The outstanding issue keeping the New Hampshire primary date from being set by Secretary of State Bill Gardner continues this week to be what the Michigan Democratic Party will do.

Will it decide to stay with that state's Jan. 15 primary, or will it opt out on the Nov. 14 deadline set out in its primary law and hold a caucus sometime earlier, perhaps on the same day as the New Hampshire primary?

Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm supports having the party participate in the Jan. 15 event, and New Hampshire's top critic, Sen. Carl Levin, has said he will defer to her. It makes sense that the governor, as the practical head of the party, would have much influence.

But according to a Michigan Democratic Party spokesman, there is no formal action planned by the party, its leaders, its executive committee or its central committee to make an official decision.

When we asked party spokesman Jason Moon about this the other day, he said, "At this time, it is our intention to participate in the January 15 primary."

The phrase, "at this time," and the word, "intention," are obviously key qualifiers.

He then sent us an official statement issued an eternity ago, on Aug. 31, stating that the party leadership would select its delegates during the Jan. 15 primary.

That was the day the candidates signed a pledge not to "campaign or participate" in Michigan (or Florida on Jan. 29) but long before four candidates took their names off the Michigan Democratic ballot.

According to The Associated Press, party chair Mark Brewer said 10 days ago, "We're intending to use the January 15 primary to select our delegates." There's that word "intend" again.

So Gardner's waiting game continues, even though he has said he hopes to set the date of the New Hampshire primary as soon as possible after the closing of the filing period in Concord tomorrow at 5 p.m.

Dean's sympathy

Democratic National Chair Howard Dean was in Michigan last weekend, and, according to the Detroit News, said the Democratic National Committee "had no part" in the pledge that asked the candidates not to campaign or participate in the Michigan or Florida primaries.

"And frankly, we were surprised by it," Dean was quoted as saying.

He also said, "We understand the point Michigan is trying to make (by moving up) , and from our standpoint, there's some sympathy."

That's interesting, because back on Aug. 31, officials of the four states who signed a letter to candidates that accompanied the pledge, including New Hampshire Democratic Chair Ray Buckley, noted that "recent actions by a few states could dismantle this thoughtful and deliberate effort by the DNC" to set up what it considered an orderly early calendar.

And Dean wrote a letter on the same day to the candidates urging them to "do your part to support the actions" of the party's rules committee, which had established a rule saying that candidates who campaign in non-complying states would be punished by not receiving the delegates won in those states.

Just a coincidence, right?

He knows nothing

John Edwards this week professed ignorance of any effort by his supporters in Michigan to effectively "blow up" the primary out there and have a caucus instead. Michigan's GOP chief, Saul Anuzis, told us recently that such efforts are "the worst kept secret in Michigan" because Edwards' supporters there feel he'd do well in a small turnout, union-heavy caucus instead of a primary (especially since he's not participating in the primary.)

Matt St. John, a volunteer "primary defender" for the grass roots networking group Victory NH, posed the question to Edwards at St. Anselm College on Monday.

"That's all for the people of Michigan to decide," said Edwards with a quick head shake and a somewhat bewildered expression. "I've agreed to abide by the rules established by my party."

Edwards campaign manager David Bonier, a former congressman from Michigan, is scheduled to be here tomorrow for a forum sponsored by AARP and a host of advocacy groups for Granite Staters with disabilities. Victory NH promises that "defenders" will try to ask him a few questions.

Also scheduled to address the forum, to be moderated by Edward Kennedy Jr., board secretary for the American Association of People with Disabilities, are Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, Chris Dodd and Dennis Kuchinch, while Republican John McCain is expected to participate by telephone.

A new phase

Still, it's been a good couple of days for John Edwards. Even as he was making his strongest showing to date in Tuesday night's debate in Philadelphia, he was picking up the endorsement of the 10,000-member State Employees Association (SEIU 1984), a backing he absolutely had to have -- or perhaps more accurately, couldn't afford to lose to Barack Obama.

►AP: The legitimacy of Edwards's local SEIU endorsement is questioned
►Washington Post: Candidates spending more money than ever in NH

He was the most forceful voice on the Drexel University stage, at least among the so-called big three, approaching, but not crossing, the line into the dark realm of personal attacks and negativity.

Obama held his own but seemed more uncomfortable directly engaging Hillary Clinton on the credibility issue, which permeated the discussions on the Middle East, lobbyist influence, immigration and Social Security. Edwards came across as a scrappy lawyer; Obama as a Harvard lecturer.

But the most striking aspect of the debate was moderators' Bryan Williams and Tim Russert's mistreatment of the other candidates on the stage -- by virtually ignoring them. All smart, articulate men, Chris Dodd, Joe Biden, Bill Richardson and Dennis Kucinich may have gained some sympathy support for being portrayed as a sideshow.

The holiday season

It appears that this year, for the first time, the final push to the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary will be during the holiday shopping season and the holiday week itself. As one operative put it this week, "People are going to be getting a lot more than Christmas cards in their holiday mail."

And the usual retailers won't be the only ones going all out selling their products on television. This operative says it's getting tougher and tougher already to get prime advertising time on local television stations and it isn't going to get any easier when the Christmas advertising crush begins.

