Slow but Steady Wins the Race

Chris Cillizza, of The Fix, focuses on Richardson:

With the focus on the "top tier" New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson may be overlooked. But Richardson is as well-positioned financially as he could possibly have hoped for when he announced his candidacy for president earlier this year.

Between April 1 and June 30, Richardson raised $7.1 million, bringing his year-to-date fundraising total to more than $13 million. Richardson, like Obama, raised more money in the second quarter of the year than in the first.

Chris then goes on to talk about the spending, and Richardson's successful TV ad campaign. and his organizational infrastructure:

Organizationally, Richardson is in surprisingly good shape in Iowa. He has 11 field offices in the state just one less than Clinton and four fewer than Edwards. (Obama has a whopping 28 field offices.) And, according to washingtonpost.com's "Campaign Tracker" -- bookmark it if you haven't already done so -- Richardson has done 25 events in the Hawkeye State since the start of the year.

What's next, more debates:

The CNN/YouTube debate set for next Monday provides Richardson a real opportunity to break through, a chance he has missed in the televised debates up until now. To date, Richardson has appeared uncomfortable on stage and uncertain of the format. A stronger-than-expected performance would play into a story line that Richardson is slowly but surely moving upwards toward the top tier. It would also help squash (or at least quiet) talk that Richardson is simply too unpredictable to be taken seriously as a candidate for president.

Gov. Bill has not had much success in breaking out during the prior debates, almost seeming clumsy at times. The only way he will be able to force himself into the upper tier, will be to take advantage of the debate opportunities. If he doesn't do that soon, it could spell trouble.

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