Giving Hillary a Pass

Looks like Gov. Vilsack of Iowa has handed Sen. Clinton a pass to skip the Iowa primary if she does run for the 2008 Democratic Party presidential nomination. Because Iowa Gov. Vilsack's status as a "favorite son" candidate virtually guarantees Vilsack the edge in the primary voting in Iowa, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton can afford to skip the Iowa primary without taking any political hit for doing so. This is good news for Hillary supporters because former Senator (and former Dem VP candidate) John Edwards has widespread support and appeal in Iowa and would be the likely only serious challenger to Vilsack in the primary.

The question then becomes: did Vilsack enter to race to protect Hillary from an early primary loss to Edwards or does Vilsack really think he has a chance for the nomination?

I think the former but YMMV.*

* Your Mileage May Vary