As new polls show his campaign not gaining traction in Iowa and New Hampshire, Gov. Bill Richardson is straddling a fine line between challenging and attacking the frontrunners for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
Richardson has thus far refrained from going negative. However, in an e-mail sent today to campaign supporters, he suggested that Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards have not been providing “straight answers” on how many troops they would leave in Iraq and for how long, and said that, while he has been “completely open,” they’ve responded to his asking for such details with “silence.”
And in stating that there’s no “confusion of ambiguity or waffling” in his stance, the governor seems to be implying that there is in the stances of the other three.
Richardson is asking people to sign a petition pushing for the question to be asked at the next debate, the Univision forum on Sept. 9, on how many troops each would leave in Iraq and for how long.
“You know where I stand – and what I would do as president,” Richardson wrote in the e-mail. “Senator Clinton? Senator Obama? Senator Edwards? What about you?”
Richardson isn’t gaining in Iowa, New Hampshire
What is leading Richardson to take a more direct approach and skirt the line between a challenge and an attack? New polls might provide the answer.
• The newest American Research Group poll of New Hampshire, released today, has Clinton at 37 percent, Obama at 17 percent, Edwards at 14 percent and Richardson at 7 percent. That’s no change for Richardson or Edwards from the group’s July poll and, after nearly catching Edwards at the end of June, is further evidence that Edwards has pulled ahead and is staying firmly in third place in New Hampshire.
The survey of 600 likely Democratic primary voters was conducted Sunday-Wednesday and has a margin of error of 4 percent.
• The newest American Research Group poll of Iowa, also released today, has Clinton at 28 percent, Obama at 23 percent, Edwards at 20 percent and Richardson at 13 percent. That’s a one-point loss for Edwards from the group’s July poll but no change for Richardson.
The survey of 600 likely Democratic caucus goers was also conducted Sunday-Wednesday and has a margin of error of 4 percent.
• A new Time Magazine poll of Iowa, released Wednesday, has Edwards at 29 percent, Clinton at 24 percent, Obama at 22 percent and Richardson at 11 percent. It was conducted Aug. 22-25, surveyed 519 likely Democratic caucus goers and has a margin of error of 5 percent.
• The newest American Research Group poll of South Carolina, conducted the same days and with the same sample size and margin of error as the group’s other polls, has Clinton at 32 percent, Edwards at 24 percent, Obama at 21 percent and Richardson tied with two others at 2 percent.
• The newest Strategic Vision poll of New Jersey has Clinton at 49 percent, Obama at 22 percent, Edwards at 8 percent and Richardson at 5 percent. The larger poll, which surveyed Democrats and Republicans, was conducted Aug. 24-26, surveyed 800 likely voters and has a margin of error of 3 percent, but specifics for the questions asked only of Democrats weren’t released.
What do the polls mean for the governor? He isn’t focusing time or money in South Carolina or New Jersey, so those don’t mean much. He is putting almost all his resources into Iowa, where almost all recent polls have shown that his support has stagnated, and in New Hampshire, where his support also stagnated while that of Edwards has rebounded in recent weeks.
In addition, several critical union endorsements have gone in recent days to other candidates. Richardson has yet to snag any major union endorsements. This is a critical time for his campaign.
The governor needs to make a move. Apparently, directly challenging the top three on Iraq is it.
As new polls show his campaign not gaining traction in