Instead of pulling away, former heir-apparent Hillary Clinton is bogged down in a three-way tie for the Democratic prize in Iowa.  On the Republican side, it appears that Mike Huckabee has peaked too early to run away with the GOP title but perhaps not too early to win it close anyway.  With Fred Thompson surging (you gotta see this video) and John McCain getting a fresh look by many (he's now separating from Romney in New Hampshire), it seems anything can happen tomorrow.  These two contests - one Democratic, one Republican - are about as hard to call as any I've seen.

That said, here are some hunches I'm beginning to get regarding the outcome tomorrow and in the coming weeks.  First, while my first edict may yet turn out correct, I'm even more confident these days in my second one.  Look for Rudy Giuliani to be mired in the single-digits tomorrow.  He could conceivably finish sixth behind Ron Paul.  But his slide won't end tomorrow.  As McCain and Thompson become more and more viable to the GOP electorate, Giuliani's flame will continue to dim.  By the time we get to his "firewall" in Florida, he'll be on life support - and the national numbers will reflect it.  (A little peek at the future - don't expect Giuliani to win the Sunshine State.)

Second, I think Mitt Romney will underperform tomorrow.  When Huckabee began his rise late last year, the one most impacted was Romney.  Now that Huck is falling back some, Thompson and McCain - not Romney - are the beneficiaries.  Where once he stood alone in Iowa, heavily out-spending everyone else, he now finds himself matched by Huckabee and hearing the rising sounds of Thompson's and McCain's footsteps behind him.  It wouldn't surprise me if Romney finishes third tomorrow and second in New Hampshire - and drops out of the race before Super-duper Tuesday on February 5th.

Third, nothing comes to me about the Democratic race.  At least not about who will do well and who will do poorly.  I will say this:  if Hillary doesn't win, I think she's in real trouble despite a twenty point lead in a recent national poll.  As I heard Rush Limbaugh say today, if she does lose, the media will try to paint Iowa as no longer significant in the race to the nomination.  But momentum does have a way of building in the wake of Iowa's results.  I'm not saying a loss tomorrow erases her chances in the long run, but it will mean the coronation is no longer inevitable.  Conversely, if she does win - even by a hair - she will have weathered her most difficult challenge and will cruise to the nomination.

And finally, John Edwards is still irrelevant.  Even if he were to win by a large margin - which he won't - he still isn't going anywhere.  So there you have it.  All the anticipation is just about over, and I for one am happy about that.  Just one more thing to say:  let's get this party started!