DES MOINES, Iowa — Sen. Amy Klobuchar's ground game in Iowa has been strong and she has advertised heavily here ahead of the first real test of presidential candidates, the state's precinct caucuses.
And pundits are watching to see if the Minnesota senator can outperform expectations Monday night by closing the gap with the four front runners who've led in the early preference polls.
It's more difficult to know exactly what those expectations are, now that the final Des Moines Register/CNN has been shelved at the last minute due to possible errors by polling staff that shook confidence in the validity of the results.
At a rally in Mason City Sunday afternoon, Sen. Klobuchar said Democrats must make a clear case to voters of all stripes that they'll bring positive change.
"Those voters are watching these debates and they’re trying to figure out what’s going on with our party," Klobuchar told supporters and some curious undecided Iowans.
"So, my first piece of profound advice is we better not screw this up; there are so many people that want to come with us. They don’t want four more years of this guy."
She summoned the name of Joseph Welch, the Iowa native who served as the US Army's chief counsel during the McCarthy hearings in the 1950s and famously asked Sen. Joseph McCarthy, "Have you no decency, sir?"
Klobuchar added, "That’s what this election is about. It is that decency check for our country. It truly is."
Farmer Dale Arends drove from Belmont, IA to see Klobuchar in Mason City. He acknowledged that most farmers are in the Trump camp, but he's convinced Klobuchar would make the best president.
"I like that she’s a moderate. I like that she’s a woman. I like that she’s not so darn old," Arends told KARE.
"I already supported her, but what I heard today strengthened that."
Sunday night Klobuchar dropped in on her campaign's Super Bowl Watch party at Jethro's Barbecue in the suburb of Johnston north of Des Moines.
"Of course, we want an record turnout Monday night at the caucuses, but we also want a big win in November!"
She said she had hoped to spend the night in Iowa, but duty called. The Senate was due to reconvene Monday morning, so Klobuchar told supporters she would need to fly back to DC with hopes of returning Monday in time for the caucuses.
Klobuchar's squadron of volunteers in Iowa Sunday included Annamarie Daley of Medina, who was knocking on doors in Mason City and leaving literature door hangers.
"It’s been great. People are so kind in Iowa," Daley remarked as she checked addresses on a list of likely caucus goers.
"Amy is the candidate to beat Donald Trump and I felt I needed to do something to make sure that that happens in November."
Daley may be a Twin Cities attorney now, but she grew up on a farm in southeastern Minnesota near the Iowa border. As she knocked on doors Sunday, she reminded potential caucus goers about Klobuchar's work on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
Minnesota's presidential candidate had some high-powered surrogates working with her on the eve of the caucuses. Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan made the case for their home state senator.
The crowd at Klobuchar’s rally in Mason City included a group of high school students from Saint Paul Academy, who were here to observe the caucuses and last-minute efforts to get out the vote.
"This is great. It's not only spending time away from school, but going and seeing how caucusing works," Anjali Tadavarthy explained. "It's kind of confusing reading it in a textbook. What? But actually seeing it will be really awesome."
Someone had placed green "Amy" campaign stickers on the students' jackets, but they said they were actually undecided about how they would vote in Minnesota's presidential nominating primary on Super Tuesday, March 3. And, of course, some will have to wait until 2024 to vote in a presidential election.
