The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

Jindal not going away

Jindal+not+going+away

By Rebecca Morin
[email protected]

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is not leaving the Republican presidential field any time soon.

“I think the establishment would love to clear the field, they would love for this to be a Jeb Bush/Donald Trump contest, but they don’t get to pick our nominee,” Jindal told The Daily Iowan. “I know the establishment thinks it’s messy we have all these candidates. Democracy is messy. They need to get over themselves. I think competition is a good thing. I think having folks compete on their ideas, on their experiences is better for our nominee and it’s better for our country.”

The 44-year-old met with nearly 60 Iowans on Wednesday at Celebration Farm, 4696 Robin Woods Lane N.E., at an event hosted by his Believe Again Super PAC. The stop was part of a nearly weeklong stint the Governor was making through the eastern part of Iowa.

Earlier this week, Politico first reported Jindal was going to be the next candidate to drop out of the presidential race. Several hours following the report, his campaign refuted the accusation.

According to a NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released Tuesday, 1 percent of Republicans surveyed said Jindal would be their first choice. Donald Trump led the poll with 21 percent, followed by retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson with 20 percent.

With 230 GOP voters surveyed, there is a margin of error of plus or minus 6.5 percentage points.

David Yepsen, the director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University, said candidates will not drop out of the race unless they run out of money.

“If Gov. Jindal has some funds and sees an opening, I don’t see why he would want to stay in the race,” Yepsen said. “People don’t decide to run for president very lightly, it is a pretty big dream for everyone to have.”

Jindal said he has visited 46 of Iowa’s 99 counties — adding he will visit all 99. This is the Governor’s second time to Iowa City, with his last visit being in August.

Dan Gable, retired Olympic wrestler, and his wife Kathy attended the event, and missed Jindal’s remarks but wanted to meet the governor. The famous Iowa wrestler and wrestling coach said he first met Jindal on a flight to Atlanta and knew of him because of his wife.

Both Dan and Kathy Gable are registered Republicans. Dan Gable said Jindal showed him some respect that day at the airport and he wanted to return the same respect.

“I’m not sure what’s going to happen, but I definitely want a good person. He seems to be a good person and he seems to be laying some groundwork,” the 66-year-old said. “You learn a lot of things when you come out and listen a little bit, but I just know he’s a nice guy. I wanted to show some respect.”

Virginia Vedepo, an Iowa City resident, said she attended Wednesday’s event after getting a call about it, in addition to seeing his ads and him on TV.

Though she said she is unsure who she will caucus for, Vedepo said she is leaning towards Jindal. Former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio are the other candidates she said she is also looking at.

“I’m a person that follows my conscience, I’m a person that follows my principles, and I don’t necessarily go with where the media tries to push me,” she said. “I go with what my conscience, my principles, my values say I should.”

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