The Final Iowa Debate

DES MOINES, Iowa - The Democratic presidential candidates debated yesterday for the last time before the Iowa caucuses. At the time, your humble correspondent was stuck on a tarmac on a delayed flight through Cincinnati, so I didn’t see it in person. But I caught a recording. No huge developments emerged; these guys have debated so many times that they pretty much know what they’re all going to say. Stylistically, Edwards struck a balance between two contrasting styles. He stuck relentlessly to his populist message, yet never came across as pugnacious.

Above is a clip illustrating the Edwards worldview in a nutshell — America’s problems stem from “corporate power and corporate greed” — followed by an amusing exchange in which he seems to momentarily forget his prepared lines. Keeping with the debate’s benevolent tone, Hillary Clinton lets him off the hook in a way that says she, and we, have heard it before.