GOP presidential candidate U.S. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) ran away with the National Federation of Republican Assemblies Straw Poll on Saturday in Des Moines, garnering 82 percent of the vote among Iowans.

Businessman Herman Cain came in second with 14 percent. Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann and Texas Gov. Rick Perry each got 1 percent or less. Former Utah Gov. Jon Hunstman and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney received no votes.

It was clear from the beginning of the event the majority of attendees came to see Paul, who spoke first. Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum also spoke at the event, while former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich addressed the crowd briefly by video.

Paul got a warm reception from the audience of several hundred, saying what the country needs is less government intrusion, more openness in government, a focus on dealing with the national debt and a foreign policy overhaul.

The federal government has invaded peoples’ lives, Paul said, especially through the Patriot Act. He called for repealing the law put in place following 9/11, saying it undermines liberty.

He also wants investigations into the federal reserve, the war in Iraq, the Fast and Furious operation and government loans to Solyndra.

“If there’s any one thing that would benefit us, it is to get more openness in government,” Paul said.

On foreign policy Paul delivered a strong anti-war message, calling United States foreign policy “deeply flawed” and saying “it’s time for us to come home and mind our own business.”

And on the economy, Paul said lowering the national debt, cutting the budget and auditing the federal reserve would go a long way toward putting the country back on track.

“This country needs to wake up and quit lying to itself, whether it’s on the economics or the foreign policy,” he said. “What we need is a healthy dose of renewal of the spirit of liberty.”

A small crowd of about 50 remained by the time Santorum spoke about an hour later. He said the 2012 election is about “the heart and soul of America,” and described himself as a candidate that can win, can govern and can be trusted. He also attacked President Obama on a number of fronts, saying he’s hurt America’s security, expanded government and undermined the family.

“It is an election about whether we’re going to be a free people who believe in limited government, who believe in the free enterprise system, who believe in the dignity of human life, who believe in the central building block of our society which is the family,” he said.

President Rod Martin described the NFRA as believing in “a more libertarian strand” of conservatism than the Republican Party as a whole. The tagline for the group is “the Republican wing of the Republican Party.”

“We believe our country has been overrun by people who don’t share those values, and we think it’s time to give them the pink slips they’ve been giving all of us,” Martin said.

Though the bill has little chance of getting past the U.S. Senate or Pres. Barack Obama, it is part of Bachmann’s new campaign tactic of appealing to social conservatives to shore up a floundering campaign.

“A pregnant woman who enters an abortion clinic is faced with a decision that will forever change two lives,” Bachmann said of the bill in a statement. “That’s why she must have the very best information with which to make that decision. The ‘Heartbeat Informed Consent Act,’ that I introduced today, would require that abortion providers make the unborn child’s heartbeat visible through ultrasound, describe the cardiac activity, and make the baby’s heartbeat audible, if the child is old enough for it to be detectable.”

Bachmann also recently said she would push for a constitutional amendment banning abortion if she was elected president.

At the same time, her campaign released an online video where she laid out her credentials in opposing abortion and rights for same-sex couples.

Bachmann has been touring Iowa this week, pushing a strong anti-abortion message.

On Wednesday, she hit two stops to talk about the issue. In Des Moines, she told anti-abortion activists, “Don’t settle for a candidate that does not stand up for the sanctity of life.”

And a visit to speak with members of the Family Leader, a group that opposes abortion and rights for same-sex couples, was cut short when students from Grinnell College showed up to protest carrying signs that read “My body, my choice” and “Have my gaybee.”

Texas Gov. Rick Perry today announced additional staff joining his campaign’s Iowa leadership team, including five former members of former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty‘s 2012 presidential campaign.

Matt Whitaker, formerly Gov. Pawlenty’s Iowa chairman, will join the Iowa Perry campaign as statewide co-chairman, serving alongside current statewide chairman, Robert Haus.

“We have a strong Iowa team that will help me take my vision to get America working again all across the Hawkeye State,” said Perry. “I am proud to have these top-notch individuals leading our efforts in Iowa, helping carry my record and vision for job creation and fiscal conservatism to caucus voters.”

