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“Donald Trump secured a resounding victory in the first 2024 Republican presidential contest in Iowa on Monday, asserting his command over the party… Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, 45, finished well behind in second place, edging out former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, 51, as they battle to emerge as the chief alternative to Trump. Trump, 77, won by an unprecedented margin for an Iowa Republican contest.” Reuters
“Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy suspended his 2024 presidential campaign on Monday and endorsed former President Trump.” Axios
Both sides agree that the results confirm Trump as the prohibitive favorite to win the nomination and that DeSantis’s campaign is in trouble:
“The extent to which DeSantis staked his entire campaign on Iowa cannot be overstated. DeSantis sacrificed his early second-place standings in New Hampshire and South Carolina to barnstorm Iowa, visiting all 99 counties and scoring the crucial endorsements of the state’s governor, Kim Reynolds, and its historic kingmaker, evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats. DeSantis’s fundraising behemoth spent some $31 million on ad buys, nearly three times what Trump spent…
“All this proves that the months of painful polling have actually been proven right. There are no hidden masses waiting to stick it to Trump, and if they did once exist, DeSantis failed to win them… There’s no way to spin the fact that Trump won, and everyone else has lost, decisively.”
Tiana Lowe Doescher, Washington Examiner
“Haley’s disappointing third-place finish, after showing a small surge in late polling in Iowa, is not likely to provide the boost that she was hoping to see as the race heads to New Hampshire, where she ostensibly has a greater chance of gaining ground with its more moderate, independent-minded electorate…
“For DeSantis — once considered to have the potential to be a formidable challenger to Trump — the Iowa result was likely a mortal blow, even though he came in slightly ahead of Haley. He has been an unappealing candidate with a dysfunctional campaign, and it is hard at this point to see how and where he can regroup.”
Karen Tumulty, Washington Post
Other opinions below.
Many argue, “Not only did Trump break the 50 percent threshold among the grassroots voters who turned out despite an arctic blast, but he won big across all demographics… Since he announced his candidacy in November 2022, Trump never once lost his lead in the Republican primary. Even when Haley and DeSantis’ popularity margins grew 5 points over the last six months, Trump’s did too…
“Now that the Iowa numbers are in, it’s time for the other Republican candidates to put the whining, quibbling, and online trolling about Trump behind them and focus on pointing voters to winning the general election battle ahead.”
Jordan Boyd, The Federalist
Some argue, “Donald Trump romped to victory in the Iowa caucuses on Monday night, launching the former President on his quest for a third GOP nomination. The vote nonetheless revealed weaknesses that could pose problems in a general election, so Republicans in New Hampshire should think hard if they want to gamble on another Trump run…
“Republican voters deserve a debate over his first-term record, the peril from his indictments, and his agenda for a second term. Second terms typically fail, and Mr. Trump can only serve one more. He could be a convicted felon by the summer, and the Iowa entrance poll showed that no fewer than 32% of GOP caucus-goers said that a conviction would be disqualifying. But by then it may be too late for Republicans to choose another candidate. Meantime, Mr. Trump won’t get on stage with anyone unless Granite State voters make a race of it.”
Editorial Board, Wall Street Journal
“Some of [Trump’s opponents], in tone and substance, offered real alternatives to Trump’s rage-filled nativism. The ominous truth is there just wasn’t appetite in the electorate for a non-Trumpian candidate. In Iowa — and probably elsewhere, alas — they are all MAGA Republicans now…
“DeSantis offered all of the Trump thuggery and culture wars with none of the Trump pizazz. Vivek Ramaswamy promised to be Trumpier than Trump. Even Haley, who offered the greatest contrast with Trump, was so mild in her critique of the man that she’s broadly seen as auditioning to be his vice president. This isn’t cowardice on her part but a concession to reality…
“When [a] poll asked likely Republican caucus voters last month about Trump’s Nazi-tinged talk of migrants ‘poisoning the blood’ of the country and his political opponents being ‘vermin,’ pluralities said such statements made them more likely to support Trump. I used to think there was a large enough anti-Trump contingent in the Republican electorate that, if given a clear alternative to the demagogue, they would take it. But in Iowa, the voters had such a chance — and stuck with Trump.”
Dana Milbank, Washington Post
“This primary race that never took off serves as yet another rebuke of the wealthy elites in the Republican party, who have used the party as a vehicle to promote market-friendly policy above all else. They poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the Ron DeSantis campaign, and the results were a spectacular failure. It’s not their party anymore. The Republican party is now a vehicle primarily for the politics of cultural grievance and petty reaction.”
Ben Davis, The Guardian
