Rhetoric heats up as vote nears

MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa – The most wide-open presidential race in a half-century pushed into a decisive new phase Wednesday, the rhetoric a bit more pointed and the appeals a tad more urgent in the final run-up to the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary.

“This is crunch time,” said former Democratic Sen. John Edwards, and he spoke for all.

In a race without front-runners, a brief Christmas lull yielded quickly in both early-voting states to a new round of subtle digs, outright criticism, fresh TV ads and stepped-up efforts by independent organizations.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, surprise leader in the Republican pre-caucus polls, bagged an Iowa pheasant with a .12-gauge shotgun and said caucus-goers on Jan. 3 should take notice.

“Maybe it will show that I certainly understand the culture of being outdoors,” he said. It was a jab at his leading rival in the state, Mitt Romney. The former Massachusetts governor once proclaimed himself a lifelong hunter, but later conceded he had shot only “small varmints” and did not have a gun or a hunting license.

Romney’s political quarry for the day was Arizona Sen. John McCain, seemingly staging a comeback in New Hampshire. Romney accused his rival of flip-flops on immigration and tax cuts.

McCain responded quickly.

“I know something about tailspins, and it’s pretty clear Mitt Romney is in one,” said the former front-runner.

On the Democratic side, Sen. Barack Obama was first among the leading contenders into Iowa after the holiday, renewing a campaign-long attempt to cast himself as an agent of change while trying to pre-empt Edwards’ attacks on special interests in Washington.

Without naming his rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, he said, “We’re told that the lobbyists and the special interests, it’s inevitable that they run things, and so the best you can do is to find somebody who knows how to work the system in Washington. …

“That’s essentially the argument that’s being made in these last seven days. Don’t try something different because that’s going to be too risky. You don’t know what you might get.”

The former first lady campaigned with her husband by her side, opening a final-week sprint with remarks designed to blunt Obama and Edwards.

“Some believe you can get change by demanding it, and some believe you can get change by hoping for it,” she said in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. “I believe you can get change by working really, really hard for it.”

Edwards was in Conway, N.H., where he had a succinct appeal.

“You’d better choose someone as your candidate who’s ready for this battle. Nice words will not change anything,” he said.