In an email to reporters sent well before polls in Michigan closed, Obama Press Secretary Bill Burton downplayed what looked like an early victory for Senator Clinton, saying the results “have no bearing on the Democratic nomination contest.”

The reason: Michigan violated Democratic National Committee rules by moving up its primary and hence has had its delegates stripped as punishment. Burton stressed that Democratic candidates pledged not campaign in the state, open any offices, hire any staff, or communicate with Michigan voters. The Clinton campaign, Burton pointed out, did not withdraw her name “even though she publicly committed to not participate in the Primary.”

Burton also preemptively downplayed Florida’s upcoming primary, scheduled on January 29th against the DNC’s will. Senator Clinton currently leads in the polls there. Team Obama scolded the Clinton campaign for breaking her pledge and scheduling a fundraiser in the off-limits state and added “there are signs – despite Senator Clinton’s public pledge to the contrary – that she may be planning to campaign in the state – inquiring about large venues and increased organizing activity – ahead of the Florida primary.”

Check out Burton’s email after the jump.

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It’s shaping up to be a tight race in Michigan with Republicans John McCain and Mitt Romney battling it out for the top spot.

McCain is consistently drawing large crowds in the days leading up to the primary. At a town hall meeting Sunday in Howell, Michigan, he told reporters that he thinks the election will be very close in Michigan.
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Privately, some aides are saying they’re not sure McCain can prevail in Michigan, but they feel more confident about winning the South Carolina primary on Saturday. Many polls show McCain running just behind Mike Huckabee there.

John Edwards’ Mainstreet Express began its four-day “Bringing it Home” bus tour across South Carolina on Friday to push the Senator’s populist message of strengthening the middle class—and to rally support in a state where he will need to do well in order to continue running a competitive campaign.

He also launched a new 30-second television ad titled, “Mill,” which stresses his populist campaign theme and features Edwards speaking about his upbringing in rural Carolina mill towns: “the men and women who worked in that mill with my father were worth every bit as much as the man who owned that mill.”

The ad also attempts to connect with African-American voters, who comprise roughly half of the electorate in South Carolina, and whose vote will prove critical on the day of the primary. Almost every scene in the ad shows black people listening to or cheering for Edwards alongside other white supporters. It is a demographic other presidential contenders have already begun to court—particularly Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton—in the hopes of securing a primary victory.

Edwards is scheduled to hold a town hall meeting at the historic Penn Center on St. Helena Island later today—a site that once operated as a school for freed slaves after the Civil War and later as a training site and retreat center for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Below is John Edwards’ “Mill” ad:

Money is still pouring into the Obama campaign - despite the candidate’s New Hampshire loss. According to campaign manager David Plouffe, the campaign has raised $500,000 online since midnight. This is in addition to the $8 million the Obama campaign has raised so far this 8-day long year.

The candidate also hit Boston and New York today for a pair of fundraisers - according to Communications Director Robert Gibbs, the campaign had to cut off admission at the high dollar New York event because there were too many interested attendees.

Senator Obama hit February 5th (aka Tsunami Tuesday) state New Jersey today in between his two East Coast fundraisers, where he was greeted by a couple thousand voters inside the gymnasium at Saint Peter’s College in Jersey City. There were long lines of people who were turned away when the gym hit capacity - Obama told the crowd that some 2,000 were not able to get into the door.

The loud crowd treated the second place New Hampshire finisher with a hero’s welcome. Obama made the best of the disappointing loss. “I have to tell you that one of the useful things - and I told this to my staff yesterday - about yesterday was it reminds us that change isn’t easy,” he told the New Jersey crowd. “Change is always met by resistance by the status quo.” A young man in the crowd bellowed out, “Hillary Clinton is the status quo!”

Obama continued, “You know, there are people who are in power who don’t want to give it up. There are folks who are making money on the way things are working right now. It doesn’t make them bad people - it just means they don’t want a change.”

The media interest in John McCain intensified on Primary Day.

The Senator stopped by a polling place in Nashua, NH, to greet supporters. But camera crews surrounded him the moment he stepped off his Straight Talk Express bus, and most of the voters never even got a glimpse of him.

So many in the crowd expressed frustration, that campaign aides allowed a few supporters onto the bus to take pictures and shake hands with the candidate.
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McCain visited the very same polling place in 2000, when he won New Hamsphire.

Hoping for good luck, he’s making many of the same stops as he did eight years ago: He’s staying in the same suite at the same hotel. And he held his last rally in Portsmouth, NH, Monday just like he did in 2000.

McCain spoke to reporters about his other lucky charms.
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As the New Hamsphire campaign came to a close, McCain’s campaign announced the formation of a Truth Squad in South Carolina to counter any negative or misleading ads against the Senator.

In 2000, a smear campaign against McCain targeted his wife and daughter.
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Eight years ago, rumors surfaced in South Carolina that McCain’s wife was a drug addict and his youngest daughter was illegitimate.