Whitaker is managing partner of Whitaker Hagenow GBMG law firm in Des Moines. He served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa from 2004 to 2009. Whitaker also earned a bachelor’s degree, law degree and master of business administration degree from the University of Iowa. As an undergraduate, Whitaker was a tight end on the 1990 Big Ten Champion football team and played in the 1991 Rose Bowl and the 1991 Holiday Bowl.

Gov. Perry also named several individuals to the Iowa field team, including:

• Rob Anderson, Central Iowa, formerly served as regional field director on the Pawlenty campaign; received bachelor’s degree from University of California, Santa Barbara
• Robert Crawford, Statewide Volunteer Coordinator, formerly served on the Robertson for President campaign and has worked as a Realtor in Virginia, California and Iowa; attended University of Iowa
• Rachelle Crawford, Des Moines Headquarters, formerly worked as an educator in Virginia; earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa
• Gabe Haugland, North Central Iowa, served in the U.S military and led more than 50 combat missions in Operation Enduring Freedom; was a previous Cerro Gordo County organizer for Pawlenty; received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and a law degree from Drake University
• Travis Holler, Northwest Iowa, formerly served as a regional field director for the Pawlenty campaign and aide to Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell; received a bachelor’s degree from George Washington University
• Annie McEniry, Northeast Iowa, formerly worked as a fundraiser for the Republican National Committee, legislative correspondent for U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley’s Senate Finance Committee, and served on the Iowa Branstad-Reynolds 2010 campaign and the McCain-Palin presidential campaign; received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa
• Dane Nealson, Central Iowa, former served as a field representative on Pawlenty campaign, served as chairman of Iowa Federation of College Republicans and worked on Huckabee for President campaign; received bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University
• Drew Selden, Southwest Iowa, served as scheduler and researcher on Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley 2010 campaign and worked as PGA Tournament Director in West Palm Beach, Fla.; received bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University
• Mike Thom, Southeast Iowa, formerly served as field representative for Pawlenty campaign and legislative clerk in Iowa House of Representatives; received a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University and master of public administration from Drake University

Perry previously announced Matt Gronewald as state director, Haus as state chairman and Ruth Haus as a senior consultant.

Members of Michele Bachmann’s presidential campaign staff have taken a number of fringe positions, including campaigning against LGBT rights, supporting the elimination of public schools and characterizing Mormons as non-Christians.

Democracy in Action tracks the campaign organization for presidential candidates and reveals a formidable number of campaign surrogates and field directors in Iowa, South Carolina and New Hampshire.

Sheri Few is Bachmann’s campaign director in South Carolina, and she’s no stranger to running for office; she’s tried three times for the South Carolina General Assembly. In 2008, her campaign literature said, “God has been preparing her to become a public servant for as long as she can remember.” That echoes Bachmann’s own assertions that God told her to run for Congress.

The Columbia Free Times reported in late August that Sheri Few runs an anti-gay, abstinence-only until marriage organization that took in $2.2 million in federal funds between 2005 and 2007.

That organization, South Carolina Parents Involved in Education (SCPIE), has been a very controversial one. It opposes Gay-Straight Alliances, safe-schools efforts and diversity training in schools. “The influence of homosexual activists within the nation’s educational system continues to grow, altering the attitudes of children and teens toward the acceptance of a unhealthy lifestyle,” the group wrote in 2008.

Few wrote in 2008, “I, for one, am glad that our state legislature has already safeguarded our children from the discussion of a lifestyle that is neither healthy nor normal. It is bad enough that we have to shelter our children from the borage [sic] of television shows that treats homosexuality as though it were just another choice among the smorgasbord of immoral behaviors networks portray as commonplace with no undesirable consequences.”

The group also says that evolutionary theory is a farce, has attempted to get intelligent design taught in schools and opposes vaccines for Human Papillomavirus.

