Strawn's Gone

Iowa's presidential caucuses are famous for winnowing the field. But it's usually candidates that drop out in the aftermath, not state party chairs.

But this morning, Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Matt Strawn resigned. His departure might be tied to his role as chief spokesman for party's laugh-tracked caucus vote count, which picked one winner on caucus night, Mitt Romney (by 8 votes!), then, upon certification, declared a tie for the ages, due to paperwork problems, then, at last, after a very brief pie fight, declared Rick Santorum the champion by 34 votes.  Rimshot.

Maybe that's why he's departing. It's too close to call. And apparently too painful to mention:

The prepared text of Strawn's message to Iowa Republicans follows below:

January 31, 2012

Dear Iowa Republican:

In December 2008, when I campaigned to serve as your Chairman, my top goal was to make the Iowa GOP a relevant force again in Iowa politics by ushering in an era where the Republican Party returned to winning elections without betraying our conservative principles.

Over the past three plus years, we succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. We witnessed sweeping Republican electoral victories at all levels. We saw an explosion in new Republican voters with an unprecedented 34 consecutive months of Iowa GOP voter registration gains. We kept the Iowa Caucuses First-in-the-Nation. We broke fundraising records, hosted the largest Republican presidential caucus in history, and for the first-time ever, the Iowa GOP co-hosted three nationally televised presidential debates that were watched by millions. Most importantly, Iowa Republicans accomplished all this and more working together as a team.

Simply put, your Iowa GOP is better off than it was four years ago thanks to outstanding team work. Your Iowa GOP is a relevant force again in Iowa politics. Your Iowa GOP is winning elections with leaders who are advancing our principled agenda. Your Iowa GOP is in a position to re-elect our members of Congress, win an Iowa Senate majority, and make Iowa's six electoral votes the national battleground in the 2012 presidential campaign.

While the election wins, fundraising successes and media appearances are the aspects of being Chairman that gain the most attention, the most rewarding aspect of my service was the opportunity to travel our state and get to know the people of Iowa. The strength of the rebuilt Iowa GOP rests in the hands of the thousands of committed volunteer activists who give their time, treasure and talents to make Iowa a better place by working to elect public servants who share our values and principles.

The Iowa GOP designs its position of Chairman to be volunteer in nature. But over the past three years I have treated the privilege of serving as your Chairman as a full-time calling. There's no question the job of rebuilding our party was a huge one, and one to which I committed every minute that was necessary to succeed.

It is only because the Iowa GOP has returned as a strong and relevant voice in Iowa politics that I am now able to evaluate all the competing priorities in my personal, business and political life. The party is strong and has the resources in place for victory in November. Now is the time to transition to new leadership.

Effective February 10, I will be ending my service as your Chairman. For this fifth generation Iowan and Benton County farm kid, serving as your Chairman has been an honor, a privilege and the opportunity of a lifetime.

To victory,

Matthew N. Strawn

So good news, Republicans can now put the whole caucus count mess behind them. Uh, yeah, unlikely.

Bad news, everything in Strawn's statement is pretty much true, and the party is losing a very effective chairman.

Strawn was a truly skilled party chairman, one of the better ones I've seen operate in Iowa. He 's a reasonable adult a time when that mode of leadership seems to be out of fashion in electoral politics. Strawn is a loyal partisan and strong Republican advocate who doesn't feel the need to be condescending, cheap or vicious to get his party's point across.

He's a professional political operative, so let's not go canonizing him or anything. Liking his style doesn't mean I bought all of his side's substance or strategy. And the caucus count truly was a big oops, with a potential lasting impact on Iowa's ability to keep its presidential pole position. Any party chair who serves at caucus time knows his or her job is riding on a smooth, fair process and outcome.

Still, I'm sorry to see his tenure cut short. And I hope he stays in the game.

But hey, on the bright side, the Iowa Barnstomers' arena football opener is just 41 days away. Who needs politics?