[Spencer Daily Reporter nameplate] Overcast ~ 27°F   Feels like:
16°F Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014  Keep Iowa first  Thursday, March
3, 2011  Since 1972, Iowa has been making a big splash in
presidential races as the first state to caucus, with the New
Hampshire Primary typically making headlines about a week later.
They're the first two presidentially-minded contests in the
nation and they deserve to stay that way.  Apparently, officials
in Florida do not agree.  Despite the Republican National
Committee's decision to set the Iowa caucuses as its opening
contest on Feb. 6, Florida has scheduled its primaries for Jan.
31.  Gov. Terry Branstad has vowed to move the caucuses ahead if
Florida refuses to move its primaries back. A similar situation
pushed Iowa's date to Jan. 3 in 2008, and the rule change was
seemingly an effort to keep that from happening again.  New
Hampshire has a state law mandating their primary be at least a
week before any other primary.  Regardless of how it happens,
keeping the two states f