States Battle for GOP Role

[Valin]

WSJ:

PATRICK O'CONNOR And NEIL KING JR.
5/28/11

A spat has broken out between Iowa and New Hampshire Republicans over which early-voting state is more important to the presidential nominating process.

New Hampshire Republicans say social conservatives have become so dominant in Iowa that they play an unduly large role in winnowing the candidate field. "Iowa Republicans have marginalized themselves to the point where competing in Iowa has become optional," Fergus Cullen, a former New Hampshire GOP chairman, wrote recently.

(Snip)

In Iowa, many Republicans dismiss the barbs as a recurring fixture of the presidential cycle, like meet-and-greets at the local Pizza Ranch. But the sniping has clearly struck a nerve.
(Snip)





I could be wrong but I don't recall Iowa being all that important before Jimmy Carter.