Leonard Boswell has represented Iowa in the House since the 1996 election. During this time frame, he managed to win over 57% of the vote just once (63% in 2000). Boswell's 51.8% vote total was his closest call since winning the formerly Republican held open seat in 1996. A good part of this was due to Boswell's age (he's 73) and poor health (he missed a lot of House votes due to the removal of a non-cancerous tumor in 2005).
Districts in Iowa are meant to be competitive. They are drawn by a non-partisan commission. In 2006, two of the state's five House seats swung from Republican to Democratic, and Chet Culver won the Governor's race by 100,000 votes state wide. Boswell's district was barely carried by George Bush in 2004 (49.69% to 49.60%). It has a slight Democratic lean that is growing. As of April, Iowa state statistics show Democrats with a 20,000 voter edge in registration in this district (140,766 to 120,755). Culver ran well ahead of Boswell in Polk County (Des Moines) last year.
Boswell has had a terrible voting record on important legislation. He was among the minority of House Democrats to authorize the use of military force in Iraq (AUMF). Boswell also voted for the PATRIOT Act, the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, a draconian immigration bill that never made it through the Senate, and No Child Left Behind.
It is important to understand that Leonard Boswell is no coward. He believes in this stuff. Boswell served 20 years in the military rising from a draftee in 1956 to a Lt. Colonel when he retired in 1976. Boswell served as an assault helicopter pilot for two tours of duty in Vietnam earning 2 Bronze Stars and 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses. He ran an ad attacking his 2006 opponent Jeff Lamberti under "national security" for being soft on immigration and soft on crime.
Boswell has veered to the left since the Democrats won back the House. He's got an above average loyalty score (94.3%) this session but is missing on key appropriations votes and other big items. His district is anchored in Des Moines and mostly spreads east from there. One potential primary foe, Ed Fallon may run for Mayor of Des Moines. Iowa is slated to lose a House seat following the 2010 Census and the aging Boswell seems like the likely odd man out. That makes it less likely that he will get a big time challenge either in a primary or in a general election. In 2006, Boswell received $800,000 from the DCCC and he is once more on the Frontline list, one of only five Democrats not to win a Republican seat in 2006 to make the list.
The Des Moines Register ran spots of candidate stump speeches at the Iowa state fair last year. Boswell came across as a weak grandfather type. He has white hair, chubby cheeks, and was certainly not dynamic or even sharply dressed (a sport coat and brown slacks). My impression from desmoinesdem and others on the blogs is that Boswell used to be a more formidable presence both electorally and in his personality. He used to run ahead of the ticket (like most congress critters, certainly most Democrats). No more. He's a dead man walking (at least politically dead) although that will possibly wait to redistricting.
Meanwhile, he works for big ag and has some concerns at times for education and for pocket book issues although this ofteb takes the form of rants and votes against spending for non-defense, non-law enforcement matters. In my mind, Leonard Boswell is someone whose time has passed. We better get a good younger person elected either for IA-3 or IA-4 if we want the delegation to break 3-1 and not 2-2 following redistricting.
Oh, yeah. Boswell, even with the skew from this year's votes, still ramks as the fifth most conservative northern Democrat (behind Murtha, Holden, Skelton, and Peterson). Unlike Murtha, he adds no other value. (And Murtha has a better loyalty score of late). Unlike Peterson, Skelton, and Holden, he does not come from a heavily Republican district. Overall, that makes Leonard Boswell one of the very top targets in the House.
