Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press

Gov. Bill Richardson (left) and several other Democratic presidential contenders watch Sen. Barack Obama address the crowd at a steak fry in Indianola, Iowa, in September. In spite of Richardson's concerted efforts to win over voters in Iowa, he remains on the sidelines with the rest of the pack as front-runners Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton (beside Richardson) dominate the polls.

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As Gov. Bill Richardson's director of Cabinet affairs, Daniela Glick is used to having her phone practically glued to her ear.

She's used to the rush of the office, the long hours, the madness that comes with working for the state's biggest boss.

But in her new, temporary (and volunteer) job for Richardson — in a snow-whipped office in Iowa City, Iowa — Glick is doing more talking than she ever imagined.

Like seven hours a day of talking, making hundreds of calls to people she doesn't know.

"Iowans take this very seriously," said Glick, 27. "They are very receptive to the governor's message, and they want to talk about it."

Others want to talk about it too, with one big question in mind: Does Richardson have enough money, enough of the right message, enough Glicks, to continue his campaign past Jan. 3?

With exactly three weeks until the caucus, and with the governor holding just 7 percent of Iowa's Democratic voters in the most recent Rasmussen poll, it's unclear how far Richardson will get.

The biggest problem, political experts say, is simple and isn't new: Richardson hasn't been able to set himself apart on key issues such as immigration, health care and the war in Iraq.

"At present, no, there really isn't any issue where he stands out," said University of Iowa sociology professor Kevin Leicht. "That's where I think if he said more about immigration in the next three weeks, he could stand out," Leicht said.

Immigration is a hot and growing topic in Iowa, a state that's become a magnet for Mexican farm and meat plant workers — and for anxiety about their legal status. In a recent Hawkeye Poll, 43 percent of Democrats said the issue is "very important" to them.

While Richardson, a border governor, arguably has dealt more with the issue than any of the candidates — Democrat or Republican — Leicht said he hasn't seen the governor try to set himself apart on the issue.

"He can say, `Look, I'm from New Mexico, I'm Hispanic, I've dealt with immigration,' " Leicht said.

And while Richardson's campaign surely would argue that Richardson has uttered those very words, Leicht suggested Richardson maybe hasn't said them enough, in part because he doesn't want to be stereotyped as the immigration candidate.

While the governor, 60, might have more experience on immigration, he has about the same plan on health care as the other candidates, Leicht said.

"With health care, the Democrats' plans are enough alike that it's hard to distinguish them in terms that voters can understand out there on the stump," he said.

However, one part of Richardson's health care plan seems popular with voters — and which Richardson could emphasize more, Leicht said.

Richardson wants all Americans to have access to the same health care plan that covers members of Congress.

As for the war, Richardson has emphasized his plan to bring home all troops within a year of being elected. His campaign has trumpeted the fact that he has the quickest plan to end the war.

That message has worked to some degree, said University of Iowa associate political science professor Brian Lai — at least among Richardson supporters.

"In theory, yes . . . he's made some statements that allow him to differentiate himself from the other candidates on the war. But it's tough, because he's got such a low base."

Richardson wasn't in Washington to vote on the war, one part of his political background he's using to separate himself from other candidates, Lai said.

"He can sort of distance himself from any decision on the war, and he's done that. He's also talked more concretely about getting troops out," he said.

So what else is behind Richardson's underdog status in Iowa?

Money. Always the money.

"The problem for him is he doesn't have the resources to push hard with his messages," Lai said. "He can't spend all his money in one state."

Richardson so far has been outspent by millions by the Democratic front-runners, though by exactly how much isn't clear. The campaign won't file another financial report until January.

Despite his inability to stand above the Democratic pack with most of his messages, Richardson did distinguish himself with his TV ads, said University of Iowa communications professor Bruce Gronbeck.

"His ads initially, of course, caught a lot of public attention," Gronbeck said.

"That became a very, very different way to pitch himself as a candidate in the state. It got immediate media attention."

Richardson kicked off his ads with humorous spots that showed him interviewing for the presidency. The interviewer tells Richardson he might be a little overqualified for the post.

But the attention didn't last, and it diminished as summer turned into winter in Iowa, Gronbeck said.

While Richardson at one point had the most ads on the air in Iowa, he's since been overshadowed. At the same time, he's not getting as much free media as the others, Gronbeck said.

"Now he seems to be stuck, as the competition is among the top three. It's gotten almost all the press coverage, so he's going to get a late paragraph in a commentary somewhere."

As his paid media slowed, Gronbeck said Richardson hasn't been able to pick up much free air time.

"That means his TV coverage has been minimal except for ads," he said. "If a candidate can't get some unpaid exposure, it's a real struggle."

No matter what the experts say, Richardson's team is trying.

The governor pulled campaign staffers from other battleground states and shipped them to Iowa. He's sent in bigwig New Mexicans, including car racing legend Al Unser, tried for as many local endorsements as possible, even got Martin Sheen to stump for him.

And while he might come in fourth or fifth, Richardson's team doesn't let on. Glick said she's working from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. and paying part of her own hotel bill. She's one of a group of high-level state government employees, including several Cabinet secretaries, who has campaigned for Richardson in his new home away from home.

Glick, a Las Cruces native not used to biting cold winters, has been in the Hawkeye State for 12 days and will stay through the caucus.

"I guess it was a very good thing the governor never allowed us to take a lot of vacation, because I had a lot of annual leave," she joked.