This is the kind of weekend where you can see why Iowa is so reluctant to give up it's position as "first in the nation" contest. GOP candidates invaded the state, pressing the flesh from one corner of Iowa to the other, culminating in 11 candidates addressing the annual Lincoln Day Dinner in Des Moines. Politico took the temperature of the room and came away with 5 major impressions: 1. THE IOWA STRAW POLL IS ON LIFE SUPPORT After lambasting Jeb Bush on Twitter last week for his decision not to participate in the famed Iowa Straw Poll this August, Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kauffman opened Saturday’s Lincoln Dinner with a video emphasizing the event’s importance. Sen. Chuck Grassley, the patriarch of the state GOP, followed him on stage to reiterate the importance of the tradition. The response? Not one of the 11 presidential hopefuls who followed them at the podium gave any indication that they will take part in it. [...] 2. SCOTT WALKER IS...(Read Full Post)