Senator Barack Obama, whatever you call him, is not a frontrunner. So he told the press today. Despite his handy Iowa victory and his high poll numbers here in the Granite State, Obama rejected that title when asked by reporters today if he’d consider himself the frontrunner should he win today’s NH primary. “My name is Barack Obama. I am never a frontrunner. I am always the underdog,” he answered.

But, he assured local news reporters, he is not “nervous” about today’s primary. He downplayed that a New Hampshire victory would propel him to the nomination, pointing out there are still 48 states to go after New Hampshire. His wife, Michelle, who introduced him at a Dartmouth rally this morning was more forthcoming, announcing, “Today we can do something amazing. We can elect my husband. We can push him further down the path to become the party’s nominee.”

Obama was also asked by the press about Bill Clinton’s comment that the Obama campaign is a “fairy tale.” Standing in a Dunkin Donuts store during an “OTR” stop, the candidate responded, “I understand they’re frustrated right now. I suspect that they’ll both try to get back on track in terms of the strategy for them to do better than they feel they’re doing right now.”

He then purchased two dozen donuts and some coffee to distribute to sign-weilding volunteers outside a Manchester area polling place. Obama extended the sustenance not just to his supporters, but to those of his opponents and from that other party, telling them, “The fact that all of you are involved and volunteering like this is really important. It’s what our democracy is about. So I want to give all of you a big round of applause.” The crowd cheered and Obama added, “Obviously I’ve got to especially thank my supporters.”

Obama held one rally this morning on the campus of Dartmouth College. He apologized to the sleepy students for the early start and admitted he wasn’t a “morning person.” He spoke of hope and change and told the students, “This is your moment.” Here are some of his remarks:

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The Dartmouth event was a little longer than expected when a supporter in the crowd fainted. It took nearly 15 minutes to get her out of the room on a gurney. As the girl was tended to, Senator Obama stood at the edge of the stage, peering silently out at the crowd with obvious concern. He offered his water and assured the crowd that she looked fine and would likely just be embarrassed. Actor and producer Larry David (from Curb Your Enthusiasm and Seinfeld), who was watching the senator from the press area yelled out, “Frank Sinatra used to make them faint like that,” to which Obama responded, “That’s exactly right, Larry.” The student was treated and released from an area hospital.

Obama spent much of the rest of his day with his wife, holed up at his Nashua hotel. The campaign would not provide details on how he’s biding his time before his rally tonight at Nashua’s South High School, but was sure to tell the traveling press about the doings of the Obama for America New Hampshire office. Over the past four days, the campaign knocked on close to 230,000 doors and made some 210,000 phone calls, garnering over 22,000 new supporters.

As John McCain’s poll numbers climbed in the last days before the New Hampshire primary, media mobs descended on his campaign.

TV cameras, bloggers, snappers and scribes completely encircled him, pushing shoving and elbowing for room.

Here’s a look at a couple of recent McCain campaign events. Check out Fox’s Brian Wilson wading into the crowd in Nashua, New Hampshire, trying to get a live interview with the Senator.

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What did John McCain think of the Fox News Republican candidates’ forum in New Hampshire this weekend?

He shared some observations with reporters Monday, while riding his Straight Talk Express bus on a final campaign swing through the Granite State.

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Speaking before a crowd of John Edwards supporters at Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, New Hampshire, Hilda Sarkisyan recalled the sweet sixteen party she threw for her daughter Nataline—the California teenager who died three weeks ago after a drawn out dispute with her insurance company over who would pay for her liver transplant.

There is perhaps no other candidate in the 2008 presidential campaign who has relied so heavily upon the presence of ordinary citizens—whose lives represent extraordinary hardship—like John Edwards. Individuals like James Lowe, Sandy Lakey, Doug Bishop and, most recently, Hilda Sarkisyan, have accompanied Edwards to numerous events to speak out on his behalf. Their personal stories differ dramatically, yet to Edwards they share a common struggle: they are powerful symbols of the working middle class’ battle to end corporate greed and indifference. And their testimonials are a critical component of his campaign.

In his final sprint before Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary, Edwards embarked on his second “36-hour Marathon for the Middle Class”—this time visiting various cities in the Granite State to speak to voters. Accompanied by the Sarkisyan family, Edwards said the “real underdog” in this election is the working middle class family.

But Edwards’ use of Nataline Sarkisyan’s story on the campaign trail was met with criticism by some—in particular, Clinton’s traveling press secretary, Jay Carson, who yesterday told reporters, “in order to be President, you need to do more than read articles about people who need help and talk about them.” Senator Clinton is “somebody who’s actually going to help people and not use them as talking points.”

In response to Carson’s remarks, Edwards said the Clinton campaign “doesn’t seem to have a conscience.”

Below is Edwards’ latest “Underdog” television ad currently running in New Hampshire: