Iowa is a sprint in the marathon of presidential campaigning. Our first day was nonstop.
We are really trying to show Texans in Iowa. There are plenty. Just stop by Ted Cruz's headquarters; that's what we did right when we landed.
The volunteers try to make between 200 and 400 calls a day. We met one 13-year-old from Lubbock, Alexandra Ziegler, who was all business (I'm sure I'll work for her one day). Ziegler made 833 calls Saturday. She said she loved doing it, but her ear hurt by the end. She tells me her first campaign was for George W. Bush. She was 2. You will see her stories in my report Monday.
Then we got on Sen. Cruz's campaign bus. He was very relaxed when we talked with him. Cruz is definitely trying to temper expectations.
Cruz said he does not think any of the early contests are must-win states. Cruz was leading in the polls in Iowa last week, but now he trails Donald Trump. It's within five points.
So much could happen Monday. First of all, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush won't even be here. He will be in New Hampshire. Clearly he is putting his eggs in that basket.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Hillary Clinton is three points ahead of Sen. Bernie Sanders. So it will be interesting to see which way that goes. Sanders has been drawing huge crowds and has a LOT of volunteers on the ground. The Clinton campaign is well organized as well.
Th caucuses start at 7 p.m. and there is no time limit.
I'm prepared for a long day. You know those people who can't sleep at a hotel? I'm not one of them. I plan to be very well rested!
