Essential Estrogen

If you think eastern Iowa seems an unlikely place to see Republican presidential hopefuls two weeks away from the caucuses, you're probably right. Linn and Johnson counties, in particular, have not been bastions of Republican strength, and, most Republicans reside in the western half of the state.

Still, the numbers didn't seem to be on former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson's mind as he campaigned today in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

"We're headed that way," he said with a laugh when asked if he began his "Clear Conservative Choice: Hands Down" bus tour in eastern Iowa because he felt the recent endorsement of Iowa's Fifth District Congressman Steve King had already locked up the Republican voters in that portion of the state. "We're headed that way and we're gonna be all over the state before we're finished. Everybody's got to start somewhere."

The 100 or so people who braved thick fog to attend the rally at the Cedar Rapids Marriott said they were thankful for the opportunity to hear speak and answer questions.

"The others -- who obviously joined this race much earlier -- they've been here and I've heard them," said Bill Davidsen of rural Linn County. "I'm still trying to decide who I will be caucusing for, but I think, at least after today, I've narrowed it between Thompson and [former Arkansas Gov. Mike] Huckabee."

Davidsen, who said "family values" are his focus when deciding upon a candidate, believes the endorsements of both King and the National Right to Life will carry a lot of weight with Iowa Republicans.

"There are liberals who despise King," he said. "That just makes us like him even more -- the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Thompson, who presented a bit flat during an October campaign stop in Dubuque, was light on his feet today and joked with members of the audience even as he frequently paused to sip water, clear his throat or cough. The vast majority of his time was spent telling audience why he joined the race, but he still made time, at least with the press, for a few jabs at the competition.

"Governor Romney supported McCain-Feingold," Thompson said. "He's changed his position on that just like he has so many other things."

Thompson, who was one of the chief architects of the election reform law, said while responding to an audience question that although he continues to support limits on campaign contributions, he feels the legislation did not live up to its intent, especially in the area of special interest groups. Thompson said that "in modern times" people have always agreed that it was appropriate to limit the amount of money given to politicians. Soft money, he added, was first put into use by President Bill Clinton and political consultant Dick Morris, but Republicans quickly followed suit. That prompted the need for reform, he said, so that the very rich and large corporations would not have undue influence in government.

"A lot of my Republican colleagues still have a hard time with it," he said when an audience member asked him to explain his stance. "They don't understand it and I appreciate that. But standing up, putting the government in the right place to do its job, to do things as best we can to minimize the temptation and the opportunity for corruption in large sums of money before somebody makes a decision on the donor is still a valid, solid, conservative concept I stand for."

Thompson said he primarily supported the legislation because he felt the $1,000 campaign donation limit for individuals -- a level that had been in place for many years -- was too low. He told the audience that it was because of his amendment that the amount was doubled to the current limit of $2,300.

By that same token, he calls the provision in McCain-Feingold that limited contributions to some political groups to the same levels as individual contributions a mistake.

"That was an error," he said. "I was wrong about that. I wouldn't do that again."