“It’s all about timing and expectations, and normally with a caucus, you just organize, organize, organize, and then get hot at the end,” Doug Gross, a currently unaffiliated Iowa GOP operative who plans to back a candidate eventually, told RCP. “In her case, there’s not a lot of organization. She got hot early, so the question is: Can she sustain the flame? It might be tough.”…

According to several Iowa political watchers, the Bachmann campaign’s decision to tout, rather than downplay, her surge carries significant risks.

Already, Pawlenty has largely pivoted from focusing his attacks on national front-runner Romney to criticizing Bachmann for a congressional record that he deemed “nonexistent.”

“Being the front-runner in Iowa carries with it some tremendous benefits, which if not managed correctly, can doom a candidate,” Tim Albrecht, the communications director for Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, told RCP.