US Democrat presidential candidate John Edwards said that his financial disadvantage against Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama would be quickly overcome if he were to pull off a victory in the Iowa presidential caucuses on Thursday.
"It's just reality that if you win the Iowa caucuses, the money pours in," Edwards said in an interview on Sunday. "It's almost like you cannot process it because it comes in so fast. There will be plenty of money to run the campaign."
After months of being seemingly stuck in third place in most polls in the Democratic presidential field, Edwards has climbed into a virtual tie in recent surveys and has drawn large, enthusiastic crowds on a well-trod route through the state since his second-place finish here in 2004.
The former representative, restrained from using his personal fortune by his decision to accept public campaign financing, has raised far less money and runs a smaller organization in Iowa than his chief rivals for the Democratic nomination.
No matter, he says. The presidential nomination contests are so compressed this time -- "bam, bam, bam" -- that strong early showings should be rewarded nationally, and a nominee produced in short order.
"The message will get heard," he said. "If you win the Iowa caucuses, you are going to be heard very loudly and clearly in these other places."
The Thursday caucuses in the rural, midwestern state of Iowa are the crucial first contest in political parties' state-by-state process of selecting presidential nominees. Candidates who do well in the caucuses, and in the New Hampshire primary five days later, can gain momentum and media attention, establishing themselves as front-runners. Those who do poorly often decide to drop out of the race.
The caucuses -- simultaneous meetings held at 1,784 locations statewide -- will begin the process of selecting delegates to the parties' national presidential nominating conventions in August and September.
But the nominees could be apparent well before then based on the number of delegates amassed in the primaries and caucuses. The presidential election is in November.
Mark Longabaugh, who did some campaign work for Richard Gephardt in New Hampshire in 1988 and Bill Bradley in 2000, said the squeezed primary calendar means "the dynamic is dramatically different than in the past," with less time for candidates to recover from an early setback.
He noted the usual gap of at least eight days between the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary is down to five days this time.
In 2000, Bradley was soundly beaten in Iowa but was able to boost his poll standings in New Hampshire by up to 10 points, making that race close, said Longabaugh.
"I can't imagine many people will be able to pull that off this year," he said.
Edwards claims he has s put a "terrific" organization on the ground in New Hampshire. "We have people up there every week making thousands and thousands of phone calls."
Dante Scala, a political science professor at the University of New Hampshire, agreed.
"He's invested more resources in New Hampshire, he has more people on the ground," Scala said. "If he wins Iowa, he could gain some momentum here. He's put some roots here."
Edwards' prediction that an Iowa win would spur donations is echoed by his adviser Joe Trippi, who has estimated US$1 million a day could come in as a result. Edwards had raised US$30 million by the end of September, well behind Obama and Clinton, when he decided to seek public financing. He has been certified to get nearly US$9 million in public funds.
Even so, Edwards argues that the aura of a winner will be worth more than cash after Iowa.
"I don't think it's money-driven at that point," he said. "If you've been successful in Iowa, you've been successful. Free media ... will overwhelm anything anybody spends."
POLL POSITION: Democrats criticized the timing of the raid, saying that the US justice department historically avoids public investigations within 60 days of an election Federal agents on Monday searched the home of Democratic US Representative Ilhan Omar, a startling escalation in a criminal investigation that brings renewed focus to the frequent target of White House derision in the final weeks of her re-election bid. The search of the Minnesota congresswoman’s home so close to next month’s midterm contests that would determine control of the US House and the Senate was swiftly condemned by top Democrats in Congress, who raised questions about the timing given longstanding US Department of Justice (DOJ) protocol to avoid overt investigative steps involving political candidates in the direct run-up to an
As shark attack survivor Mel Ismail fought the predator that severed his leg, he noticed something odd. “I saw its eye ... a big black eye,” Ismail said. “But it was winking back at me — I was trying to get my fingers in its eye and just pushing its eye as I was being dragged.” When the shark swam off, he managed to struggle back to shore, the surfer and professional firefighter said in an Australian Broadcasting Corp interview broadcast on Thursday. He was surfing at Glenfield Beach near Geraldton on Australia’s west coast when he was attacked on Sept. 14. He
A Rhode Island pumpkin grower appears to have broken the world record for the heaviest pumpkin, with his giant squash topping the record by nearly 136kg. Ron Wallace of Greene, Rhode Island, weighed his pumpkin on Saturday at a contest in New England and is waiting for the Guinness World Records to confirm he smashed the record, set about a week earlier by a grower in England. Wallace said he has been in contact with Guinness officials who say his record is on track to be verified. “It’s truly massive, it was a pleasure to grow,” Wallace said on Monday. Guinness World Records lists
BUILDUP: The report comes as Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi boosts defense spending in the face of China’s military expansion and the North Korean threat French defence contractor Thales will establish a maintenance and operational support base in Japan in what is seen as the first such move by a foreign firm in the country, a report said yesterday. Thales chairman and CEO Patrice Caine told the Nikkei business daily that the base “will mark a milestone toward Thales’ long-term engagement in Japan.” It is believed to be the first time a foreign defense company has established a dedicated base in Japan for the maintenance and operation of Japanese defense equipment, the Nikkei said. It added that Thales might also expand its Japan-based business to
RSS