CORALVILLE, IOWA -- A year ago, just as the presidential candidates were starting up the engines of their campaigns, it looked as if the 2008 election might become little more than a one-issue referendum on the war in Iraq.
It hasn't worked out that way.
The war has faded from the front pages and top of the television news as the surge of troops has brought down the level of violence, even as an end to the war remains elusive.
And as the campaign has progressed and Thursday's Iowa caucuses approach, it's become clear that, at bottom, there's as little disagreement among the Republican candidates about the war as there is among their Democratic counterparts.
With few exceptions, the Republicans are calling for staying the course set out by the Bush administration, effectively removing the issue from the GOP debate.
Similarly, the Democrats have pledged to end the war by bringing the troops home, differing only on the pace and scale of the withdrawal.
As a result, the war remains a bigger issue among Democrats, but has been crowded aside by others, among them health care, education and the incessantly repeated calls for "change" in Washington.
A lot of issues in the election