In past years, there was a campaign lull during the Christmas-New Year's week and then a post-holiday explosion of heavy campaigning during the sprint to the caucus and primary. The window was about three weeks in 2004, when the primary was held on Jan. 27, and a full month in 2000, when the primary was held on Feb. 1.

Assuming the primary is on Jan. 8 (and that is an assumption, because we certainly don't know for sure), that period is gone and it's unclear how Granite Staters will divide their attention between politics and holiday fun during the final weeks of the campaign.

Will voters here and in Iowa take kindly to the final campaign push coming during the month of December? Robo-calls from candidates on Christmas Eve, maybe? A knock on the door revealing a volunteer for a candidate instead of a visit from Grandma?'

How will that affect the outcome of the primary?

Obviously, we'll all find out together, but the campaigns are expected to leave nothing to chance and dash through the holiday season at full speed.

The Colonel for Congress?

A fourth Republican has emerged as a possible candidate for New Hampshire's 2nd District U.S. House seat, held by Democrat Paul Hodes.

Col. Rick Perkins of Hopkinton, a U.S. Marine Reserve pilot who has served with Special Operations and has seen combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, is seriously eyeing a run, but has not yet made a final decision, he said yesterday.

Perkins, 48, and his older brother, Army Gen. David Perkins, who led the successful "Thunder Run" into Baghdad in April 2003, grew up in Keene. Among the medals Rick Perkins has earned is the Bronze Star for valor.

Perkins said he began thinking about running for office last year when he began traveling the state speaking to groups such as the Blue Star Mothers about the troops' experiences both during battle and in their everyday lives after they come home. He said several people suggested that he run.

He said he recently made a "fact-finding" visit to National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee headquarters in Washington.

Perkins said issues such as veterans benefits, survivor and military retirement benefits for reserve and guard troops are not being adequately addressed. And, he said, "The polarization in the country at this point in time is the last thing we need.

"This is a very critical time," Perkins said. "I just think we can do better."

Katrina joins Hillary

When former Ambassador Dick Swett joined Clinton's campaign as a senior advisor in February, his wife, Katrina, was a candidate for U.S. Senate and staying neutral in the primary.

Her Senate candidacy is over now, and yesterday Katrina endorsed her long-time friend, whose husband appointed her husband Ambassador to Denmark in 1998.

Katrina Swett cited Clinton's "leadership, poise" and "commanding presence."

"You look at Hillary Clinton and you see a President, not a candidate playing political games," Swett said. "She is prepared to lead with intelligence and with great judgment and strength, a remarkable combination that shows she is the most prepared person to serve as President that I have seen in my lifetime."

The Spirou Party

Democrats galore are expected to jam the St. George Church community center in Manchester tonight for party icon Chris Spirou's 65th birthday party. Spirou, a former party chair and House Democratic leader, was a household name in New Hampshire politics for several decades.

Clinton is expected to attend the event, along with a host of local leaders, including Gov. John Lynch, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen and state party chair Ray Buckley. Emcee will be Chris's brother, Stan, basketball coach at Southern New Hampshire University.

Sununu News

The junior senator from New Hampshire scored a big victory in his leadership role in the bill to extend a federal moratorium on state Internet taxes by seven years.

John E. Sununu attended the ceremony at the White House yesterday when President George W. Bush signed the bill into law.

The state Republican Party trumpeted Sununu's role with an online petition on their Web site entitled "Keep the Internet tax free," although the New Hampshire's 7 percent communications services tax, instituted in 1990, has long included Internet access, according to the state Department of Revenue Administration, and was allowed to continue under the new ban as a result of a "grandfather" provision.

Democrats, meanwhile, have their own petition calling on Sununu to testify during the House Judiciary Committee's upcoming investigation of the state Republican phone-jamming scheme, which will have its fifth anniversary on Monday.

The state Democratic Party has bought ads on UnionLeader.com and the Web sites of The Telegraph of Nashua, Concord Monitor, Keene Sentinel and Portsmouth Herald linking readers to its petition. A party spokesman says a national blog ad buy is being organized.

'SCOOP '08

Dartmouth College student Henry Decker is the New Hampshire coordinator for this new, innovative Web-based news outlet. It's expected to enlist hundreds of student journalists from across the country to cover the 2008 presidential election from the perspective of the youth of America.

Founded by Alexander Heffner, a senior at Phillips (Andover, Mass.) Academy and Andre Mangino, a junior at Yale, SCOOP '08 will debut on Monday.

Quick takes

-- Erin Rath has left Sen. Judd Gregg's office and moved to Minnesota, where her husband is a college professor. She's now working on Sen. Norm Coleman's re-election campaign and is expecting her first child before the end of the year. Gregg's new communications director is Andrea Wuebker, former deputy press secretary for the Office of Management and Budget and, prior to that, press secretary for Coleman.

-- State Democratic Chair Buckley has begun organizing for the general election that's still a year away. Six of 10 county committees have held organizing "summits" to plan get-out-the-vote activities in each community. The other four counties will be meeting shortly. Buckley says Democrats are still motivated by their '06 successes.

John DiStaso is senior political reporter of the New Hampshire Union Leader.