Right now, I think this is anybody's for the taking minus some obvious exceptions. The situation seems...fluid.

I don't have a good grasp about what it "means" to be a frontrunner in this race (so far), although I do think it's much easier to draw conclusions about candidates who haven't been front runners and haven't crossed a certain polling threshold. I guess that's obvious.

I do think Sanders has a big advantage going into the Iowa caucus as a front runner, especially when I consider that the numbers suggests he has traction. How to put that traction in context, I don't know. Sanders' advantage may be mercurial as people sort how they want to vote, especially in Iowa. If any other candidate was the front runner, I'd think the same thing.

I truly don't know if the right-now Democrat front runner will be the winner of Iowa. I've always thought the most opportune place for a candidate in this race was to have a strong second tier lane.

I place a lot of responsibility on the party and candidates who didn't have the decency to self-select and not run for the position this puts Democratic voters in, a reality that may ultimately contribute to a general election loss. How hard is it to offer a candidate who can win the primaries and a general election against Trump? That task should be a soft ball. I don't think a flat out winning candidate is in the field.

That's sad and worrying because the electoral map is pretty much the same.

Maybe someone will rise to the occasion. I'm not holding my breath, though I think some candidates have the skill set to make the case to the American people in a way that results in VOTES. What's done is done, though.

Biden probably comes closest to being primary/general ready. Even though he's never been my candidate of choice and even though I don't think he's the strongest candidate, the conventional wisdom about him is probably right and I get why there's a push for him. It's not like he has to be the strongest candidate. He just needs to win, and what winning will always come down to is votes. Even candidates who cheat get that. People will make Biden palatable enough so that he can win. I don't know if palatable enough is possible with some of the candidates, even Warren.