Keller @ Large: Crunch Time
BOSTON (CBS) - It's on.
In Iowa Monday, both of the leading Democrats hit high and low notes.
Hillary Clinton's throat betrayed her during a morning speech, and her coughing fit went on painfully long. And at a town-hall-style rally, Bernie Sanders watched stoically as a woman sitting no more than ten feet away from him broke down in tears describing her economic struggle, eliciting a sympathetic but surprisingly aloof response from the candidate, who could have easily walked over and shaken her hand.
But by the evening, at a CNN forum where the frontrunners and also-ran Martin O'Malley made separate appearances, Clinton and Sanders had regained their footing.
Pressed to compare himself with Clinton, Sanders cut to the chase. "I voted against the war in Iraq," he said. "Hillary Clinton voted for the war in Iraq."
And Clinton didn't shy away from comparing her trial-by-fire to Sanders' career. "You have to have somebody who is a proven, proven fighter," she said.
Over on the GOP side, more humor, and venom.
Campaigning in Iowa, Ted Cruz moved to expand his lead among evangelical voters by mocking Donald Trump for his recent botched attempt to quote scripture at a Christian university, referring to Second Corinthians as "two Corinthians."
"Well, you know, two Corinthians walk into a bar," mugged Cruz, as his audience broke into laughter.
And while Trump was in New Hampshire fueling doubts about Cruz's citizenship ("He could run right now for Prime Minister of Canada, he'd have no problem"), Cruz was unleashing his toughest Trump attack ad yet, including video of Trump at a rally asking: "How stupid are the people of Iowa?"
Buckle your seatbelt.