From Coulter to Fox News to his wife’s health, there’s no demon too great or small that Edwards won’t attempt to exploit for a little extra campaign cash. With second-quarter fundraising totals due in five days and no one having conveniently beaten up on him lately, what’s a pretty pony to do?

Easy. Go back to the hair.

[W]hy in the world would Jonathan Prince, Edwards’ deputy campaign manager, have sent a fundraising e-mail that draws more attention to the haircut? Titled “Haircuts And Hatchet Jobs,” the e-mail solicitation blasts “political mercenaries and the chattering class” for attacking the messenger in personal ways because they don’t like his message.

“Like many of you, I’ve been with John since 2004,” Prince wrote. “The same folks who are attacking him now went after him then. … Last time they attacked his hair; this time it’s his haircut. But it’s the same sad game.”

But as a PR move, the pitch is foolhardy. It keeps the haircut story alive another day — or week, or month. It’s also questionable as a fundraising tactic. While the e-mail might motivate Edwards supporters to back their candidate with more bucks to fight his enemies, it also might make them think twice about bankrolling a candidate who can afford $400 haircuts.

He’s down three points in the new Rasmussen poll out today, but that’s not the important number. Here’s the important number. Quite a shortfall for a target that’s only one-third of the amount Hillary raised in the first quarter. His campaign will limp on until January since he’s banking on winning Iowa and then riding that momentum to a national upset, but Obama’s already moving to cut him off at the pass: his campaign released its first two TV ads today, both of which will start running this week in the state. You can watch here, but be forewarned that they’re only marginally more exciting than the Republican crap we’ve been seeing.