Opinion: Call it the ‘Tug at the Heartstrings Tour’

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DES MOINES -- John Edwards embarks on his last big push here Thursday before all the campaigns go dark for the Christmas holiday, and he’s hoping living examples will help sell his populist message of standing up for the little guy against a system corrupted by corporate influence.

All of Edwards’ traveling guests figure in some way in his basic stump speech. One, a man who lived most of his life unable to speak because of an unrepaired cleft palate, illustrates his position on healthcare. Another, a laid-off factory worker, represents the effects of trade policies. And a young girl horrifically injured in a swimming pool accident (who’ll be on the trail with her parents) is meant to evidence Edwards’ highly successful (and enriching) legal career as a trial lawyer waging product liability and other suits against corporations.

None of the guests has any obvious connection with the war in Iraq, part of a drastically shifting narrative in the Democratic campaign that our colleague, Peter Wallsten, writes about in today’s paper.

For you serious Iowa junkies, the state Democratic Party tracks all the events by all the candidates in the coming days.

Then it’s Christmastime. And when the campaigns resume -- most on Wednesday, the day after Christmas -- they’ll have a week that includes the New Year’s holiday to try to persuade those legions of undecided and still-wooable caucus-goers to climb on board.

And if the candidates think competing among themselves is tough, check this out.

-- Scott Martelle