Trump packs ’em in at tailgate

AMES - Football brought them to the stadium.

Donald Trump brought them to the tailgate party.

And after a long wait in a bright, late summer sun, those who stuck around for a chance to see Trump were rewarded.

Trump was one of four Republican presidential candidates who popped in on a GOP tailgate party at the Iowa versus Iowa State football game on Saturday afternoon. The event was put on by the Republican Party of Iowa and a few central Iowa County party organizations.

Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker also joined the tailgate party with dozens of Cyclone and Hawkeye fans.

But the main event - at least according to many in the crowd - was Trump. Hundreds packed the area around the tailgate party in the Jack Trice Stadium parking lot. Many waited two hours to see Trump, the billionaire businessman who has turned the GOP race on its head and leads in most polls.

When word came that Trump may not make it out to the tailgate party before kickoff, much of the crowd dissipated, but some stayed.

'I'm just intrigued by what he has to say,” said Gina Navratil of Ames, a Republican voter. 'I thought it would be better to hear it in person.”

Just before kickoff, Trump emerged from the stadium and made his way to the tailgate party. Wearing his famous 'Make America Great Again” hat - this one in camouflage - Trump arrived to huge cheers and spoke only briefly.

'Good luck, and have a good time,” Trump said before moving right along through the parking lot, a thick throng following him.

Scott Walker

Walker arrived about an hour before Trump. He spoke to a huge crowd, but many in the crowd said they were there to hear Trump.

Walker used the opportunity to try to tap into the anti-Washington, D.C., sentiment that is helping to make people flock to Trump.

'If you're looking for someone to wreak havoc on Washington, it takes more than loud words. It takes actions,” Walker said before reminding the crowd of his work as Wisconsin governor to strip public employees of most of their collective bargaining rights and then survive a recall election.

Marco Rubio

Rubio made brief remarks at the tailgate before moving through the stadium parking lot. He also had his own tailgate party in another area of the stadium lot.

'The leaders from both (political) parties are completely out of touch,” Rubio said. He added later that he believes the country needs 'not just new leaders, but new ideas.”

Rand Paul

Paul did not make remarks on the microphone set up at the tailgate, but he did work his way through the crowd. He fielded a few questions from reporters, talking about immigration policy - he said the government must first enforce the laws that already are on the books - and how he can distinguish himself in the large GOP field of candidates.

'There are several things that set me apart. I'm the only Republican candidate who is really consistently and loudly been opposed to the president's plan to collect all your phone records,” Paul said, referring to the National Security Agency's collection of bulk phone data.

'I've also been a loud voice for saying we need to get rid of the tax code, all 70,000 pages. And I'd replace it with a tax return that you can do on one page, one single rate for all taxpayers.”

Democrats react

The Iowa Democratic Party issued a football-pun-laden statement saying the GOP candidates' policies all come from 'the same failed, anti-middle-class playbook of the past.”

'No matter who you're rooting for, all of the Republican candidates miss the middle-class' goal posts to the wide right, and that means Iowa's families come out a loser,” Iowa Democratic Party spokesman Sam Lau said in the news release, in which he jokingly also referred to himself as a 'senior football analyst.”

'The plays the Republicans have drawn up give the wealthy few a tactical advantage while deflating efforts to support college students, women's health care, and working families. Just like the drop kick, the GOP's policies should be left in the past.”