Back to Nevada, sort of

For a while there, there was a measurable erosion of competition in Nevada leading up to the scheduled Jan. 19 caucuses. Chris Dodd shifted some bodies from there to Iowa, as did John Edwards -- both campaigns lagging in polls and cash. Candidate visits have become infrequent, and most of the national attention remains on Iowa and New Hampshire.

But with Edwards opting for federal funding, he now has the cash to bolster his Nevada troops. Barack Obama already has a few dozen people in place and is opening more offices, though neither he nor Hillary Clinton has spent time there lately. On the Republican side, Mitt Romney -- who is doing well in Nevada polls -- is adding to his troops too, as the early-state strategies begin to jell three months ahead of the votes. And remember, both Nevada and Iowa are labor-intensive efforts, because campaigns have to ensure that their supporters physically get to the precinct sites at caucus time and take part in the meetings.

And about those votes: The calendar is still in flux, but the smart money is looking at Iowa on Jan. 3, New Hampshire on Jan. 8, maybe Nevada moving to Jan. 12 and South Carolina coming in on Jan. 19. Florida and Michigan are still planning early votes, but both are being opposed by their national parties and it's unclear how that will shake out -- especially with most of the Democrats refusing to play in Michigan.

Then comes the serious crunch -- Feb. 5, with California and about 20 other states likely to hold votes. And by Feb. 6 there will probably be a lot of candidates standing at microphones and thanking their supporters but ...

-- Scott Martelle