Political Watchers Rally at Parties Around Iowa for Fox News Debate

A small group gathered in West Des Moines at a small watch party for the Iowa GOP presidential debate in the den of Jim and Louisa Sandager’s home.

While eating ice cream and sipping on coffee or wine, guest Jackie Arthur and host Louisa Sandager said they were still looking for a little more information before Iowa voters get the first word on the GOP nomination during the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses.

“We’re waiting for someone to mess up and narrow the field,” Arthur said. “I like Newt. I think he’s got some problems. I like Mitt. I think he’s got some problems. And I rarely disagree with Michele Bachmann.”

One recent poll, by Rasmussen, showed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, with the support of 23 percent of Iowa's caucus-goers, moving ahead of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, with 20 percent, and Texas Congressman Ron Paul, a strong third with 18 percent. Gingrich, Romney and Paul, Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman participated in Thursday's debate in Sioux City.

Huntsman, who has not campaigned in Iowa, was not included in Saturday’s debate because he did not meet the threshold of polling at least 5 percent nationally. For an invitation to tonight’s debate, candidates needed to poll at only 1 percent.

Jim Sandager said he likes Perry, but noted these debates seem to bring the worst out in him. 

"I wish he had performed better in the debates. I like that he’s got executive leadership. I like that he has had some success with job creation. He doesn’t perform as well as his experience would indicate. This is not his thing," Sandager said. "The Achilles heel for Romney is the Massachusetts health-care plan. Both Romney and Gingrich have strong Achilles heel that would be an issue in the general election. Perry’s would be in the debate, if he had to debate Obama.”

Tea Party Gathers in Cedar Rapids

About 20 people showed up to the Hideout Room Best Western Hotel on the northeast side of Cedar Rapids for a Tea Party watch party.

The members watched carefully and silently, occasionally distracted by texting on their phones or watching videos on YouTube.

Halfway through the debate, the room was half-full with mostly middle-aged men drinking the remainder of their soda and quietly watching the debate after cleaning out several boxes of pizza.

It's not clear by their reactions who they support; in fact, it might not be fair to say there is a real Tea Party candidate, but most of the reactions were brief but emotional. Laughter was heard when Paul took a hit about bringing tax money back to his Congressional district, then there was a loud "yeah, right," when a moderator apologized for asking Gingrich numerous questions about accepting money from Freddie Mac.

Most telling was a collection of "Newt 2012" signs in a cardboard box at the back of the room.

The crowd started trickling out during later commercial breaks.

Business First in Waukee

It was business before debate for most members of the Dallas County Republicans, meaning many of them expected to miss at least the start of the debate.

The Dallas County GOP’s Central Committee met tonight at 7 to discuss the Jan. 3 Iowa caucus. The Fox News debate began at 8 p.m.

In an e-mail sent to Waukee Patch, Jon McAvoy, a member of the central committee, wrote, “The Dallas County Central Committee is meeting at 7:00 to put together some caucus material, but I hope we are done well before the debate starts.”

Technical Glitches Dim Debate Party in Des Moines

About 15 people who will vote for a presidential candidate they believe can reduce the country's deficit gathered in Des Moines to watch the debate.

The watch party, organized by Vickie Stogdill, a Des Moines woman involved with Strong America Now, started with Caucus training before watching the debate.

Stogdill said Strong American Now persuaded all the candidates at the debate but Jon Huntsman and Mitt Romney to sign a pledge that they will use the Lean Six Sigma management techniques to reduce the budget.

The mood was a far cry from a partisan rally from this group of Democrats and Republicans who munched on pizza and ate Christmas cookies while quietly watching the debate at a community in northwest Des Moines.

The most animated conversations were on how to fix the slow internet connection that was delaying the YouTube feed. The connection interrupted often enough that several people left to watch the debate at home.