The final leg of the Presidential Campaign Tour

It would have been hard to find a much better way to conclude the Presidential Campaign Tour.

Over the last few months, I have taken advantage of living close to Iowa to go see candidates during the Countdown to Caucus. Before last weekend, I had already seen six of the candidates – Ted Cruz, Chris Christie, Marco Rubio, Carly Fiorina, Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee. I added four more candidates over the weekend and also took the opportunity to see three that I had seen before.

After getting off work early on Friday afternoon, I went to Bev's On the River in Sioux City to see Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. While I thought that Gov. Bush would have benefited from being a little more informal, he did have some good things to say – in fact, he reminded me a lot of his dad, former President George H.W. Bush. He was joined by two of his three children, Jeb Jr. and Noelle, and I also got to shake hands and exchange introductions with Jeb Jr.

Me and former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley in Sioux City

After departing Bev's, I drove downtown to the headquarters of former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley. While the event was listed as a phone bank for volunteers to stir up support, I was surprised to see several attendees at Bev's join me at O'Malley headquarters. Gov. O'Malley touted his record of passing progressive legislation as Maryland governor, including abolishing the death penalty and legalizing same-sex marriage, and he also spoke about his plan to make the nation's electric grid fully green in the next 35 years (by 2050).

While at O'Malley headquarters, I also got the chance to make a new friend or two and even had a chance to chat with a lady who works at Sioux City Planned Parenthood. My conversation with her was quite interesting, but productive.

Saturday began with a midday trip to the Holiday Inn of Sioux City to see Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, and I have to say he was an impressive speaker. He was more libertarian than I expected – he advocates auditing the Pentagon for one – but did a good job of making his points. I've often said that I could see the GOP going in a more libertarian direction in the future, and hearing Sen. Paul did nothing to dissuade me from that.

After leaving the Holiday Inn, I headed to the small town (population 2,142) of Ida Grove to catch Texas Sen. Ted Cruz one more time. I had heard Sen. Cruz twice in October just as his campaign was starting to gain momentum and I wanted to see what he was like three months later. As I was three months earlier in Atlantic and Council Bluffs, I was impressed in Ida Grove. Sen. Cruz is a dynamic speaker and also knows how to make fun of himself and I found him very likable. While I may not like all of his positions, I do like Sen. Cruz.

Me and Sen. Ted Cruz in Ida Grove

In addition to making another new friend or two in Ida Grove, I also got the chance to meet a TV crew from Austria and to meet Fox News contributor Byron York – and give him my extra copy of the Ted Cruz coloring book, autographed by Sen. Cruz himself.

I concluded Saturday back in Sioux City with another visit to former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum. During the Presidential Campaign Tour, Sen. Santorum has impressed me with his authenticity and his knowledge of foreign policy. He did so once again Saturday night. If he does not win the presidency, I am of the opinion that Sen. Santorum would make a great Secretary of State in a Republican administration.

The final day of the Presidential Campaign Tour began at Morningside College in Sioux City with another chance to see New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who hosted a town hall at the school. Gov. Christie once again was impressive, displaying a solid conservatism while also showing that he could work with Democrats to end gridlock and perhaps detoxify the climate in Washington, just like another former governor did as president – Ronald Reagan.

Me and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie in Sioux City

After leaving Morningside, I drove across Iowa to Marshalltown to catch Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. While I did not get the chance to personally meet the senator, I did get to meet his daughters, grab a pair of T-shirts for my mom and sister (who are both strong Bernie fans) and also ran into an old high school friend that grew up three miles from where I live, no less.

Wow! It's hard to believe the Presidential Campaign Tour is over. It was one amazing ride – I got to see 10 presidential candidates, but more importantly, I got to see what most of them were like in person and to gain a perspective of them I would have never gained just by watching the news or campaign ads. Do I want to do it again? Absolutely!

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