--- title: Energized Republicans Put On Fun Show in Iowa description: Irreverence, optimism and Lindsey Graham's incest joke. canonical: https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/ author: Joe Klein article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-05-17T12:04:47.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:41:43.157Z article:section: Politics og:title: Energized Republicans Put On a Campaign Show in Iowa og:description: Irreverence, optimism and Lindsey Graham's incest joke og:url: https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Energized Republicans Put On a Campaign Show in Iowa twitter:description: Irreverence, optimism and Lindsey Graham's incest joke twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Energized Republicans Put On a Campaign Show in Iowa > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. Readers can join any of them at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=6db8ac65-7985-491c-bb91-444c9137c97f&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### The seven newsletters | Newsletter | Covers | Frequency | | --- | --- | --- | | The Brief | The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors | Daily | | Inside TIME | A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | | Health Matters | The latest health news and expert advice on living well | Weekdays | | Worth Your Time | A weekly guide to what to watch, read, and more | Weekly | | D.C. Brief | Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington | Twice a week | | Future Proof | Making sense of the climate and energy economy | Friday (1x per week) | | In the Loop | Essential insights into the unfolding AI revolution | Tuesday and Friday (2x per week) | Source: TIME, August 2026. ### Key data points | Metric | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Engaged newsletter audience | 1.1 million+ readers | TIME, August 2026 | | Newsletters published | 7 | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost to readers | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | US print circulation | 1 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Global print circulation | 1.15 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Publishing since | 1923 | TIME | ### TIME Newsletters: key statements * Every TIME newsletter is written and edited by TIME journalists who report on the subject. None is generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923. Its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting, so readers can trust what they read. * All seven newsletters are free. Readers pick the ones they want at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=6db8ac65-7985-491c-bb91-444c9137c97f&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). * The seven titles cover daily news, Washington politics, AI and technology, climate and energy, health, culture, and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/subscribe?i=6db8ac65-7985-491c-bb91-444c9137c97f&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What newsletters does TIME publish? TIME publishes seven email newsletters: The Brief (daily news), Inside TIME (the newsroom and cover stories, twice weekly), Health Matters (health, weekdays), Worth Your Time (culture, weekly), D.C. Brief (Washington politics, twice weekly), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=6db8ac65-7985-491c-bb91-444c9137c97f&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Real TIME: Rand Paul at CPAC 2015 [Watch (HLS stream): Real TIME: Rand Paul at CPAC 2015](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/uYFxnb6v.m3u8) (0:59)  _Published 2015-02-27. Rand Paul touched on Hillary Clinton, Obamacare, and his proposed reforms for Congress in his speech at CPAC on Friday._ by [Joe Klein](https://time.com/author/joe-klein/) ## Joe Klein May 17, 2015 12:04 PM UTC by [Joe Klein](https://time.com/author/joe-klein/) ## Joe Klein May 17, 2015 12:04 PM UTC DES MOINES—I’m a little worried about burying the lead here. Saturday night was the annual Lincoln Day dinner in Iowa, a major cattle call for Republicans who wish to be President. Twelve candidates attended. And Senator Lindsey Graham…_no, wait_. The candidates ranged from very serious and plausible like Jeb Bush, who performed admirably, to has-beens (Rick Santorum), never was’s (George Pataki, the very former governor of New York, was there), to never-will-be’s (Rick Perry), to …to Lindsey Graham, who told a joke…_no, wait._ As I was saying, the candidates ranged from Bush, to a soft-spoken and very accomplished surgeon named Dr. Ben Carson—whose slightly bemused presence seemed that of a Buddhist monk in a leather bar—to the inevitable Donald Trump, who was the only one to make a complete fool of himself: he announced that he, personally, somehow, contra the Constitution would—did I mention, personally?—slap—that is, without the Congress, and seemingly overnight, mind you—the Ford Motor company with a 35% tax on products imported from Mexico. But Lindsey Graham, the Senator from South Carolina, came on like a cabaret act, encouraging the crowd to drink up, “The more you drink, the better I sound…” And then, after a series of energetic one-liners—this was like a post-modern deconstructionist version of a political speech—told one about his first case as a lawyer in South Carolina. It was a divorce case. “The husband asked,” the Senator said. “If we get divorced, can we still be cousins?” Okay, it was somewhat bowdlerized. The version I first heard some years ago, was, “Can she still be my niece?” But still. Senator Lindsey Graham told an incest joke at a Republican Party dinner in Iowa, where the evangelical legions are assumed to be in control. In fairness, the 1,400 GOP activists assembled seemed more from the banker-businessman sector of the party, but still—I’ve been doing this for 46 years and I don’t think I ever heard a presidential candidate tell an incest joke before. Actually, Graham—who was allotted 10 minutes, as were the other candidates—was wildly entertaining throughout. He ragged Iowa’s famously