Image use courtesy of la.indymedia.org
Columnist Michael Goodwin at the New York Daily News writes:
[Sen. Hillary] Clinton has been the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, but she’s suddenly looking tired next to two surging opponents. Recent polls from Iowa and New Hampshire, two of the first states to cast nominating ballots, show Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards either ahead of her or tied with her.
Goodwin goes on:
The early results recall Kerry’s tortured path to the 2004 nomination. He was flying high in the preliminary jockeying, then sagged like rotting fruit as the voting drew closer. He got his groove back only with a dramatic comeback victory in the Iowa caucus.
Clinton would be happy with such an outcome, but she can’t be happy at the recent turn of events, which count as the first surprises of the 2008 race. It’s bad enough that Obama is the hot ticket after his stunning decision to test a race. But even more surprising is that Edwards, Kerry’s lackluster running mate in 2004, is doing so well in both states.
Having two formidable opponents ahead of her is not a good omen, for it reveals that many Dems don’t want Clinton. They know her and, so far, they’re rejecting her.
The latest Iowa poll was certainly an attention-getter. A survey of 600 likely party voters there put Clinton a distant fourth. Edwards and Obama both scored 22%, and the state’s governor, Tom Vilsack, got 12%. Clinton scored only 10%.