Ambinder: Why Sarah Palin Endorsed Branstad

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The Atlantic's politics editor Marc Ambinder, in his Friday column, says that unless there are no "stunning surprises" next week, Terry Branstad is going to be the next governor of Iowa:

Indeed, even as the last previous Republican gubernatorial nominee ahead of the Iowa caucuses, Branstad and his team would have quite a bit of influence over the field operation that a candidate Sarah Palin would need to recruit to win there

If you're thinking about running for president, and I think Palin really is thinking about running for president, you don't get on the wrong side of the guy who will probably be governor during the caucuses by endorsing his opponent, no matter how conservative and Tea Partyish Bob Vander Plaats seems to be.

Ambinder points out that Vander Plaats was Mike Huckabee's campaign co-chair in 2008, and Huck Spin continues to be the Sioux City businessman's most high-profile supporter.

Branstad campaign spokesman Tim Albrecht released the following statement Thursday on Gov. Palin’s endorsement:

“Sarah Palin joins thousands of Iowans in recognizing that Terry Branstad is the honest, conservative leader Iowa needs to fix Gov. Culver’s mismanagement of Iowa’s budget. Terry Branstad signed the state’s largest tax cut in history, left the state with a $900 million surplus and led the state to record employment. She, along with conservatives across the state, recognize Terry Branstad’s strong record of leadership in Iowa.

“This latest endorsement further demonstrates the broad base of support that Gov. Branstad continues to build in his campaign for governor.”

According to RadioIowa.com, a poll released late Thursday by KCCI-TV in Des Moines, has Branstad leading Vander Plaats by 15 percent, but 15 percent of the poll's sample say they are still undecided. The Iowa primary is next Tuesday.

- JP