Edwards shakes up staff; Richardson presses forward

Following a fundraising quarter in which he let Bill Richardson gain some significant ground on him in the presidential race, John Edwards is making some major changes to his campaign.

Meanwhile, Richardson spent the last three days campaigning in New Hampshire, including a stop in a town no presidential candidate has ever visited – a rarity in the Granite State that earned him some national press.

Edwards, who is in third place in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, raised about $9 million in the second quarter of 2007, while the fourth-place Richardson raised about $7 million. Though Edwards is ahead in polls in most other states, the two are essentially tied in New Hampshire.

Now, according to the Associated Press, Edwards plans to add two prominent Democrats as senior advisers and take some responsibilities away from Campaign Manager David Bonior.

The two Democrats, leaders of a labor-backed anti-Wal-Mart group, could join the campaign as early as next week, the news service reported, with one running day-to-day campaign operations and the other serving as communications director.

Bonior would keep his title but become more of a public spokesman who would travel with Edwards.

The changes could help Edwards among union supporters, which will be critical in states like Nevada.

Richardson, meanwhile, appears focused on overtaking Edwards in New Hampshire.

The governor visited Marlow, N.H., on Thursday. According to the Associated Press, President William Howard Taft planned to pass through the town in 1912, but took a wrong turn and never arrived. That was the closest the community, with a population of 800, came to seeing a president or presidential candidate until Thursday, when Richardson met with 100 people there.

It was, in part, a publicity stunt, but I’m sure it also meant a lot to those 100 people. And while most of the top presidential candidates spent the Fourth of July in Iowa, Richardson was the only Democratic candidate at a prominent parade in New Hampshire, according to the Boston Globe – another smart move that earned him some publicity.

The next polls in New Hampshire will be interesting.

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