2008

Much will be written about this over the next few days, and we will be releasing some of our work on young voters later this morning. But one thing to keep in mind is that young people were a major factor last night in a state that is much older than most and when college campus had not yet returned from winter break.

Be sure to check out our recent magazine article, The 50 Year Strategy, which makes the case that this new generation of young Americans will be the core of a new progressive majority. After last night it sure looks like this day may be coming sooner than we all expected.

It's evident that Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama had a unique opportunity in their victory speeches to capture voter sentiment and build momentum for their campaigns. I've posted their speeches below and would be interested in hearing your opinion on the effectiveness of their messages and deliveries:

Mike Huckabee's speech:

Barack Obama's speech:

For more information on NDN's coverage of the 2008 Presidential election, click here.

All 3 Dems gave strong speeches. Huckabee did well too, showing why he has done so well so far.

I must say that Obama was great tonight, and no matter where this ends up, has become an extraordinary national figure in a very short period of time. I will have more to say about his candidacy tomorrow. But hats off to the whole Obama team. They have done something very remarkable tonight.

All I can think of is a moment when a year ago when I was at the home of a senior advisor to the Clinton camp. I remarked that I thought Obama looked strong. The response: "He's a flash in the pan."

Democratic turnout appears to have broken all records, increasing from 125,000 to over 200,000, and may be twice the GOP total. Further evidence that there is a big national shift towards the Democrats.

Man is the GOP race going to be interesting.

According to CNN, Romney outspent Huckabee on TV in Iowa by at least 6:1.

Thompson, McCain, and Paul appear to be fighting for third.

MSNBC just showed a caucus site that had 267 caucus goers.  In 2004 it had less than a 100.

Travis did a great job collecting up the final round of Iowa ads, which you can find here.  

What I found most interesting was how many ads ended with a direct to camera appeal, and that the Democrats ran almost no negative or comparative ads throughout the entire Iowa  campaign.  Political advertising is going through a big change.  More emphasis on authenticy, realness.  With somewhere between 25 and 40 percent of all voters next year likely to skip all TV commercials (due to DVRs) political TV is fighting hard to break through, connect, in an age of savvier viewers with many more media and information choices.

After the election tonight it is going to be worth spending time discussing what all this means for independent third party media in 2008.

It is simply awful. But I can't go to CNN because Crazy Lou is over there.

May the results come quick.

Rudy Giuliani's new Spanish-language ad, "Liderazgo" is a reminder that the former Mayor is focusing his efforts on Florida, not Iowa. (Background: Giuliani's ties to Florida's Cuban-American community were touched upon by Beth Reinhard in yesterday's Miami Herald.)

Listen to the ad here.

English Translation:

Voiceover: “President Reagan trusted him to combat crime. The people of New York elected him mayor when their city seemed doomed (lost), and was viewed by many as ungovernable. Rudy Giuliani. He cut down crime 56%. He lowered taxes 23 times, saving taxpayers more than $9 billion. He created new jobs, slashed bureaucracy … And New York again became one of the great cities of the United States and the world. We face great challenges. We need proven leaders. Rudy Giuliani. It was done in New York. It can be done in Washington. Rudy Giuliani: Experience, Results, Leadership. Rudy Giuliani President.

Mayor Giuliani: “I’m Rudy Giuliani and I approved this message.”

Voiceover: “Paid for by the Rudy Giuliani Presidential Committee Incorporated.”

Over the next few days, I'm going to be conveying my thoughts on the Primary season in a new way: web videos. We are trying some new things, so take a look at the first video below and feel free to comment: