Mail in the 2016 Iowa Republican Caucus Campaign

Campaigns and super PACs flooded voters with persuasion mail during the Iowa Caucus Campaign.  Mail allows the campaigns and allied groups to communicate below the radar and is often used for attacks; there is no way to tell how much is being sent out or who is receiving it. 

Several Iowans have helpfully provided Democracy in Action with their accumulated mail.  The non-scientific sample of Republican mail includes 44 pieces (15 pieces from five campaigns and 29 pieces from nine groups).  This is a smaller sample than obtained for New Hampshire but gives some sense of which groups were maiing, how actively, which issues they were emphasizing and which audiences they were targeting as well some of the attacks that were being launched. 

Almost twice as many pieces were coming from non-campaign committees as from the campaigns themselves.  In contrast to New Hampshire, no groups were markedly ahead in the number of different mailings.  National security was the most common theme, accounting for 25% of mail pieces (11 of 44 pieces in the sample).  America's Renewable Fuel weighed in with an anti-Cruz campaign; four different pieces were noted. 

Below is a list of pieces received in the latter part of the campaign, organized by group, but not in any specific chronological order.

See also:  Mail in the 2016 New Hampshire Republican Primary  ||  Mail in the 2016 Iowa Democratic Caucus Campaign  


ITEM
SIZE (w x h) /
SIZE OPEN
SUBJECT
NOTABLE IMAGES
HEADLINES and NOTES
    
      Jeb 2016, Inc.

Card
11" x 6"
2nd Amendment
includes image of hunter in field
Jeb Bush Fought and Won on Gun Rights
Card
11" x 6"
Pro-Life
woman kissing baby, baby, Bush holding baby
Under Jeb Bush, Florida's abortion rates dropped twice as fast as they did nationwide  /  Jeb! A Pro-Life Champion
    
      Carson America, Inc.
Card
8 1/2" x 11"
GOTV
surgeon (presumably Carson), Carson, hands
With God's help, Dr. Ben Carson's hands saved lives in the past.  Now it's Your Turn.  /  At Monday's caucus, proudly raise your hand to vote for Dr. Ben Carson.
Card
11" x 8 1/2"
General
Carson at rally, Carson
We the People Stand with Ben Carson
     
      Chris Christie for President, Inc.
Card
11" x 6"
National Security
Christie MCU, Christie in Iowa town hall
Only One Candidate Has Fought Terrorism
Card
11" x 6"
National Security
Assad, Putin, Ayatollah, ISIS Flag, ISIS soldiers
Who Has The Experience To Fight This
Card
11" X 6"
Social Security
five total shots of Christie
Iowans Deserve the Truth  Social Security Will Be Broke by 2034 - Pew Research Center
     
      Cruz for President
Card
12" x 8 1/2"
GOTV
Cruz at rally; person holding Cruz sign
Stand Together  /  This Election Matters
Card
12" x 8 1/2"
National Security
Obama signing document, mushroom cloud in back.  Cruz
Rip Up the Catastrophic Iran Deal  /  Stop the Iran Deal 
Card
12" x 8 1/2"
National Security
Terrorist with gun, Eiffel Tower, barn.  Cruz
America's Security at Risk Radical Islamic Terrorists are Marching Against Us  /  Ted Cruz: Restoring America's Security
Card
12 x 8 1/2"
National Security
Terrorist with knife and gun in place of Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial.  Cruz
American Values Are Under Assault  /  Ted Cruz: Defending American Values
Card
12" x 8 1/2"
Governance / Immigration
Laughing Obama holding the U.S. Capitol in his hand.  Cruz
End Obama's Illegal Executive Orders  Starting with Amnesty /
Reverse Obama's Executive Orders
     
      Marco Rubio for President
Card
11 1/2" x 6"

GOTV / Endorsements
Rubio holding mic.  Newspaper snippets
Endorsed by Sioux City Journal, The Des Moines Register
Card
11 1/2" x 6"
GOTV / Endorsement
Rep. Trey Gowdy (SC).  Rubio shaking hands with man. 
"Marco is a rock solid conservative..." -Rep. Trey Gowdy
This is Why Rep. Trey Gowdy Calls Marco Rubio a "Rock Sold Conservative."
Card
11 1/2" x 6"
GOTV
two shots of Rubio
On Monday, February 1st, follow these 3 Easy Steps to caucus for Marco Rubio
     
     
Super PACs and Other Groups
     
      Right to Rise USA
(pro-Bush)
Card
8 1/2" x 11"
GOTV / Trump and Cruz
Trump w/ open mouth pointing, Cruz.  Bush.
Tire of These Loud Voices?  /  You Deserve to be Heard
Mailing*
10 1/2" x 6"
o 10 1/2" x 12"
National Security
n/a
From the Desk of President George W. Bush Jan. 25, 2016
Elaborate piece with enclosure* 11" x 6" Contrast Rubio, Christie, Kasich and Trump Opening up the piece reveals a rubber-band activated dice with Rubio, Kasich and Christie. Don't Roll The Dice on Risky Leaders.

4-panel
11" x 8 1/2"
o 22" x 8 1/2"
Contrast Rubio, Christie, and Kasich /  Obamacare.
Bush, Rubio, Kasich, Christie.
Christie w/ Obama, Kasich, Rubio, Bush, FL Speaker.  Bush.
Which candidate for President has done more to Fight Obamacare?
Card
8 1/2" x 11"
Christie and Kasich
Christie w/ Obama, Kasich.  Christie, Kasich headshots.
Christie & Kasich Two Bad Fiscal Records
Card
8 1/2" x 11"
Christie
Christie, traffic cone.  Christie w/ Obama.
A Broken Budget  Too Much Scandal  That's Telling It Like It Is.
     
