DES MOINES, Iowa -- No one is embracing this final full day of frenzied (and freezing) campaigning before tomorrow night's caucus more than John Edwards who is in the midst of an iron man trek across the state. Titled "36 ideas to strengthen the middle class," the plans are for 36 straight hours of campaigning until late tonight in West Des Moines with an appearance with singer John Mellencamp (that's when I plan to catch up with him: Edwards may not need sleep but I do). The Bill and Hillary Clinton tag team will also end up here in Des Moines tonight as will Barack Obama -- and then there's the rest of the Democratic gang. I need to be cloned, pronto.
I'm venturing out into the artic freeze and travel to Pleasantville (southeast of Des Moines) for coffee and voter chatter. I missed yesterday the second round of GOPer Mike Huckabee's eccentric non-negative political theatre, this time with actor (sort of) Chuck Norris delivering a negative slap to the face of Mitt Romney. Oddly, no questions were allowed though it was staged for reporters. The buzz this morning is that Huckabee is daring to depart the caucus kingdom for an appearance tonight with Jay Leno.
Speaking of theatre, there's actually a play running right now called "Caucus: The Musical." Why don't we do such things in New Hampshire?
By my reckoning, Hillary "every stage of her life has prepared her for the presidency" Clinton has cornered the market on back to back ads -- one voter centric and another Hillary centric. The combination is not unlike that of the Terminator -- she will be back again and again.
In between the ads (Chris Dodd earnestly told me again and again that he's an experienced leader; Ron Paul tells me he's delivered 4,000 babies; Joe Biden is ready to take on a nasty world), a Des Moines television station gave helpful hints to those of us departing on Friday morning (get to the airport really early and pack smart). They are thoughtful and nice here.
In my daily link, Jeff Greenfield in Slate gives a reasoned diss of the Iowa caucus system. It's all true and it doesn't matter a wit.
ADVERTISEMENTS 