But perhaps Few’s group’s biggest issue is abstinence-only until marriage. SCPIE took in $2,231,529 under the federal Community Based Abstinence Eduction Project. The group also receives hundreds of thousands of dollars from South Carolina for its abstinence programming, and has gotten money from the Institute for Youth Development through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to create an abstinence toolkit.

Aside from Few’s founding of a federally-funded organization, she’s also worked as the Marriage Project Coordinator for the Palmetto Family Council, which has received federal funds for marriage programming.

Few has defended her new boss, Bachmann, in light of the candidate’s lagging poll numbers in the race.

“My opinion of the campaign is, it’s very strong and we’ll continue to gain momentum going into these debates,” she told the New York Times. “That’s a format at which Mrs. Bachmann truly shines. What we’ll see in the coming weeks will bring her back to where she was before.’’

One of Bachmann’s field directors in southeast Iowa, Emma Nemecek, came under criticism in 2007 when she was a field director for then-candidate Sam Brownback. Nemecek forwarded an email that attacked Brownback’s GOP rival for president Mitt Romney for being Mormon. The email said, in part, “Theologically, the only thing Christianity and the LDS (Later Day Saints) church has in common is the name of Jesus Christ, and the LDS Jesus is not the same Jesus of the Christian faith.”

Nemecek said at the time that forwarding the email was an honest mistake. She was reprimanded by the Brownback campaign.

But, Nemecek isn’t the only one working for Bachmann in Iowa who has had strong words about Mormons. Barbara Heki is in charge of organizing coalitions for the Bachmann campaign.

She worked with Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign in 2007 and once told the New York Times, “Mormons spend two years of their lives as missionaries, preaching an anti-Christian doctrine. I don’t want someone out there, if I can help it, who’s going to be acting on an anti-Christian faith as the basis of their decision-making.”

Heki is a member of the Network of Iowa Christian Home Educators, a home-school activist group.

“Instead of looking at who’s electable, I’m looking at who’s the best person,” Heki told the Financial Times earlier this year. “From a theological perspective, biblically, God puts leaders in place and my role is to look for the most righteous leaders—to be a light by supporting them and then let God work through that.”

The Times notes that Heki opposes public schools and opposes abortion in all circumstances including cases of rape or incest.

Heki was paid by the American Family Association, a group the Southern Poverty Law Center has labeled an anti-gay hate group, during the campaign to oust three Iowa Supreme Court justices who ruled that the Iowa Constitution allows for same-sex marriage. Two other current Bachmann staffers worked on same campaign, Iowa for Freedom, against marriage equality.

Drew Klein is a field organizer for Bachmann. He recently stepped down as the director of the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, which is the brainchild of former Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed.

Bachmann’s Iowa political director, Wes Enos, also worked for Iowa for Freedom. In a radio interview earlier this year, Enos called for the removal of the remaining justices and insinuated that they were enemies of God.

Perhaps the most controversial is Bachmann’s director of faith outreach in Iowa, Peter Waldron. Waldron was arrested in Uganda in 2006 on terrorism charges after authorities allegedly found guns and ammunition in his suburban Kampala home. Reports conflict on what exactly transpired there, but some say Waldron was attempting to collect a bounty on a militia leader, while other media reports claim he was attempting to set up a political party based on Christian values.

He’s founded of a number of organizations including Advancing American Freedom, Christians Restoring America’s Greatness (founder and president), Cities of Faith Ministries, the Contact America Group, Inc., and The Save The Family Foundation.

Waldron is a devout Christian and has worked with leaders in the Reconstructionist movement, a movement that advocates a Christian-centered government. He co-wrote a book called, “Rebuilding the Walls: A Biblical Strategy for Restoring America’s Greatness.”

He spent 37 days in Uganda prison before being released. The method of his release is also prone to conflicting reports. Waldron has insinuated that President Bush intervened on his behalf, but other media reports suggest that Ugandan officials didn’t have much of a case and lost interest in pursuing it.

He’s got a movie coming out about his ordeal in Uganda which may shed light on his side of the story, but Waldron himself has avoided any contact with the press since revelations of the terrorism charges and his connection to the Bachmann campaign were revealed in late-August. And much of his past history has been scrubbed from the internet.

