Momentum in Iowa

There has been some discussion about the fact that Howard Dean may fizzle out and someone like Wesley Clark could end up running off with the democrat's nomination. Meanwhile, this NYT story breathlessly describes John Edwards campaign:
"He is packing halls across Iowa. He is finding what many Democrats say is the stride that eluded him for much of the year. And he was attacked by name in a new television advertisement released Tuesday by Howard Dean, a development that Mr. Edwards's advisers celebrated as a sign that he had arrived."

Edwards doesn't need to win Iowa to be considered successful. He can pick up some momentum by simply surviving. A San Francisco chronicle story reports Edwards' strategy as this:
His basic strategy: a stronger-than-expcted finish in Iowa's Jan. 19 caucuses, a respectable showing in New Hampshire's Jan. 27 Democratic primary, then a big stand in South Carolina, one of seven states holding primaries the following week.

Personally, I'd much rather see a Bush vs. Dean contest. I hope we won't someday be nostalgic for the time when we could laugh about Dean's latest gaffe.

As for Clark, I still think he hasn't got a chance!