On the ground in Iowa

Let's face it, the fun place to be for a politics junkie right now is Iowa. Mayor Villaraigosa flew in Saturday (after skiing in Aspen with his kids, reportedly) to stump for Hillary Clinton. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is also there, and together I guess they could form a little womanizers for Clinton caucus? Actually, Villaraigosa is hitting supermarkets, university areas and the Asian community, among other niches, before coming home to ride in tomorrow's Rose Parade and hype the year-end, good news crime numbers. "I'm supporting Hillary Clinton ... because this is the most important election in my lifetime," the mayor told a shopper at the Hy Vee Food & Drug Co. in Des Moines. City Council President Eric Garcetti is in Iowa campaigning for Barack Obama. LA Observed columnist Bill Boyarsky is on the scene for Truthdig.com, and LAO contributor Jacob Soboroff is there as executive director of Why Tuesday.org. Other Californians at work in the state include actors Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen for Clinton, Martin Sheen for Bill Richardson, former Schwarzenegger aide Darrel Ng doing press for Fred Thompson and ex-California GOP spokeswoman Sarah Pompeii helping Mitt Romney. How do they get along in the cold? "We drink a lot of hot chocolate," Ng told Carla Marinucci in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Iowa interview with Villaraigosa: By Luis Clemens at La Política.

Politically noted: Rocky's defense funds.

Mayor's message to neighborhood councils: Exclusive to CityWatch.