The Iowa presidential caucuses were thrown into chaos late Monday after the state Democratic Party said it found 'inconsistencies,' delaying results and causing widespread confusion across the state.
"Did they lose the information?" Scarborough continued. "Why were they only on the phone for 74 seconds when they should be holding two-hour press conferences explaining to America, and the world, what happened?"
The Iowa Democratic Party released a statement about the mishap on Tuesday morning and claimed the app wasn't hacked but was only reporting partial data.
"We have every indication that our systems were secure and there was not a cybersecurity intrusion. In preparation for the caucuses, our systems were tested by independent cybersecurity consultants," the statement read.
"As precinct caucus results started coming in, the IDP ran them through an accuracy and quality check," it continued. "it became clear that there were inconsistencies with the reports. The underlying cause of these inconsistencies was not immediately clear, and required investigation, which took time."
The release went on to say the data collected "was sound" but due to a coding issue, the full results were not available last night. State Democrats said the problem has been resolved and hope to have the results at some point on Tuesday.
President Trump commented on the chaos in Iowa last night on Twitter Tuesday morning and called it a "disaster." He also compared it to the issue-plagued Obamacare website.
The Democrat Party in Iowa really messed up, but the Republican Party did not. I had the largest re-election vote in the history of that great state, by far, beating President Obama’s previous record by a lot. Also, 97% Plus of the vote! Thank you Iowa!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2020
The Democrat Caucus is an unmitigated disaster. Nothing works, just like they ran the Country. Remember the 5 Billion Dollar Obamacare Website, that should have cost 2% of that. The only person that can claim a very big victory in Iowa last night is “Trump”.— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2020
Trump also mocked them, suggesting they might blame Russia for their own incompetence:
And lastly, Trump defended the Iowa Caucuses…
When will the Democrats start blaming RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA, instead of their own incompetence for the voting disaster that just happened in the Great State of Iowa?— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2020
And lastly, Trump defended the Iowa Caucuses…
It is not the fault of Iowa, it is the Do Nothing Democrats fault. As long as I am President, Iowa will stay where it is. Important tradition! https://t.co/bX3FLvua1C— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2020
"The Democrat Caucus is an unmitigated disaster," he tweeted. "Nothing works, just like they ran the Country. Remember the five Billion Dollar Obamacare Website, that should have cost 2 percent of that. The only person that can claim a very big victory in Iowa last night is 'Trump.'"
Associated Press White House reporter Jonathan Lemire followed by saying that the caucuses turned into a "disaster on every level" for the party. Scarborough said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg and their supporters should be furious at the party for denying the two candidates their moment after an expected strong night.
"[Sanders] worked his ass off for years, survived a heart attack. ... This is inexcusable," the co-host said.
MSNBC Host Leaves Beltway Bubble, Shocked To Find Iowa Farmers Support President Trump
ReplyDeleteIn MSNBC’s daytime lineup, host Katy Tur was shocked when she met Iowans who supported President Trump. Tur sought out Iowa farmers in hopes they would publicly complain about Trump and his trade war with China.
It’s conventional Democratic knowledge that Trump’s trade war with China, including the consequential tariffs, are harming farmers’ bottom lines, particularly in the swing state of Iowa. However, this conventional wisdom was shot down when Tur asked farmers for their thoughts on the tariffs.
“President Trump told Iowa farmers that he is the only one who can save them. I visited a farming show here in Des Moines and spoke to some of the president’s supporters. Didn’t know they were until I asked them. I wondered if they thought he had fulfilled his promises, specifically about tariffs,” said Tur in her opening monologue.
“[Tariffs] aren’t good for temporary, but long term, we get the trade agreements actually, and China actually does what they said, we’ll be better,” one farmer told Tur. He explained that tariffs, like farming, are an investment in the future.
Tur was visibly confused by the Iowan farmers who support Trump. She could not understand why her theory did not match reality on the ground. Nonentheless, Tur continued to promulgate her theory that Iowa farmers will not support Trump in the 2020 election.
“There’s a feeling out there that Iowa farmers are not going to support [Trump] any longer. These tariffs are doing too much to hurt their business, and when I was talking to farmers at that expo, I didn’t hear that,” Tur said.
It was refreshing to see Beltway punditry flipped on its head, and to see Trump’s ardent supporters sticking with him through turbulent times.
During the trade war, China put retaliatory tariffs on almost all U.S. agricultural exports, notably soybeans and pork products. This undoubtedly hurts farmers in the interim. However, China is the biggest consumer of U.S. agricultural products. So to pass a trade agreement that forces China to purchase even more of these products, and at a fairer price, will help farmers long-term.