Kerry and Edwards Surging in "Too Close To Call" Iowa

A Research 2000 survey released Thursday, showed Dean at 22 percent, followed by Kerry at 21 percent and Gephardt and Edwards at 18 percent.

Zogby Poll shows Kerry 24, Dean and Gephardt 19, Edwards 17. Link to Washington Post story.

Every candidate is putting everything they can into this, for all but Dean there is a sense of do or die. Ads and resources and favors and people have pored into Iowa like never before. I am guessing the cost that candidates are spending per vote now is almost $100. In the old days, and they might do it this time again, they would hit the bars right before the meetings and say how about a bottle if you vote for this guy. It seems like it would be cheaper.

Terry Neal dispatches from Iowa - Today, a new study conducted by the nonpartisan Center for Media and Public Affairs suggests that "Dean has been getting worse press than the rest of the Democratic field," but stops short of blaming media bias.

"People are getting turned off by the negativity of the sniping between Gephardt and Dean. [el - I would put an and here.] As the large number of undecided Iowans are finally starting to make up their minds, they're going to Kerry and Edwards, rather than Dean or Gephardt."

From the Media Study - NBC Hardest On Democrats ? Nearly two out of every three on-air descriptions of the Democratic candidates were positive on ABC (64% positive) and CBS (63% positive), while NBC painted a more negative picture of the candidates in 2003 (46% positive assessments).

Extremely harsh article about Dean's electability by John Harris in the Washington Post. By the words he uses, not words people interviewed use, and the consistent tone it belongs on the editorial page

Democratic Insiders Pick Howard Dean in Iowa, "followed by Dick Gephardt and then a photo finish between John Edwards and John Kerry."

For the overall Democratic Presidential nomination battle, Dean, with Clark second.