With only 5 days to go before the Iowa caucuses, Michael Barone at the Wall Street Journal has an assessment that I can basically agree with.
Having the first-in-the-nation vote has been good for the state's economy, with presidential candidates such as Mitt Romney and Ron Paul spending lavish amounts of money on TV ads. But since turnout for the Republican caucus is traditionally low, winning this state is not a good prognosticator of gaining the party's nomination or winning the general election.
For quite some time it appears that Gov. Romney was more interested in New Hampshire, but lately has enjoyed a surge in popular support, while Gingrich's has plummeted (according to some polls, but not others that show an increase in his strength). If anyone deserves an "A" for effort it would be former Sen. Santorum, who was the first to visit all 99 of Iowa's counties. Rep. Ron Paul remains a strong contender, more so than Gov. Rick Perry or Jon Huntsman. Michele Bachmann may be facing a decision point: if she can't make it in Iowa, she probably won't be able to make it anywhere else and may have to withdraw from the race and endorse another candidate.
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