from The American Prospect:
Back Field in Motion: John Edwards Makes a Move
He's neither the solid establishment candidate nor the exciting upstart, but as the primary season drags on, Edwards seems increasingly comfortable with himself -- and with voters. Terence Samuel | December 10, 2007 | web only
Democratic voters appear to be narrowing the conversation about their presidential nominee to a choice between front-runner Hillary Clinton and the super insurgent Barack Obama. The contest has grown so unpredictable that people who should know better are now talking about the possibility of a brokered convention in Denver next summer. The intensity of the race between these two celebrity senators threatens to overwhelm the entire campaign season.
But for all the historical significance attached to having a woman and an African American in contention for a major party nomination, the Clinton-Obama showdown is a familiar confrontation between an establishment powerhouse and an upstart young Turk, solidity versus excitement. In the frame of the current campaign, it is experience against change. Most Democrats will admit that, in the end, they can live with either one.
But as we draw closer to actual votes being cast, the value of punditry and speculation begin to fade and the Democrat who seems most comfortable in his own skin and most secure at his core is John Edwards, who is neither the Establishment candidate nor the Excitement candidate. Still, as Clinton and Obama increasingly find themselves playing call and response, saying things to upset and derail each other, Edwards is emerging as the feisty voice in the back field talking most directly to the voters.
As a firm believer in the man/woman-of-the-moment doctrine, I hardly expected to be contemplating John Edwards' prospects at this late stage in the game. The early rounds of the campaign seemed to firmly establish that his moment had passed and that what he offered the American people was not what they were interested in.
And frankly, not much has changed. While it is still hard to extrapolate all the way to an Edwards nominating speech next summer, it is not hard to see how voters might choose to reject both Clinton and Obama for all the reasons they have articulated against each other. And that leaves Edwards as the compromise candidate. ......(more)
The compete piece is at:
http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=back_field_in_motion_john_edwards_makes_a_move 
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