The second-tier presidential candidates are hoping a "Dean Scream" will topple one of the three Democratic front-runners and give them an opening.
The 2008 presidential race is a contest in political contradictions. The Democratic front-runner, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, has the highest unfavorable ratings in the field, with scores in the high 40s. Rudolph W. Giuliani, who rose to prominence in New York, a bastion of liberalism, is the leading Republican candidate in a party marked by its dyed-in-the-wool conservatism.
Sen. Barack Obama, despite two best-selling books, heavy press coverage and a slight fundraising edge, is still lagging behind his 2008 rivals Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Edwards in name recognition.
As presidential candidates from both major political parties jostle to improve their polling positions, Round 2 in the crucial money primary will be approaching its zenith throughout this weekend. When the second quarter ends today, the financial spinning will enter high gear. In the next few days, in advance of their official filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in mid-July, candidates will begin revealing how much money they raised during the April-June period.
Money race
ONLINE EXCLUSIVE / 3:13 p.m. Former Vice President Al Gore is New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's worst nightmare in the nation"s first primary, a new poll shows.
Edwards' ad buy
E-mail frenzy
Putting aside the dismal state of the conservative movement's influence on the current political class, including far too many Republicans, and what must be done to remedy it, one hopes so-called swing voters are paying attention to the leftward lunging of all Democratic presidential candidates.