He’s outlined his strategy for reaching evangelical voters. One component is prayer:

The candidate needs prayer and must develop a prayer network in each state. The prayer network secures the candidate’s position as a “legitimate” Evangelical and a member of the faith-based community. All people of faith respect prayer and its supernatural power. Everyone can pray and each person must feel a part of the candidate’s effort to receive the nomination. Prayer does not require money, fame, and position of influence or power to achieve a sense of importance.

Bachmann’s campaign released a statement praising Waldron’s efforts on behalf of the campaign. “Michele’s faith is an important part of her life and Peter did a tremendous job with our faith outreach in Iowa. We are fortunate to have him on our team and look forward to having him expanding his efforts in several states.”

Waldron is currently working in South Carolina on behalf of the campaign, according to a Facebook posting which Waldron recently took down.

The first Iowa poll to account for Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s announcement that he’s running for president has found that he’s knocked former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann from the top of the pile.

The poll was conducted by Democratic polling firm Public Policy Polling between Aug.19-21. It has a margin of error of +/- 5.5 percent.

The poll results could alarm Bachmann’s campaign, which won the recent Iowa Straw Poll and led the pack in recent Iowa polls. The number of prospective Republican voters who see her negatively has almost doubled since Public Policy Polling’s last Iowa poll, from 16 percent negative to 35 percent.

Perry announced his official candidacy last week. It’s also the first poll showing the aftermath of former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s withdrawal from the race.

When Reps. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas) took first and second, respectively, at Saturday’s Ames Straw Poll, they weren’t the only victors; Iowa’s tea party movement, and particularly social and religious conservatives within the movement, mobilized to bring their voices on issues to the forefront.

But pundits find it unlikely similar voices will crop up throughout the nation, the tea party movement’s boost may be short-lived, and mobilization in one contest does not represent a new divide in the Republican between fiscal moderates and social conservatives. As Iowa State University political science professor Dr. Steffen Schmidt put it: “Bachmann gave the tea party (in Iowa) a boost, but Iowa is a more concentrated ‘tea’ than other states.”

Bachmann is the founder of the congressional tea party caucus and typically considered a beacon among activists in the movement. Second-placing Paul has been long called the “intellectual grandfather of the tea party.” The pair embody less government regulations and desire for limited government, but in Iowa, analysts say, tea party ralliers have a different element: social conservatism on issues with voters who want a candidate to stand for their religious — typically Christian — values.

“Some of the groups here in Iowa crossover a bit more into the social issues and that works well for Bachmann,” Dr. Tim Hagle, who teaches political science at the University of Iowa, said. “Overall, this works well for the tea party among Republican voters, as it keeps those issues in the forefront.”

“Although I would argue that social conservatives do not dominate Iowa politics the way some national media outlets seem to suggest, they are clearly more important to the political conversation here than, for example, in New Hampshire,” Hagle continued. “Thus, even though economic and fiscal issues will likely dominate the 2012 election cycle, social conservatives will still want to be sure that the person they support is at least acceptable — if not perfect — on the issues they care about: abortion, gay marriage, (and) home schooling.”

But Saturday’s straw poll doesn’t signal a divide or winds of change within the Republican Party, both Hagle and Schmidt speculated.

“That Bachmann and Paul finished at the top in the straw poll it certainly seems to give a boost to the status of the tea party and its issues, but that doesn’t really result in the notion that some combination of social conservatives and tea party activists have taken over the Republican party (in Iowa),” Hagle said, likening the “takeover” charge to a flavor-of-the-week.

“Although I would argue that social conservatives do not dominate Iowa politics the way some national media outlets seem to suggest, they are clearly more important to the political conversation here than, for example, in New Hampshire,” he continued. “Thus, even though economic and fiscal issues will likely dominate the 2012 election cycle, social conservatives will still want to be sure that the person they support is at least acceptable — if not perfect — on the issues they care about: abortion, gay marriage, (and) home schooling.”