      America Leads (pro-Christie)
Card
11" x 8 1/2"
GOTV / National Security
charred Am. flag.  snapshot of with four young people
Take This To Your Precinct Caucus Monday, February 1st  / President Obama and the Washington Politicians Have Made America Weaker
Card
11" x 8 1/2"
National Security
Gun butt and bullets.  Christie, news story snippet.
Terrorists Have One Target.  You.
Card
11" x 6"
National Security
mother and child.  Christie
prosecuting terrorists...snippets from Time, The Washington Post
 
       Keep The Promise I (pro-Cruz)
Card
11" x 8"
General
Post-It notes with favorable quotes
Let's Not Make A Yuuuuuuuuuuuge Mistake.  /  With Ted Cruz, There Is No Guessing About What He Will Do In Office.
Card
11" x 6"
Immigration
mug shots of terrorits, drug lord, convicted felon.  wire cutters cutting fence.  Cruz
If We Don't Defend Our Borders, They Wil Keep On Coming... /  It's Time to Defend Our Borders. It's Time to Stop Illegal Aliens and Terrorists!
Card
11" x 6" National Security
Cruz.  Dog tags "On February 1s Caucus for Ted Cruz - He will keep us safe"  Two shots of veterans holding kids
"The pre-eminent job of the commander-in-chief is to keep this country safe. It is the first responsibility."
Card
11" x 6" Economy
two workers in manufacturing plant.  Cruz shaking hands with worker from LaRue Tactical
Who is the one candidate that has them both?  A long record of fighting Obama's socialism  A strong jobs plan to create jobs for Iowa
     
      Keep The Promise 3 (pro-Cruz)
Card
11" x 6"
General
man from behind; he is raising his right hand, and has his left hand behind his back with fingers crossed
Are You Tired of "Campaign Conservatives" Lying During an Election Year... Then Breaking Their Promises to You Right After Going to Washington?
Ted Cruz is the only consistent conservative
 
       
CARLY for America (pro-Fiorina)
4-Panel
8 1/2" x 11"
GOTV
more than two dozen snapshots of supporters holding "I'm With Carly!" signs
From Sioux City to Davenport, Iowa Republicans ready to "Take Our Country Back" are standing with Carly Fiorina.
14-Page Booklet 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" General Cover has Fiorina, newspaper snippets from Winton-Salem Journal, The Washington Post CARLY for America
See here.  A few differences: a) On the last page "The Blueprint to Take Our Country Back" replaces ""An American Future" b) Addresses are Iowa headquarters rather than Northern VA.
 
      Pursuing America's Greatness (pro-Huckabee)
Card
11" x 5 1/2"
Contrast Cruz / Huckabee
Cruz, Huckabee headshots
Conservative Values Iowa Caucus Voter Guide 2016
Note: Compares Cruz and Huckabee on eight issues.
Card
11" x 5 1/2"
Social Values
Wedding shot man, woman aisle, audience.
50 Different States Don't Get to Define Marriage  Only God has that Authority
Card 11" x 5 1/2" General
Filtered shots of Rubio, Paul, Trump, Cruz, Santorum, Christie, Bush and cartoon graphics
It's Time to Get Serious  As President, Mike Huckabee Will:
[Fair Tax and Abolish the IRS, term limits for Congress & Supreme Court, Human Life, Traditional Marriage, Religious Liberty, Seek God's Guidance]
     
      Conservative Solutions PAC
(pro-Rubio)
Card*
11" x 8 1/2"
General
Hillary Clinton in sunglasses.
newspaper snippets
The Republican Hillary Clinton is Afraid to Run Against
Card
11" x 8 1/2"
General
three shots of Rubio
believe...  /  "Now the time has come for our generation to lead the way towards a New American Century."
Card
11" x 8 1/2"
National Security
CU of Rubio. 
U.S. National Security Demands Smart & Skillful Leadership
Card
11" x 8 1/2"
Obamacare
stethoscope/USA outline.
Rubio in official setting
Obamacare Brought Us Higher Health Costs, Less Choice of Doctors, Higher Taxes,& Bigger Government.  /  Marco Rubio has fought to eliminate Obamacare...

      Our Principles PAC
(anti-Trump)
Card
11" x 6"
Trump
Trump
How much do you really know about Donald Trump and your taxes?  /  Donald Trump once proposed the largest tax hike in American history.
Card
11" x 6"
Trump
Obama, Clinton, Trump headshots
Quiz  Which One of These Three People Said: "I believe in universal healthcare...it's an entitlement to this country."
 
       America's Renewable Future
Card
13" x 8 1/2" Cruz / Energy
American flag, oil pumps.
Cruz, oil pump.
Crude for Cruz / Oil Companies Have Their Man. Crude is for Cruz in 2016.
Card
13" x 8 1/2" Cruz / Energy
CU Cruz on old B&W TV monitor.  Cruz.
Anti-Ethanol. Antil-Renewable Fuels. Anti-Iowa. That's Ted Cruz.  /  "Yes. Cruz Is a Hypocrite When It Comes To the RFS and Big Oil."
Card
13" x 8 1/2" Cruz / Energy
CU Cruz. MCU Cruz.
Ted Cruz  An "Oil Subsidy" Conservative  /  Ted Cruz Supports Billions in Oil Subsidies. He's Picking One Industry Over Another.
Card
13" x 8 1/2"
Cruz / Energy
oil rig / corn field and farm
Oil or Iowa  Which Did Ted Cruz Choose?  /  Ted Cruz Chose Oil Subsidies Over Iowa Jobs.


* Also seen in New Hampshire.

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