Iowa
Ramaswamy faces curiosity and skepticism in Iowa after center-stage performance in GOP debate
PELLA, Iowa – Vivek Ramaswamy has charged back into Iowa, stoking curiosity and skepticism after his attention-grabbing performance in the first Republican presidential debate.
The charismatic 38-year-old businessman was met Friday by hundreds of GOP activists in small central cities near Des Moines, with more events planned in the coming days.
He is drawing new interest from Republicans who will participate in the nation’s first caucuses next year, but also apprehension from attendees at his events and pointed criticism from a former GOP governor. Much of the negative feedback is about his foreign policy ideas, notably his argument that the U.S. should stop providing arms and funding to Ukraine as it fights Russia’s invasion.
“I like that he’s young and energetic, and wants to tear the whole thing down,” said Thomas Bean, a 23-year-old who attended a morning event south of Des Moines. He was referring to Ramaswamy’s goal of reducing the federal bureaucracy by 75 percent.
“I like what he’s proposing. They’re not status quo,” said Bean, a public relations professional. “I just don’t know how much of what he’s proposing is realistic.”
Like Bean, several people who came to see Ramaswamy cited his youth, energy and outsider profile — punctuated by his criticism of and by better-known rivals Wednesday in Milwaukee. He drew larger than expected audiences on Friday, first to the Indianola breakfast restaurant and later a lunchtime event at a Pella brew pub.
Ramaswamy introduced himself as the son of poor Indian immigrants. But he spent most of his time speaking for what he describes as a frustrated generation seeking meaning in a nation that he says has lost its patriotism. The Ohio businessman has a background in investing and biotechnology.
“So what does it mean to be American? It means we believe in the ideals that set this nation into motion 250 years ago,” Ramaswamy said, drawing applause. “That you get ahead in this country, not on the color of your skin, but on the content of your character and your contributions.”
He mostly took a more inspirational tone than on Wednesday, when he confronted veteran politicians such as former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Vice President Mike Pence.
Ramaswamy’s argument that the U.S. should suspend financial aid to Ukraine was met with sharp rebukes from Pence and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley. Haley on Wednesday likened Ramaswamy’s position to siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin and thus “choosing a murderer.”
The crosstalk and jabs during the debate, Ramaswamy said, were like “some banter on the basketball court.”
Still, Ramaswamy’s campaign was seizing on his rising profile. His campaign said it raised $450,000 in the first hours after the debate. And he is scheduled to appear Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press and CNN’s State of the Union.
Former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, who has not endorsed a candidate, said in an interview that Ramaswamy “brings some real enthusiasm and commitment to traditional values that Americans are really clamoring for,” but described his foreign policy as “a real problem.”
“I don’t think he’s really thought that through. And I thought that Nikki Haley really took him to task on that,” said Branstad, who served as ambassador to China under former President Donald Trump. “Rightly so.”
Janice Johnson, a 72-year-old from Indianola, Iowa, said she wanted someone from Ramaswamy’s generation to take the nation’s reins. But speaking before one of his events, Johnson described Ramaswamy as “sometimes a little too enthusiastic.”
Jim Jones, a former county GOP official from nearby Carlisle, said he viewed Ramaswamy with equal parts intrigue and apprehension.
“The intrigue is about, how does this guy come off appearing so strong and come from nowhere so quickly?” said Jones, 75. “The apprehension comes from his idea of abandoning Ukraine. That’s a little bit scary.”
Ramaswamy said Friday that he was trying to protect Ukraine by seeking an ending in which Russia would retain territory it took by force.
“I personally think that actually is the best, reasonable outcome for Ukraine. At least it comes out with its sovereignty intact — and saving a lot of Ukrainian lives in the process,” he told reporters when asked about the criticism. “That’s the best case, realistic scenario for Ukraine.”
Others with more vested interests have also piled on Ramaswamy.
Hal Lambert, a donor to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, questioned Ramaswamy’s credentials and reason for running, noting Ramaswamy’s frequent praise during the debate for Trump, who remains the heavy favorite for the nomination.
“Either he thinks Trump is going to go to prison or he thinks at 38 years old and with less experience than an average city councilman, he’d be better than ‘the greatest president of the 21st century,’” Lambert said. “Which is it? Either way he shouldn’t be running.”
Ken Cuccinelli, chairman of the pro-DeSantis Never Back Down super PAC, predicted last week that Ramaswamy would get more scrutiny as interest in him rises. Never Back Down issued a strategy memo before the debate urging DeSantis to attack Ramaswamy — something the Florida governor did not do, opting instead to largely stay out of the infighting between others on stage.
“So, I’m not backing off ‘Vivek the fake,’” Cuccinelli said, referencing a catchphrase that Never Back Down wanted DeSantis to use. “He’s the most inconsistent candidate in the field, and he’s getting no scrutiny.”
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Associated Press writers Steve Peoples and Michelle Price contributed from New York and Bill Barrow contributed from Atlanta.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
SOUIX FALLS, S.D. — Iowa’s defense was smothering, and Utah did little to help itself on offense by starting the game shooting just 12.5% from the floor.
It was another first-half slow start against a Quad 1 opponent this season.
But unlike in previous Quad 1 games, where Utah allowed the opposing team run away with an early double-digit lead, the Runnin’ Utes fought back. And it was Mason Madsen, who earned his first start of the season, who provided the game-changing spark.
Madsen got a defensive rebound, and then hit a 3-pointer on the other end to open up three straight 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give Utah its first lead of the game.
From there, Utah found its offense to control a 4-point lead at the halftime break before building up the lead to 10 in the second half.
Iowa didn’t back down, though, and slowly chipped away at the lead before eventually pulling away for a 95-88 win at the Sanford Pentagon in the Utah’s final nonconference game of the season.
Madsen finished with 24 points, including going 6-of-11 from 3-point range, six rebounds and four assists, but it wasn’t enough to contend with Iowa’s offensive attack late. Lawson Lovering added 25 points, four rebounds and two assists in the loss.
Iowa forward Payton Sandfort led the charge in the second half and contributed a team-high 24 points and seven rebounds, while four other Iowa players finished in double-digit scoring.
Utah opened up the game shooting just 1-of-8 from the field as Iowa took an early 9-2 lead that was also helped by a defense that forced the Utes into late-shot situations and poor looks. Little by little, Utah found a way to get back into the game, largely by Madsen’s hot shooting and Lovering’s strong post play.
Less than two minutes into the second half, Ezra Ausar hit two free throws to give the Utes a team-high 11-point lead. Over the next five minutes, Iowa slowly chipped away at Utah’s lead and made it a 4-point game with 14:13 left to play.
Utah made only 2 points over the next three minutes as Iowa cut the lead to a single possession before Drew Thelwell hit a 3-pointer with 10:47 left for the go-ahead score. Once Iowa reclaimed the lead, there was little Utah could do over the final 10 minutes of game time to stop the Hawkeyes’ lead from growing.
Owen Freeman, the team’s leading scorer who averages 17.2 points per game, got into foul trouble and was forced to sit for much of the game — including picking up a fourth foul with just under 11 minutes to play — but finished with 16 points, six rebounds and two assists, while adding three blocks in just 19 minutes of play.
Thelwell and Josh Nix added 15 points apiece, and Brock Harding contributed 12 points to round out Iowa’s top scoring.
Utah closes out nonconference play with an 8-3 record, with all three losses coming against Quad 1 opponents. The Utes resume action on Dec. 31 in Waco, Texas, to start Big 12 play against Baylor.
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
When the Miami Hurricanes and Cam Ward take the field against the Iowa State Cyclones on Dec. 28, the Hurricanes will see an offense much like some they faced this season in ACC play.
The Cyclones are no pushover, and have the numbers to back that up. Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht tossed for over 3,200 yards this season and 22 touchdowns, most of which came at the hands of leading receiver Jayden Higgins, who caught for almost 1,200 yards on his own. Higgins has also pulled down a team-leading nine touchdowns thus far in the season, and will be looking to add to that total in the bowl game against the Hurricanes.
Those are just the surface level stats, though. Iowa State has some other weapons that could give the Miami defense some issues as well. For instance, their two headed backfield of Carson Hansen and Abu Sama III, which combined for over 1,200 yards on the ground this year. Samha is touted as one of the most talented underclassmen in the country, and is predicted by many to secure the starting role in the backfield next season.
Senior wideout Jaylin Noel serves as the team’s second leading receiver, and accounted for another 1,077 yards through the air this year for the cyclones. To put it bluntly, Iowa State has four to five guys on the field that can hurt a defense at all times, and that’s before discussing the defense.
The Cyclone defensive backfield has picked off 14 passes this year, good enough for a top-30 ranking in that category per game. The pass rush may not be what it was for ISU in 2023, but with Cam Ward under center anyway, this game looks to be one decided through the air.
Unless Miami running back Damien Martinez gets going, it looks to be a pair of high-flying offenses duking it out in the Pop Tarts Bowl this year.
The Iowa State men remain No. 3 in the latest AP Poll Top 25, which was released on Monday.
Following a win over Morgan State, the Cyclones (10-1) check in behind SEC powers Tennessee and Auburn, keeping the Top 3 the same for another week.
Duke and Alabama are right behind Iowa State, as Kentucky dropped six spots to No. 10 this week. Florida, Kansas, Marquette and Oregon complete the Top 10.
Along with Iowa State and Kansas, the Big 12 Conference is represented by Houston, Cincinnati and newcomer Baylor. The Cougars are ranked 15th, the Bearcats are No. 17 and the Bears are 25th.
Other newcomers include Mississippi State, Arkansas and Illinois, as Memphis, Dayton, Michigan and Clemson all dropped out.
The Cyclones close out 2024 when they travel to Boulder to take on Colorado. That game is set for Monday, Dec. 30 and will be the conference opener.
Here is the men’s college basketball AP Poll Top 25 for Week 8:
(Dec. 23)
1. Tennessee (41)
2. Auburn (21)
3. Iowa State
4. Duke
5. Alabama
6. Florida
7. Kansas
8. Marquette
9. Oregon
10. Kentucky
11. Connecticut
12. Oklahoma
13. Texas A&M
14. Gonzaga
15. Houston
16. Mississippi
17. Cincinnati
18. Michigan State
19. Mississippi State
20. San Diego State
21. Purdue
22. UCLA
23. Arkansas
24. Illinois
25. Baylor
Others receiving votes: Maryland 119; Dayton 108; Drake 91; St. John’s 90; Memphis 65; Michigan 50; Georgia 45; Pittsburgh 27 West Virginia 26; Missouri 25; Ohio State 23; North Carolina 20; Clemson 18; Arizona State 13; Utah State 9; Wisconsin 9; Texas Tech 8; Indiana 8; St. Bonaventure 4; Penn State 3.
Dropped from rankings: Memphis 21; Dayton 22; Michigan 24; Clemson 25.
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