him, I’m canvassing for President Obama’s reelection. Then he says “no, we can’t talk” as he turns his back on me. Turns his back on me! I say maybe I should talk to his father, instead, and he says, over his shoulder, not looking at me, “He feels the same way, and he has guns!” Then he says he’d like a big sign that says “Obama sucks.”

I just said, “well, okay, keep it classy,” and headed to my car. Reason that this was the low point? Because - why couldn’t I have come up with a super retort?? Where are Jon Stewart’s writers when I need them? Or Bill Maher’s. Or the Wonkette’s (one of my favorite blogs – www.wonkette.com)?

Suggestions for fabulous, withering, witty retorts welcomed. I’m sure I’ll need them again.