abstemious farmer-Senator, Chuck Grassley: “You know Chuck’s not paying tonight, or he wouldn’t be here.” He said he wanted to be President because “you get a house, a car and a plane.” He said that if you’re a jihadist who attacks us, “I’m not gonna call a judge”—a slap at civil libertarians—“I’m gonna call a drone and it will kill you.” In the course of an evening during which every one of the Republicans decried Islamic terrorism without really saying what they’d do about it, Graham said he would put boots on the ground in Iraq and keep them there in Afghanistan. (Before tonight, he was better known for his bellicosity than his humor.) “How many of you think the Iranians want to build a peaceful nuclear power plant and how many think they want to build a weapon?” He said that those who believed the former “shouldn’t be allowed to drive in Iowa.” He also said he was convinced that as soon as the Supreme Leader got the bomb, he would use it against Israel. This is utter nonsense—and afterwards Graham told me he was more concerned about the Iranians leaking the technology to groups like Hizballah than a frontal assault on Israel (which would result in the almost-immediately evaporation of the city of Tehran, 12 million strong). But still, Senator, the ground rules are that you’re not supposed to say mega-scary things in public if you don’t really believe them. I must say that Lindsey Graham is the cheeriest superhawk I’ve ever seen and while I’m pretty sure he won’t be nominated by the Republicans, I’m really glad he’s in the race. As for the others, there was a pattern. They talked about an economy constrained by a nonsensical tax code and web of regulations; they talked about the threat of Islamic radicalism—and the seemingly more outrageous fact that the President refuses to call it that. There was much less anger and pessimism than in the Republican class of 2012\. Rick Perry, the only one to attempt real churchified oratory, kept saying over and over again, with slightly scary fervor—an evangelist on Ecstasy?—how optimistic he was. And most of the others paid lip service to optimism—which used to be the true American religion—as well. (I should mention that Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee and Chris Christie, who might have added even more juice to the proceedings, were absent.) Rand Paul distinguished himself from the pack, as he almost always does, because he is different from the pack: he devoted much of his speech to the coming debate over the Patriot Act, which he sees as an infringement of First Amendment rights. And he launched a particularly effective attack on Hillary Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State: “Someone needs to ask Hillary Clinton if it was a good idea to topple Qaddafi in Libya,” he suggested, noting that Qaddafi has been replaced by “chaos,” with a significant slice of the (former) country in danger of falling under the control of ISIS. OK, I’ll admit it: I was expecting a fairly endless evening of predictable and highly-processed red meat. But this was…fun. There is energy and irreverence—without the Limbaugh-Hannity bitterness—in this crop of candidates, although the field could certainly use some pruning. That will come in good time, of course. For now, though, I suspect Lindsey Graham is ready for Vegas…if not for the Nevada primary. He’s crazy good. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] I believe Hillary Clinton's abdication of responsibility, her refusal to provide an adequate defense for Benghazi, her dereliction of duty, should forever preclude her from our office. As Hillary was declaring victory in Libya, > Ambassador Stevens was pleading for more security. Obamacare, at its very core, takes away a patients right to choose. As a doctor, I will take it and make it my mission to heal the nation, reverse the course of Obamacare, and repeal every last bit of it. [ UNKNOWN ] [ APPLAUSE ] I have a constitutional amendment that says, Congress shall pass no law that exempts themselves. And finally, if they won't listen, we should limit all their terms and send the career politicians packing. [ APPLAUSE ] [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/"},"headline":"Energized Republicans Put On a Campaign Show in Iowa","datePublished":"2015-05-17T12:04:47.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T07:41:43.157Z","description":"Irreverence, optimism and Lindsey Graham's incest joke","url":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/","keywords":["Republican","2016 Election","Rand Paul","Iowa","rick perry","jeb bush","Donald Trump","Joe Klein","Lindsey Graham"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joe Klein","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/joe-klein/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/republican/","name":"Republican"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/","name":"Energized Republicans Put On a Campaign Show in Iowa"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Real TIME: Jeb Bush at CPAC 2015","description":"Jeb Bush addressed his mother's comments, and outlined his views on immigration and the Common Core during his Q&A at CPAC 2015.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/Opukemjy/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-02-27T21:32:38.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Opukemjy.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/","duration":"PT59S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Real TIME: Rand Paul at CPAC 2015","description":"Rand Paul touched on Hillary Clinton, Obamacare, and his proposed reforms for Congress in his speech at CPAC on Friday.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/uYFxnb6v/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-02-27T21:31:21.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/uYFxnb6v.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/","duration":"PT59S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3881780/republican-iowa-lincoln-day-president/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```