ANOTHER HILLARY SETBACK – AT 11:21 A.M. ET:  It's one hit after another for the once inevitable Democratic candidate for president.  From The Politico: 

Hillary Clinton's Iowa edge is gone.

Bernie Sanders leads the former secretary of state for the first time among Iowa Democrats likely to caucus in February, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll unveiled Thursday morning — the latest in a string of surveys that show a tightening race in the Hawkeye State.

The Vermont senator's advantage is within the margin of error — he took 41 percent compared with Clinton's 40 percent — and another 12 percent said they would support Vice President Joe Biden, who has yet to declare his 2016 intentions. (Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley picked up 3 percent, while no other candidate registered above that mark, and 3 percent were undecided.)

But the shift is a significant one, coming on the heels of polls showing Sanders edging Clinton in New Hampshire, too. Together, the results suggest a candidate reeling from the controversy over her emails and struggling to put down a rebellion on her left flank.

COMMENT:  If Hillary were smart, and there are doubts, she'd forget about the left wing, and go for the rest of the party.  The left never changes.  It never moves.  It is a religion, not a political group.  It will never feel comfortable with Hillary because Hillary is seen as too hawkish on foreign policy.

Yesterday, she took two swipes at Obama – one suggesting he wasn't tough enough on Iran, the other suggesting he hadn't done enough for struggling working people.  Look, it could have been a coincidence.  On the other hand, she may be realizing that pandering to the left makes no sense, and that Obama is probably against her anyway.  She may, understanding the risks involved, struggle her way to the nomination and then set herself up as a moderate Democrat, and alternative both to the left and to the not-very-popular Republican Party.

Fascinating political year.  No guarantees anywhere.

September 10, 2015