Wednesday Morning Roundup

Democrats

Barack Obama - The Sun gives a brief overview of Barack Obama’s life and candidacy…

Bill Richardson - A anti-death penalty bill in the New Mexico legislature threatens to put Bill Richardson between a rock and a hard place. He’s always supported the death penalty, according to the article, though, so I would expect him to veto it as such if it came to that… A touching story of the long, slow journey of one senator’s dream to ban cockfighting, and how Gov. Richardson’s eventual support in the end (after wavering all of his first term) was crucial.

Christopher Dodd - Chris Dodd is behind in the polls - he’s even behind Joe Lieberman, who isn’t even a Democrat officially and isn’t running. Ouch.

Dennis Kucinich - Kucinich will be on community TV in Portland, Oregon promoting his idea for a Dept. of Peace. Here’s video of him on Hannity and Colmes last night.

John Edwards - Edwards went to a fundraiser Monday night. Also, there’s a story of a somewhat plausible way for Edwards to get ahead in the Democratic primary. I’m not sure it will work, but it might be possible.

John Kerry - Kerry gave his opinion on the pending global warming legislation sponsored by McCain, Clinton and Obama: it doesn’t go far enough. I doubt any of them is going to lose sleep over the rebuke.

Republicans

George Pataki - Pataki was speaking in Naples and would not rule out a run at the Presidency.

John McCain - Romney and McCain had dueling announcements of support yesterday; Romney announced Zrizona supporters, McCain announced supporters in the county Romney is visiting on Thursday… Why the general lack of news for McCain compared to other candidates (look at how few times he’s been mentioned comparatively on the right sidebar since this site launched)? Mostly because McCain is biding his time and waiting for the opportune moment to announce…

Mike Huckabee - Huckabee hired directors for his campaign in Iowa. Huckabee was in Des Moines, Waukee and Urbandale yesterday and will be in Grinnell, Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, Tipton and Bettendorf today… Yesterday, he said that he wanted Republicans to be Republicans. “I think if people look at my record, they see there’s a consistent and authentic conservative record that was translated into action,” Huckabee stated. “I think at times it’s almost as if we’ve been seen that we’re not the party that’s on the front burner for education reform, for health care reform.”

Mitt Romney - Romney and McCain had dueling announcements of support yesterday; Romney announced Arizona supporters, McCain announced supporters in the county Romney is visiting on Thursday… The abortion isse will not go away regarding Mitt Romney; some people are convinced - and some are not convinced.

Rudy Giuliani - Giuliani attended a fundraiser in Palm Springs, California.

Sam Brownback - Reminder: Brownback is in Michigan today… Brownback wants to focus on building bridges on consensus, and is building his campaign around human trafficking, climate change and poverty. I’m not sure those three issues will send him shooting to the top of the polls. Also noted on the page is that Brownback was actually dis-invited to the National Review dinner that Romney was keynote speaker of this past weekend.

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Joe Biden is In: Goes on Offensive Against Hillary, Edwards, Obama on Iraq

Joe Biden catches a lot of flak on the internet and in political circles (some deservedly, some not so deservedly). I’d say he’s probably one of the most reviled mainstream Democrat politicians out there (along with Hillary, Ted Kennedy and a few others). With the weird announcement last week that he would announce today, I didn’t have high hopes. Now, don’t get me wrong, I still don’t have high hopes for his campaign - he’ll be lucky to break into the top 4 nationally - but he’s actually managed a fairly decent announcement in the nascent hours of his campaign.

First, his website is pretty nice (it compares to Hillary’s and Edwards’, and trumps everyone else in the Democrat field by far, with apologies to Chris Dodd’s Doddpod). Secondly, he actually has a plan to reduce violence in Iraq (which is posted on his website). Hillary is calling on Bush to fix it, Obama yesterday wanted troops out by March ‘08, and Edwards wants them out as soon as possible. And the freinge candidates don’t tend to be much better in terms of what they’ve said so far. He also has an energy and security plan posted.

And this morning, Biden went on Good Morning America. I haven’t seen the video yet, but an article posted on GMA’s site recaps the interview. Biden, as always, was gracious towards his opponents, saying about Hillary, “She is fully qualified to be president. … We have a heck of a field out there, and she is clearly the front-runner.” Regarding Obama, he stated, “He’s fresh. He’s new … I think experience does matter. … But it also relates to judgment. … He’s a really incredible person.” But the pleasantries ended upon discussion of Iraq. Regarding Hillary’s plan being to cut off funds potentially, he stated, “”I think it would be a disaster if it is her plan … I think it’s counterproductive.” (Incidentally, I wasn’t sure if that was her plan at all; the first place I checked was her site, only to find no policy positions listed at all. For anything.)

