New New York Times Iowa Poll Is Just What Edwards Needs Going Into Thursday's Debate

    Drudge has word that the New York Times will release new surveys in Iowa and New Hampshire tomorrow showing:

       IOWA

       Clinton 25%
       Edwards 23%
       Obama 22%

       NEW HAMPSHIRE

       Clinton 37%
       Obama 22%
       Edwards 9%

    Edwards was in serious danger of getting written out of the campaign by press coverage intent on turning the contest into a two-person race between Clinton and Obama. This poll will energize the Edwards forces in Iowa -- which right now is just about the only thing that counts in the Democratic race -- at least for Edwards and, to a degree, to Obama. (Hillary can survive an Iowa defeat much more easily than the other two.)  As we wrote earlier, it's way too soon to write off Edwards -- even though press coverage that does so, after awhile, has a certain self-fulfilling element to it.