At a campaign stop in Iowa on Friday, a member of the audience grilled Tim Pawlenty on his views about rights for LGBT people. Gabe Aderhold, a senior at Edina High School, asked Pawlenty why he has “not had the courage to stand for me and my friends. You are discriminating against me and it hurts.” Pawlenty said he will never be at the point “where I’ll say that every domestic relationship is the same as traditional marriage.”

Pawlenty has opposed all efforts in Minnesota to give same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples. And his opposition extends beyond marriage equality. He vetoed legislation that would give same-sex couples the right to fulfill a deceased partner’s last wishes in 2010. In 2008, he vetoed a bill that would allow local units of government to provide health care benefits for same-sex couples.

Also in 2008, he vetoed a bill to allow government employees, including same-sex partners, to use sick time to care for a seriously ill family member. The Minnesota Family Council pressed for a veto and got one.

“The end game in all of this is a legal imposition of homosexual marriage upon the state of Minnesota,” said Tom Prichard, the group’s president, at the time.

It’s once again the time in American politics when all eyes turn to Iowa, and nearly every political pundit in the nation pauses long enough on his/her trek into flyover country to wonder why.

To be clear, national dissenters do have legitimate points to make when discussing the Ames Straw Poll. It really is all about money — money for the Republican Party of Iowa, money for Iowa venders and money for local merchants who benefit from foot traffic and hotel room rentals. There’s also the aspect of which candidate is willing to spend the most money in order to produce a good showing. Free food, free entertainment, free bus rides are all a part of the day’s luxuries for GOP activists.

From the outside looking in, the whole process appears a bit cynical — and that is exactly where national pundits and parachute journalists miss the whole point.

The Ames Straw Poll is a spectacle. It’s a rowdy carnival of politics, served with a side of barbeque and ice cream. There’s little wonder why, despite the best efforts of Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, that those interested in politics want to look this way. It’s gritty. It’s fun. It’s an opportunity to catch a glimpse of extreme Iowa retail politics in action. But, it’s also easy for those in neighboring states or even across the big pond to get caught up in the show and the one-upmanship, and forget they are only peeking in Iowa’s windows and not really participants.

In 2008, for instance, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the vote tally at the Ames Straw Poll, prompting a nearly never-ending string of national reports about how Romney was set to capture the party’s nomination. Months later, when The Iowa Independent editorial team predicted that former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee would take the caucuses, the idea was radical to the national media — so much so that our 2007 Power Rankings were a topic of discussion on Fox News.

“How could this be?” was the collective groan heard nationally, “Romney tossed everything he had at Iowa.”

Of course, the 2008 caucuses forced the national media to reconsider its view of Iowa voters. How could they reconcile a state that selected both Huckabee and Barack Obama? The answer, at least for those not on the ground in the Hawkeye State, was to paint the Iowa GOP as being overwhelmingly social conservative — a misconception that continues to this day, and has served to elevate a man three times rejected by Iowa Republicans as a chief executive to the level of 2012 “kingmaker.”

Many believe the money behind the Ames Straw Poll is Iowa’s dirty little secret, but here’s the real secret: Everyone in Iowa knows that money is the driving force behind the straw poll. More importantly, Iowa GOP caucus-goers are savvy enough to adjust their thinking about the campaigns with respect to money being spent. It is well understood here that the straw poll is non-binding. As Drew Carey would say, “That’s right, the points don’t matter, just like a salad bar at a strip club.”

What does matter in Iowa is perceptions, expectations and observations. What has a candidate been doing for the past few weeks at the grassroots level? Who are the people — staff members, strategists and activists — that a candidate has chosen? In summary, given everything now known, what type of support should this candidate be able to produce at the straw poll?

Current Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, for instance, was considered an Iowa favorite prior to the 2007 straw poll. He had few gaffes, was a personable individual with a fair amount of charisma and appeared to have an inside track with various constituency groups. His ultimate placement in the straw poll wasn’t horrible — he came in third — but Iowans expected him to do better. Those who had previously been firm supporters began to question their initial judgment, and his base softened significantly — much of it moving to Huckabee following his better-than-expected second-place finish.

