The state of the race

摘要

The era when Labour Day marked the official kick-off of the primary season has long gone. The candidates have been hard at it for months. The public has already endured 12 televised debates, and the press has long devoted more attention to the presidential campaign than to anything other than Iraq. But Labour Day has its uses nonetheless. It provides an excuse for the candidates to redouble their efforts. This week they love-bombed Iowa and New Hampshire with renewed intensity, with Bill Richardson even declaring that Iowa's first-in-the-na-tion position was ordained by the Lord. For the press, it provides an excuse for meditating on the state of the race. So here goes.rnThe most striking thing about the race is how stable it is. For all the blizzard of daily events, the "fundamentals" have stayed fixed for a year. The Democrats, and especially the Clintonians, are in the ascendant—and the Republicans are flailing about like people trapped in quicksand.