Iowa Votes Tonight, and we all care too much

A media frenzy has been in full force for months, possibly even years in anticipation of tonight's Caucus in Iowa. Of course, it hasn't just been the television, newspaper and radio chattering class that has driven the enthusiasm for the Caucus and the NH primary. The voters in both states are expected to turn out in unprecedented numbers this year.

Lost in the shuffle of the money race and the huge turnout, is why we are all in such a frenzy over what at most 300,000 people in Iowa will say tonight about who should be president. Forget that Iowa has a mized record when it comes to predicting future winners and forget that the population that attends the caucuses are a remarkably small sliver of the Iowa population to say nothing of how they do not represent an accurate cross-section of Americans. The real thing to remember when it comes to why we care so much about this primary is that this nation is ready to move forward. This nation is ready to see new leadership and a change in direction.

To be more to the point, this nation is sick of George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Condi Rice and the rest of the the crew in the White House. President Bush is residing over what is seen as a failed presidency and ultimately that is what is driving this enthusiasm.

Why is it important to remember this? It's important because as we jump into the horse race of 2008 is it too easy to forget our flawed decision making in 2000 and 2004. Al Gore was steered away from talking about Global Warming in 2000 as a presidential contender, yet this past year he has become a national icon and Nobel Prize winner for his efforts to make this global problem known. In 2004, John Kerry called for the kind of wide-reaching regional diplomacy the middle east has been lacking for decades, our current President spent his time threatening to attack Iran for weapons they did not have.

So as the frenzy continues, as the media hype for the winners of Iowa grows-let's try to remember that in our fervor to remove one bad president, its not worth bringing in another.