Edwards: on to SC
From the last (I think) version of a story I'm writing for tomorrow:
Less than one percent of the United States has voted, John Edwards told supporters Tuesday night. So his third place finish in the Democratic primary in New Hampshire only meant that it was time to head to South Carolina and the rest of the states where voters had yet to weigh-in, he said."Those 99 percent deserve to have their voices heard," Edwards said, smiling at a crowd that cheered him on even as the as Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York edged out Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for first place. "We've had too many Americans whose voices have not been heard in this Democracy."
Edwards will head to South Carolina later this week, a state he won convincingly in 2004 by playing on his early upbringing in Seneca, SC. But this year he trails Clinton and Obama in most polls there.
Both political scientists and national political writers say Edwards will have a problem making inroads in future primaries because of a fundraising disadvantage and his early lack of success.
And New Hampshire's results complicate the story line that Edwards' campaign was constructing earlier in the day.
That complication, by the way, comes because Edwards had wanted to recast the race as a two-way affair with him and Obama. That doesn't seem to be the case tonight.