Also on GMA, Biden wants a political solution in Iraq. He offers to avenues to pursue. “We should insist on a political settlement between the Sunnis and the Shias. … We ought to be bringing all the parties together. … There is no military solution to Iraq.” Secondly, as the article quotes him, “The United States should ’sit down and talk to [Iran]. … We did that when we were in Afghanistan,’ he said. ‘They’re in the catbird seat because our policy in Iraq is flawed.’

Lastly, the coup de grace. This will be THE interview quoted about Biden in the coming weeks, and frankly, it’s going to force other candidates to respond. You’ll be hearing this one again. Biden was interviewed by the New York Observer within the past few weeks.

Regarding Hillary Clinton, he directly addresses the elephant in the room - her electability:

“Are they going to turn to Hillary Clinton?” Biden asked, lowering his voice to a hush to explain why Mrs. Clinton won’t win the election.

“Everyone in the world knows her,” he said. “Her husband has used every single legitimate tool in his behalf to lock people in, shut people down. Legitimate. And she can’t break out of 30 percent for a choice for Democrats? Where do you want to be? Do you want to be in a place where 100 percent of the Democrats know you? They’ve looked at you for the last three years. And four out of 10 is the max you can get?”

His quote on Obama:

Mr. Biden is equally skeptical—albeit in a slightly more backhanded way—about Mr. Obama. “I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” he said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”

But—and the “but” was clearly inevitable—he doubts whether American voters are going to elect “a one-term, a guy who has served for four years in the Senate,” and added: “I don’t recall hearing a word from Barack about a plan or a tactic.”

That first paragraph is just weird - I’m going to assume he meant mainstream politician African-American and not just African American period. Otherwise he comes off as incredibly racist. Those types of verbal guffaws aren’t going to help his campaign over the long run. But his criticism about plans or tactics from Obama does seem to ring a little true, even if it’s because he’s only been in the Senate for two years. The obvious way for Obama to answer this is to talk about his plan - which I expect he will, once he announces. This is definitely the lightest criticism in the article, and it’ll only get traction if Obama allows it to happen.

But it’s on John Edwards that Biden really lets loose:

“I don’t think John Edwards knows what the heck he is talking about,” Mr. Biden said, when asked about Mr. Edwards’ advocacy of the immediate withdrawal of about 40,000 American troops from Iraq.

“John Edwards wants you and all the Democrats to think, ‘I want us out of there,’ but when you come back and you say, ‘O.K., John’”—here, the word “John” became an accusatory, mocking refrain—“‘what about the chaos that will ensue? Do we have any interest, John, left in the region?’ Well, John will have to answer yes or no. If he says yes, what are they? What are those interests, John? How do you protect those interests, John, if you are completely withdrawn? Are you withdrawn from the region, John? Are you withdrawn from Iraq, John? In what period? So all this stuff is like so much Fluffernutter out there. So for me, what I think you have to do is have a strategic notion. And they may have it—they are just smart enough not to enunciate it.”

That’s about as strong language as you will see from the Democrats during the primary. That’s just really, really biting language. Best case scenario, people respond with their own plans. Worst case scenario, the Democratic primary gets ugly, Biden gets ignored, andwith him getting ignored, his legitimate points are lost.

The article does go into some detail about Biden’s plan in Iraq, which I could best describe as the Iraqi version of the Trail of Tears:

By contrast with what Mr. Biden describes alternately as his opponents’ caution and their detachment from reality, the Senator from Delaware has for months been pushing a comprehensive plan to split Iraq into autonomous Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish ethnic regions that is controversial, to say the least.

Under the plan, local policing and laws will be the responsibility of regional authorities. Most of the American troops would be withdrawn, with small numbers remaining to help with anti-terrorism operations. The ensuing chaos from ethnic migrations within Iraq would be contained with the help of political pressure created by a conference of Iraq’s neighbors.

Apparently Biden fashions himself a modern Andrew Jackson? And I’m not sure that a conference would help mass migrations - would the trail of tears been better if the Sioux and the Chickawa had met a couple of times beforehand? I don’t see the United States having the political capital to pull this off, or the American people being convinced that forces mass migrations based on religion is a viable solution.

