July 12, 2007 10:29 PM
Edwards comes back to defend his Iowa turf
View image Photo by M.E. Sprengelmeyer
Former Sen. John Edwards might be leading most Democratic polls in Iowa, but you wouldn't know it from all the biggest headlines over the past couple of weeks.
Since the 4th of July holiday week, the Iowa limelight has been dominated by the two national front-runners: Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.
Clinton and Obama practically chased each other around the state that week, wandered off for a few days, then returned this week to give dueling speeches at almost the same time, just a few blocks apart in Des Moines.
The Clinton-Obama rivalry is all anybody has been talking about.
But what about Edwards? Remember him? He still leads the polls here. Right?
Edwards slipped into northwest Iowa on Thursday night for a forum inside a jam-packed public library in Fort Dodge. HERE'S THE FULL STORY from the old-fashioned, inky version of the Rocky Mountain News.
It was less than 100 yards from where singer Paul Simon performed a concert last week for his pal, Sen. Chris Dodd.
Don't tell "Simon and Dodd-funkel," but as a "rock star," Edwards drew a bigger crowd Thursday night.
In the expectations game, Edwards has the most at stake in Iowa. He has been campaigning here since before the 2004 contest, so he's considered to have major organizational advantages.
Fairly or unfairly, some national pundits have portrayed Iowa as a do-or-die state for Edwards. So he must have noticed recently when the better-funded Obama began flooding the television airwaves with ads. Obama also is about to launch his third visit to Iowa in just the first half of July.
Edwards will try to take back some of the Iowa spotlight on Friday and Saturday, when he'll pitch his health care and rural improvement plans in nine more Iowa communities.
But after that, he and his wife, Elizabeth, are breaking with traditional campaign strategy by ducking the early caucus and primary states and going on "The Road to One America." The road theme (one we've heard somewhere before) is their way to draw attention to poverty in eight states, starting with hurricane-ravaged New Orleans, La.
But after that, does anybody think they'll be rushing back to Iowa to defend their turf?
Anybody?
Let's see a show of hands...
UPDATE: Today, Edwards plans to talk about "green collar" jobs -- but probably not this green collar.
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