DES MOINES — There never really was any suspense as to what the outcome would be. Donald Trump romped to victory in Iowa’s Republican caucuses on Monday, and his coronation as his party’s 2024 standard-bearer is officially underway.
Then there was the fact that turnout was dampened by the most bitterly cold weather ever recorded on a caucus night. Temperatures here in Des Moines were minus-4 degrees, and felt like minus-22 with the wind factored in. In some rural areas of the state, they were even lower.
But this year’s result was so lopsided — and so in line with the national trend lines that are forming — that it does appear to augur what lies ahead in a Republican race that is likely to be wrapped up early in the primary season. President Biden’s campaign is already on a general-election footing for a battle with Trump, a rematch of two unpopular leaders that Americans are decidedly unenthused to see.