So, in short, I’m as sure as ever that Biden won’t get the nomination … but unlike yesterday, his opinions matter now.

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Tuesday Night Roundup

Republicans

Chuck Hagel - Sen. Hagel is repeatedly named in connection with the internet based Unity Party. It’s far too early to determine the potential of the Unity Party. I wonder myself how many people will buy the concept.

John McCain - Obama, McCain, and Clinton participated in a Senate hearing on global warming where all three said in strikingly similar language the time had come to address the issue. McCain and Obama are cosponsoring a bill calling for action with Joe Lieberman… A conservative article criticizing McCain. The substance for now isn’t the important part. Instead, it’s that articles like this are starting to get more and more common. Normally, it’s the Democrats who eat their young (metaphorically) in the primaries. But with the difficulties Romney and McCain are having with the base putting them to the fire (see this as well)- and the Democrats all getting hit for the most part from the Republicans, not the Democrats, the shoe seems to be on the other foot this time around… McCain is also getting hit with this video, posted by a Democratic operative. I anticipate a long look at these criticisms sometime in the next day or so in this space… Also, some good news for McCain as he picks up endorsements from 5 key Republicans in New Hampshire… Meanwhile, House Republicans are lining up against him and for Romney, including a rumor that Boehner may be next…. Lastly, here is the text from McCain’s speech at the dedication of the Center for the Intrepid. It’s distinctly apolitical for the most part.

Mitt Romney - House Republicans are lining up against him and for Romney, including a rumor that Boehner may be next…. The current Attorney General of Massachusetts says Mitt Romney’s rules prohibiting stem cell research were far too strict. I imagine this will probably play well with anyone that matters, and be brought up in the general election - should Romney get there - as something by his opposition … Romney was in South Carolina today.

Rudy Giuliani - Hillary and Giuliani are leading in polls in New York State… Rudy may be flip-flopping on the federal assault weapons ban. I doubt that will become an issue until the general election, unless the Clinton campaign smells blood in the water… Rudy will be Houston, Texas this week, working the base and raising money.

Sam Brownback - Sam Brownback compares himself favorably to other candidates on pro-life issues that he thinks hold sway. I’m extremely doubtful that those issues trump a war. Not to mention some other candidates are probably just as pro-life as him (Huckabee, who if not as pro-life is breathing down his neck). Brownback needs to move beyond being a one trick pony sooner or later - keep mentioning it, but stake out other areas as well…And as if on cue, Brownback joins McCain, Hillary, and Obama calling for action on global warming. And here, he’s selling everything as well… The only word to describe his speech today at a Michigan law school tomorrow is opportunity.

Tom Tancredo - In this article, we find Tancredo is not running for re-election to the House… Here, we find grades on immigration for a bunch of Democrats and Republicans … and it’s not at all down party lines.

Democrats

Barack Obama - Obama, McCain, and Clinton participated in a Senate hearing on global warming where all three said in strikingly similar language the time had come to address the issue. McCain and Obama are cosponsoring a bill calling for action with Joe Lieberman… In big news, Obama introduced legislation (or in other words, offered a plan, since the chances of this legislation going anywhere with this President are roughly equivalent to me learning to breathe in deep space tomorrow) that calls for combat troops to leave Iraq by March 2008. “Our troops have preformed brilliantly in Iraq, but no amount of American soldiers can solve the political differences at the heart of somebody else’s civil war … That’s why I have introduced a plan to not only stop the escalation of this war, but begin a phased redeployment that can pressure the Iraqis to finally reach a political settlement and reduce the violence.” The political effects of this? First, Obama is to the left of Hillary … but not by much. Neither of their plans is going to happen under Bush. The long term ramifications are that while they see Iraq slightly differently, Obama’s both taking a chance this can box out Hillary by stealing her momentum (much like the last bidder on the price is right bids $1 dollar more) and at the same time, if Obama ultimately falls to Hillary, he’s still in a position to accept a VP spot. He’s disagreed … but not in a disagreeable way. (And, for that matter, Hillary just said ‘get out by the next inauguration - she’s set no timetable at all of her own to my knowledge.)… The news that Obama has reserved the old state capital in Springfield Illinois - Lincoln’s home base when he was elected - is about proof positive that he’s planning on running. Or bowing out in spectacular fashion… nah, he’s in.

