Wisconsin and Iowa

Wisconsin had a big recall election yesterday. There's another one next week for two democrats. The GOP will keep the state senate in Wisconsin. Here's the election results from the AP. Democrats needed to take three seats to take the lead, and hold on next week when their own incumbents are up. Instead they took two, or more accurately, took one with one of the republicans defeating himself for screwing around on his wife. The other democrat pickup was over by LaCrosse, a large college town. That's not a big surprise. The GOP has a 17-16 lead after the recalls, with a chance to go 19-16 next week (likely 18-16). Considering the democrats and labor dumped 30 million in these recall elections, it didn't turn out that bad.

Iowa has a big straw poll in Ames coming up this weekend. Right now, nobody is running away with the momentum on the GOP side for 2012. Romney has the money and has organization, but a lot of people just can not support him. Who's going to carry momentum? Who's going to drop out after bombing at Ames? That's what makes this straw poll significant. Back in the 1999 straw poll, four candidates dropped out soon afterward. Lamar Alexander, Dan Quayle, Pat Buchanan, and Elizabeth Dole. Buchanan and Quayle wern't going anywhere anyway. Alexander and Dole dropping out were a big deal. Nobody's running away with this right now. Michelle Bachmann, Ron Paul, and Herman Cain have their followings. Rick Perry is on the fence with running. Pawlenty and McCotter may get some traction. Huntsman may come out of nowhere.

It's going to be an interesting political weekend.