Meghan McCain: My Dad Always Knew Iowa Caucus Was ‘Garbage’

Meghan McCain has known for a long time not to trust the Iowa caucuses.

“This is a disaster,” McCain said Tuesday morning on The View after Monday night’s meltdown in the first contest of the 2020 Democratic primary race. “And Iowa should completely remove themselves from the caucus in general and turn into a primary next election cycle because they clearly can't handle the responsibility and the gravity of this.”

“All the staffers and politicians who have gone to Iowa and spent millions of dollars, left their families, campaigned, gone to this state because they believe in the first-in-the-nation caucus status, to have this happen, it's a load of garbage and I'm done with it,” she continued. “And I think it does a total disservice to all the candidates who have campaigned so hard.” 

Ultimately, McCain said the “person who benefits the most” is Mike Bloomberg because he “removed himself” from the early state process, choosing to focus his energy nationally and on Super Tuesday in March. This reminded her of another candidate who bypassed Iowa during his multiple presidential runs. 

“Not everything’s about my dad, but he completely surpassed going to Iowa in 2000 and 2008, because he didn’t believe in the caucus, and I still don’t,” she said of her father, the late Senator John McCain. “Up until last night I respected it. But I do think the idea of just going, a group of people holding your hands, and if your vote doesn't count, you have to give it to another candidate, I think it's completely archaic and backward.” 

During the 2000 primary, John McCain chose to focus on New Hampshire instead of Iowa. While the eventual nominee, George W. Bush, had a commanding victory in the Iowa caucuses, McCain beat Bush by 18 points in New Hampshire just over a week later. In 2008, McCain became the GOP nominee despite coming in fourth place in Iowa behind Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, and Fred Thompson.

McCain said her number one takeaway from the whole thing, “other than it's a total cluster,” is that Iowa turnout matched 2016 levels instead of beating them, adding, “There should be more momentum.”