Bill Richardson - Video on the aforementioned sales tax. Also see prior post about his fundraiser.

Christopher Dodd - Dodd in the news! First, he has a new initiative for families to keep benefits while caring for il family members. Secondly, he calls for FDA reform.

Dennis Kucinich - Kucinich was on Hannity and Colmes today and will be on with Cavuto tomorrow. That should be … interesting video.

Hillary Clinton - Obama, McCain, and Clinton participated in a Senate hearing on global warming where all three said in strikingly similar language the time had come to address the issue. McCain and Obama are cosponsoring a bill calling for action with Joe Lieberman… Neil Cavuto found himself between Hillary Clinton and the White House… Hillary is leading in polls in Ohio (what you will hear), but is also leading in unfavorability rating (what you should hear)… Hillary is going to New Hampshire this weekend… Hillary and Giuliani are leading in polls in New York State… Ten things you didn’t know about Hillary - biographical quirks for the most part, but possibly some insights if you like to read into those sort of things.

Joe Biden - As I’ve been saying for a week now, tomorrow is Biden’s big day.

John Edwards - Edwards hired a blogger-in chief who is pretty far left.

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Ethics Trouble Already For Republican Candidate?

Yet another minor Huckabee controversy arises. This time, Gov. Huckabee is accused of violating state law when he used the remaining $13,000 from the governor’s emergency to fund to have hard drives from his office destroyed. I don’t imagine this complaint will be given much traction. Last year, the same man, Jim Parsons filed an ethics complaint against the Arkansas Secretary of State, which ended up being dismissed with a 5-0 decision.

Still, the last things the republicans need or want right now is even the faint hint of scandal. Any more of these minor controversies and Huckabee is headed for a fast backlash.

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Richardson Sets His Sights High…On Taxes?

Gov. Richardson was a busy man today..

1) First up - a stop at a high school in Las Cruces, NM, where Gov. Richardson delivered a speech in support of a new sales tax. 75% of the revenue generated from this tax would go to the spaceport, while 25% would be used to fund science education programs at select schools. [Video]

Aside from it being unusual to see presidential candidates actually working, it’s even more unusual to see a president arguing in favor of a new tax (especially a non-essential one). I wonder how voters in a country where tax is a dirty word, respond to a candidate who’s vocally arguing for raising taxes. Personally, I think this is a testament to Richardson’s genuine approach to leadership. And further, I believe that if spun correctly any potential negatives of his support for taxes could be mitigated or potentially even turned into a positive attribute. Voters in America love honestly, especially demonstrable honestly; if Richardson simply explains why he did this and tosses in the fact that his constituents actually wanted this tax, then I think he’ll be fine.

2) Afterwards, it was off to a fundraiser at the home of a supporter in El Paso, Texas, where he pulled in $60,000. Let us not forget that Richardson is the only major dem candidate who is/was an executive (a.k.a. governor) and that typically it’s executives that win general elections. Let us not also forget that the Democratic Convention will be in Denver, Colorado. Perhaps the western convention will give the only democratic western candidate a bump. Also, I believe it’s very possible that Richardson is going to try a completley unique western/southwestern strategy in hopes of picking up the VP spot if he can’t win the nomination. If he uses this time to start securing a strong support base in the west, he would make a very tempting vice-president prospect for any nominee; especially this election cycle, when the west will be critical to a general election strategy.

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Will Nader Run?

Ralph Nader, who’s promoting his book, The Seventeen Traditions, appeared on NBC’s Today Show this morning. Of note, he refused to rule out a run for president in 2008. When questioned by Meredith Vieira, Nader replied that it was “too early to say.” After being pressed, he said, “Well there’s always a chance but I like other people. In fact there are a lot of people who think Bill Moyers should run because he’s had this White House experience with Lyndon Johnson and of course is a great communicator”

Given the situation in Iraq, I’m not exactly running someone who reminds people of LBJ and Vietnam War is a good idea. Frankly, the only person I’d ever take seriously from the Johnson Administration is George Ball (and sadly, he’s dead). Regardless, I wonder if Nader could throw another wrench in the Democrats’ plans.

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Romney Does Not Not Support The Pro-Life Cause

Romney discussed his religion and his flip-flop on abortion while campaigning in South Carolina.

