Iowa governor Chet Culver hopes the national Democratic party will back Iowa this weekend when it comes to the state holding onto its first in the nation caucus status. Culver says Iowa has done everything right, and he believes the rules need to be followed. He says every four years there’s a process and Iowa worked with that process and got the votes from the rules and bylaws committee to be the first in 2008.
Culver says he believes there will be consequences for those states who try to break the rules, "otherwise states would just pick a date and have their caucus or primary, and you’d have no formal process, and that just doesn’t make any sense." Culver says he’s focus on one thing.
Culver says the number one concern he has is that Iowa has the first caucus in the nation, which is scheduled for January 14th. He says they hope to keep that date, but what happens with other states is up to Democratic Party national chairman Howard Dean. Culver wants to see the leaders stick to the rules that were approved for 2008. "Most importantly, I hope that there’s a show for states like Iowa and New Hampshire, so that we can maintain our traditional leadoff roles," Culver says.
Culver says he talked with national officials last weekend. Culver says he talked with Dean and Governor Lynch of New Hampshire over the weekend and says they’re all on the same page and keeping the lines of communication open, "because of that, I think in the end that will bode well for the state."
South Carolina’s Republican Party moved its contest ahead — starting talk of states moving their primaries ahead also, and forcing Iowa to look at moving the caucuses to stay in first place. State law requires Iowa’s Caucuses to be held eight days ahead of any other state’s contest.