For the 2012 candidates, the straw poll is a time that they must shine — and this is especially true for those who haven’t garnered much national attention and for those that have placed the majority of the aspirational eggs in the Iowa basket.

Tim Pawlenty — All of Pawlenty’s hopes now ride with the straw poll. Iowans have watched as his campaign has grown, often pulling in some of the most knowledgeable and experienced caucus staffers. He hasn’t just beat the Iowa ground, he has beat it repeatedly while appearing beside social conservatives, at county functions and a wealth of other events throughout the state. For him not to be in the top three at the straw poll would be an unforgivable performance. A top placement would beat perceptions about his campaign not catching fire with Iowans, would be the driving story coming out of the straw poll and would boost him forward into the national spotlight.

Michele Bachmann — If Bachmann doesn’t place at the top of the field, she will not meet the expectations and perceptions of Iowans. If she doesn’t meet those expectations, her campaign dies in Iowa because she — more than any other candidate — needs the legitimacy of the caucuses to push her into New Hampshire, real estate currently owned by Romney, and South Carolina, soon to be the property of fellow southerner Perry.

Ron Paul — Although Paul’s campaign paid the highest amount for his placement in the straw poll, expectations surrounding him aren’t all that high. Most Iowa Republicans know there are some within their party that have a significant Libertarian bent, and that those individuals will support Paul no matter what. Such support in 2007 earned him a fifth place straw poll finish. He needs to clear that goal post and then some in order for his campaign to continue its march toward the mainstream in 2011. But even if he doesn’t, he won’t go away and his core supporters won’t go away. And, at the end of the day, that might be the biggest obstacle to his success in Ames. If the overriding perception is that you won’t drop based on straw poll placement, some Iowans might lend their support to another candidate who holds certain ideas that the caucus-goer would like to see continue as a part of the 2012 discussion.

Mitt Romney — There are no expectations related to Romney. The straw poll has no bearing on his campaign, which will continue on no matter what. So, look for him to place low in Ames, as core supporters check the box beside another name — likely in hopes of catapulting a lesser known name above those candidates perceived as Romney’s biggest national rivals.

Rick Perry — It remains to be seen if Perry’s South Carolina announcement will energize or disappoint Iowa Republicans. Either way, expectations are low for the Texas Governor; any placement above the eighth slot will keep his name buzzing. That being said, if his write-in campaign manages to pull enough support to place him among the top three, it won’t matter who is slotted above him. In that scenario, Perry will be the headline of the Ames Straw Poll.

Rick Santorum — While Santorum has been largely ignored by the national media, except for those who have negatively noted some of his campaign stops, he does have a core following in Iowa that is largely related to social conservatives. In fact, if Bachmann wasn’t in the race, there would be a very high perception that Santorum would do well on Saturday. With more social aspects of the party split between candidates, however, Santorum just needs to meet mediocre expectations. A fourth or fifth placement should seal the deal for him, so long as he continues to be a fixture in Iowa throughout the fall. Beyond that, however, on the Iowa stump, Santorum has billed himself as the candidate who has taken on Democrats in Democratic districts and won. While this is true, Iowans are still waiting to hear why they should support a man who couldn’t maintain his seat in the U.S. Senate — something beyond him saying that it was just a bad year for the GOP in Pennsylvania. If he can’t give Iowans a reason to believe, even a third place finish won’t serve him well and he’ll be out before the end of October.

Newt Gingrich — No one expects Gingrich to do much, and he won’t. He will, however, continue to strike out at the media for his and his campaign’s shortcomings.

Thaddeus McCotter — There is a real window of opportunity emerging for McCotter in Iowa, who appeals to a broad facet of Iowans. He will, of course, need to overcome the star power of some of the better known candidates, and he is at a distinct disadvantage to those who have been campaigning in the state for months. Yet, even those who are hard-boiled supporters of some of the front-runners have been giving McCotter a second look. His stump speech is like a feature-length drama — full of danger about the future, with GOP activists cast as the protagonists that must rise up against all odds and save the entire world. Unfortunately, McCotter has hitched his wagon during this past week to the national religious conservative groups who have been touring the state to raise awareness of the issues surrounding abortion and marriage for gays and lesbians. There is little oxygen left among that facet of Iowa caucus-goers for another candidate, especially one that has come late and isn’t an already known commodity. His secret weapon is that no one expects him to place well. If manages a respectable placement, he can ride the wave and perhaps earn the support of more experienced staffers and Iowans who abandon other sinking ships.

Jon Huntsman — Like Romney, Huntsman does not rise or fall by the straw poll. He isn’t actively participating and, thus, isn’t expected to have a good showing. The only way the straw poll results make a difference for either campaign is if they become a Cinderella story — a scenario that is not likely.

Herman Cain — There are few expectations attached to Cain’s campaign, which works in his favor. On the other hand, there appears to be too little support for Cain for him to be a straw poll standout. If this event was held a month or six weeks ago, Cain could have been the headline leaving Ames. But it isn’t, and his campaign appears to have peaked too early in the Hawkeye State for him to get much of a boost. Libertarians have mostly stayed with Paul’s campaign, social conservatives are all over the board due to a wide range of choices and fiscal conservatives aren’t convinced he has the experience needed to lead the country.

The remainders — Fred Karger, Gary Johnson and Buddy Roemer — Johnson has made clear to his supporters that he has no interest in the straw poll. Likewise, Roemer, who is focused on campaign finance issues, finds the fundraiser a bit distasteful. Karger, on the other hand, would like to play in Ames and has encouraged supporters to give him a write-in nod. It’s doubtful that Karger, who is out-of-sync with an Iowa GOP rallying against civil marriage for gays and lesbians, will be able to muster even a descent showing, but it will certainly make headlines if he does.

Lynda Waddington is the editor of the Iowa Independent.

AMES, Iowa — Tensions reached their apex Thursday night during the Fox News/Washington Examiner GOP presidential debate, sending Republican enthusiasm through the roof with less than 48 hours until the Ames Straw Poll gates open Saturday.

Debate topics were typical: conflict in the Middle East, American’s floundering economy, immigration, states’ rights, and of course, hot button social issues. Not to be missed were references to dog food and Mickey Mouse.

Atypical? How candidates came out swinging — at each other, at President Barack Obama and even at the debate moderators.

Twice, Rep. Michele Bachmann, a Straw Poll favorite and tea party darling, and former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty traded heated words about the other’s political records and policies.

Poised and never appearing flustered, Bachmann deflected attack after attack fired by Pawlenty, including her compromise on raising Minnesota’s state tax on cigarettes in 2005. Pawlenty was then governor, Bachmann, a state lawmaker.

Bachmann explained she initially opposed the tax, but later compromised upon learning of a provision in the same legislation that gave strong support to the anti-abortion community and platform.

“You can get money wrong, but you can’t get life wrong,” she said in the debate.

Pawlenty, who has been slow to gain momentum in the Hawkeye State, came back swinging, claiming the congresswoman’s D.C. record was void of anything substantial.

“As to her record: she’s done wonderful things in her life, absolutely wonderful things, but it’s an undisputed fact that her record in Congress in nonexistent,” Pawlenty said. “She’s got a record of misstating and making false statements.”

“You’re killing us,” Pawlenty told Bachmann, drawing audible reaction from the audience.

The congresswoman remained on point, countering the governor by comparing his own record to Obama’s, stating: “You said the era of small business is over. That sounds a lot like Barack Obama if you ask me.”

Within the first hour of the debate, Bachmann and Pawlenty’s volleys almost overshadowed the other six candidates. Forty-five minutes passed in the debate with only a couple minutes from former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, a Catholic Conservative from Pennsylvania. Finally, in the second hour, a frustrated Santorum called Fox News moderator Bret Baier out for not giving him the same face time as Bachmann and Pawlenty, raising his hand and declaring, “I haven’t gotten to say a lot.”

Santorum and Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) sparred over American intervention in Iran, with the long-time congressman blaming the U.S. for hostilities in Iran.

“Anyone who says Iran is not a threat is not seeing clearly,” Santorum said.

The former senator also had his chance to stand out late in the debate, when he gave an impassioned argument on why the debt ceiling had to be raised — a stance the other candidates, particularly Bachmann, have taken vehemently against. Santorum maintained while it had to be raised, it should have been done so with a balanced budget in place.

Prominent Atlanta businessman Herman Cain seemed to spend a significant amount of his face time clarifying past comments and telling America that it “needs to learn to take a joke.” However, Cain also touted his private sector experience in repairing the economy.

“It is imperative we get this economy going in the in next 90 days,” after the next president is inaugurated, he said. One of the foundations to that is making tax rates permanent and setting a maximum tax rate for corporations.

Frontrunner Mitt Romney, who earlier in the day incited political fireworks at the Iowa State Fair, stuck to oft-heard phrases on his campaign stops.

But when asked about the bipartisan legislation that raised the debt ceiling, Romney bluntly said, “I’m not going to eat Barack Obama’s dog food. What he served up is not what I would have done as president of the United States.”

Fellow candidate Newt Gingrich, who served as U.S. House Speaker in the 1990′s, was even more blunt, calling the super-committee borne from the debt ceiling drama “dumb,” and characterized debate moderator Chris Wallace’s questions as “playing Mickey Mouse games.”

Obama was the target of several political missals from the candidates, who admonished the president’s economic and fiscal policies, as well as his military strategies overseas.

New to the candidate stage was former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, Jr. Though previously pledging to skip Iowa during his campaign, Huntsman, who was also Ambassador to China under the Obama administration, visited the Iowa State Fair before the debate.

Huntsman stood out from the other seven participants on stage: the practicing Mormon believes “in traditional marriage first, but also civil unions. Our country can do better when it comes to equality,” and added the issue of marriage should go to the states. Most of the other candidates who spoke on the issue, with the exception of Paul, support a federal amendment defining marriage between one-man-one-woman exclusively.

Huntsman also has not publicly presented an economic development plan. However, he stated Thursday he would repeat the policies implemented in his native Utah.

“I’m going to do exactly what I did as governor. It’s called leadership,” he said. “We cut taxes historically and created the most business-friendly environment in the country.”

And to those who are still flirting with a 2012 bid? Bring it on, candidates said.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry — expected to join the fray this weekend — and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin have not officially declared candidacy, but should they choose to, their would-be opponents are ready to welcome them to the field.

MSNBC reports that Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann and her husband Marcus attended a church service in Des Moines, Iowa, over the weekend that included an ex-gay presentation. Bachmann, who built her political career in Minnesota fighting against rights for LGBT people, has blown off reporters’ questions about her views on LGBT rights and about evidence that her husband’s counseling clinic which performs “ex-gay” therapy.

The Bachmanns attended a church service at Point of Grace Church on Sunday which featured a presentation by Pastor Jeff Mullen.

Reading verses from the Bible to support his case, Mullen said, “We inherently know that homosexual behavior is immoral and unnatural.”

“God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness,” Mullen said, reading from the book of Romans.

Mullen’s sermon concluded with video testimonial from a man named Adam Hood, who claims to have been gay before experiencing a conversation with God. “I am so happy God has given me natural affection for a woman,” Hood said in the video, adding that his wife is nine months pregnant.

“We need to have compassion for people that are bound by that sin,” Hood added. “And it is a sin. Call a spade a spade.”

But Bachmann has been avoiding her long record of opposing LGBT rights.

“I’m not involved in light, frivolous matters,” Bachmann told reporters last week when asked about marriage rights for same-sex couples. “I’m not involved in fringe or side issues. I’m involved in serious issues.”

Bachmann has repeatedly declined to discuss the issue of “ex-gay” therapy or opposition to same-sex marriage. On the latter, Bachmann was a champion during her time in the Minnesota Senate, calling it an “earthquake issue” and likening the legalization of same-sex marriage to the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Bachmann’s have also dodged reporters questions about whether their counseling clinic performs therapy intended to change gay people straight through the power of Jesus Christ.