Iowa will be the first state to begin casting votes on January 3 for the Republican nominee for the 2012 US presidential election.<br /><br />Incumbent Barack Obama is going into the race with a 47 per cent approval rating, despite soaring unemployment and a national debt of $15 trillion that is growing by around $4bn a day.<br /><br />Democrats and Republicans continue to engage in an ideological battle about the type of government the country needs.<br /><br />Issues like security, immigration and foreign policy have been pushed to the margins as concerns about the struggling economy take centre stage.<br /><br />Al Jazeera's Alan Fisher reports from Washington.
