It’s Not Whether You Win or Lose, It’s How You Set the Expectations

This week, the Biden campaign put reporters and political insiders on notice: despite being the longstanding frontrunner in national polls, they are not counting on winning the Iowa caucus.

The Biden campaign seems to have taken notice of Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s steady rise in the polls over the summer. In Iowa, she’s drawing big crowds and big buzz. The Iowa electorate, overwhelmingly white and liberal, is also a much better fit for the progressive former Harvard professor than it is for Biden who does better with a more moderate and diverse electorate.

In a conference call held with reporters, a senior adviser from the Biden campaign tried to reset expectations for the first-in-the-nation vote in February. “Do I think we have to win Iowa? No.” CONT.

Amy Walter, Cook Political Report