“I don’t think the Clintons really like Iowa, and I don’t think they’re in any sort of hurry to come back here,” said one Clinton ally who worked with the 2008 campaign and remains close to the 2016 team. “The Steak Fry was great, and you could see that she was genuinely enjoying and loving the crowd, but I don’t think that translates into her wanting to spend six weeks there.”

The feeling that Clinton doesn’t much like or trust Iowa is a commonly-held perception among state Democrats. It dates back to 1992, when favorite son Harkin ran away with the presidential caucus, leaving Bill Clinton in fourth place behind former Massachusetts Sen. Paul Tsongas and “Uncommitted.” Hillary Clinton’s 2008 campaign exacerbated the tension — locals felt she did not truly understand the state, or want to engage in the kind of intense retail campaigning Iowa expects, and she ultimately finished in third behind upstart Sen. Barack Obama and ex-North Carolina Sen. John Edwards…

Clinton’s team is anticipating that one of the other possible Democratic contenders will catch fire in polls over the summer, and most operatives point to former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley as the likeliest contender for the role. O’Malley, who sent staffers to Iowa candidates and to the state party during the midterm elections, is appearing here over the weekend.