Presidential diary: Still waiting for Gardner to tell us the year of the New Hampshire primary

• Stepping up the attacks against Hillary

Clinton's rivals clearly think that the front-runner is wounded, and this is the ideal time to go at her until her numbers finally drop. This is especially the strategy of John Edwards, who has always been Clinton's harshest critic. The New York Times has excerpts of his new speech in Iowa:

Senator Clinton is voting like a hawk in Washington, while talking like a dove in Iowa and New Hampshire.We only need one mode from our president: tell-the-truth mode all the time... With less than 60 days to the caucus, Senator Clinton has still not given specific answers to specific questions. How many troops will she withdraw, and when will she withdraw them?

I have to admit that Edwards has done an admirable job of staying in the game. Distanced in the polls and neglected by the media who is pushing a Clinton-Obama showdown, Edwards has been very good at making news by portraying himself as the main anti-Clinton alternative. Obama stepped it up last week at the Philadelphia debate, sensing the danger, but Edwards stays one step ahead of him. I do wonder, however, whether Edwards's strategy is not risky. By softening up Clinton and peeling away her votes, is he not benefiting Obama? Are disillusioned Clinton voters not likely to go to Obama rather than to the candidate who they will perceive as mounting a very negative campaign? This is what usually happens in primary campaigns, and Edwards is clearly at risk here... though he has little choice.

• Calendar mess

The New Hampshire filing deadline closed last Friday, so the time is coming that NH Secretary of State Gardner will have to decide when he is holding the state's primary: In December, or on January 8th? The decision should come soon, as Gardner is now waiting for Michigan Democrats to settle on a date. They are on January 15th right now, but they wanted to jump forward to mess up with New Hampshire more... but they have to figure it out by November 14th.

Meanwhile, the latest problem Gardner seems to be thinking of are... religious holidays! Some people seem worried that January 8th is Orthodox Christmas, while others are concerned that a December primary (which is rumored on the 11th) would fall in the middle of Hannukah, thus driving down Jewish turnout. This has all become comical, and we can hope Gardner will just stop playing around and announce the date ASAP.