With the Iowa caucus just weeks away, the Democrats stood on the stage previously occupied by their Republican counterparts, with nary a word of nastiness among them. New York Senator Hillary Clinton, while chiming in about the need to protect the poor people's tax cut granted by President Bush, reiterated a long-standing Democrat rhetoric that in order to pay for the tax cut those making more money and corporations should pay a larger share of taxes.
All six of the primary candidates focused on the economy instead of each other, and with polls showing a large divide between the top three and all others, this could well be their last chance to show a difference to Iowa voters what their chief differences are. With Clinton holding a slim three point margin over Illinois Senator Barack Obama, 29 percent to 26 percent, John Edwards, holds at 22 percent. With the undecided voters counting for eight percent and a margin of error of plus or minus five percent, it leaves the apparent winner in Iowa still unclear.
National polls show Clinton is slipping a bit. This month, she is polling between 39% according to USA Today and 53% according to ABC News. The USA Today poll had her at 46.5% in November.
Poll number accumulated by usaelectionpolls.com show a five percent spread between the top two Republican candidates, Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney in Iowa, but most political experts contend the Democrat race is too close to call this early. Lacking some of the pacified bluster of past debates, other candidates such as Chris Dodd attempted to score a few points with voters by informing Bill Richardson that balancing a federal budget is more complicated than a state budget.