On Abortion…
* Was “effectively pro-choice” because he lost a family member to an illegal abortion in the 1960s
* Changed his position after learning that Harvard leaders didn’t believe it was a moral issue to destroy an embryo after 14 days, “It struck me very powerfully at that point that the Roe v. Wade approach has so cheapened the value of human life that somebody could think it’s not a moral issue to destroy embryos”

On His Mormonism…
* “I don’t believe any campaign is going to focus on any particular religion; I think it’s going to look at the heart and character of the people.” [And I believe he's wrong]
* Reminded folks the the current Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Reid, is a mormon

[Update] The folks over at Race 4 2008 provide information on Romney’s recently received endorsements:
1) South Carolina Endorsements - Former SC Governor Jim Edwards and former SC Congressman Tommy Hartnett
2) Iowa Endorsements: Former State House Speaker Brent Siegrist, Current State House Speaker Christopher Rants, First Congressional District Candidate Brian Kennedy, Former Governor Candidate Doug Gross

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Hillary-t

Yesterday, Hillary made a quick stop in Florida (a state that may move its primary ahead). There, she met privately with the 1.3 million member United Food and Commercial Workers Union. Obviously Sen. Clinton’s campaign wants/needs to make sure that Edwards isn’t the only labor candidate in the democratic primaries.

In Iowa on Sunday, in response to a question about how she would handle evil bad men, Sen. Clinton said, “Well, the question really is we face a lot of dangers in the world, and in the gentleman’s words we face a lot of evil men. Well, people like Osama bin Laden comes to mind. And what in my background equips me to deal with evil and bad men.” This was followed by 32 seconds of laughter and Sen. Clinton’s continued response, “you know, on a slightly more serious note. I mean I believe a lot in my background and a lot in my public life you know shows the character and toughness that is required to be president. But more than that, I think it also shows that I want to go back to bringing the world around us again. We can not take on these people all by ourselves. We need alliances and friends and international help.”

This joke has received way more attention than it should have. My thoughts and a video of the joke after the jump.

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Tuesday Morning Roundup

Democrats

Barack Obama - A college classmate of Obama’s compares him to George W. Bush, circa 1999 on the issue of experience. He comes to the conclusion that Obama isn’t ready yet to be president…. Obama talked about Katrina after some Senators toured New Orleans. A picture in a local paper this morning had Obama and Lieberman sitting next to each other on a bus, for what its worth.

Christopher Dodd - The strangest thing in the Dodd campaign is hands down the ‘Dodd Pod,’ a song or podcast of the day that Dodd lists, most of which have nothing to do with his campaign. The second strangest thing has to be Dodd attempting to rechristen him ‘Chris Dodd‘ when he’s been known as Christopher Dodd as long as he’s been in the Senate. The this strangest thing has to be his face in the inset ad on this page about sending troops to Iraq. It looks to me like he had bad shrimp or something. Why am I mentioning all of this? Because Dodd hasn’t been in the news recently at all and I didn’t want him to fall off our radar.

Hillary Clinton - Will women sweep Hillary into the White House? Judging by her slogan ‘Let the Conversation Begin,’ her campaign seems to think so. Linda Hershman explores the demographics. This is going to be one of those things that comes back from time to time as well…. Hillary is going to Naples, Florida to meet with more people from the United Food and Commercial Workers Union… As someone who searches the internet daily for news on Hillary Clinton, I can testify first hand to the large number of negative articles out there. Hillary has noticed them as well, but she considers them flattery, since it means she is a formidable candidate. She says, “In part because I’m a woman doing it and part because I was part of a political couple that was very much committed to Democratic progressive politics. In a perverse form of flattery, people who opposed us took us seriously and decided it was important to go after us … But we always fought back, [a]nd I think the other side views me as a worthy adversary.” I’m not sure I buy any of that myself…

Republicans

Chuck Hagel - Newsday explores why Chuck Hagel is getting the John McCain treatment from the media - and why John McCain isn’t. It’s mostly the maverick factor involved, this time on the war.

Duncan Hunter - More of what Duncan Hunter said about John Kerry’s remarks. Seems strange, chiding the international community for not doing more after Katrina when everyone is busy -that same day, even.

Mitt Romney - The Boston Globe wonders if Mitt Romney’s background as a venture capitalist will help him in his run for the presidency. Hey, if it worked in Wedding Crashers…. Romney also elaborated on his change of heart regarding Roe v. Wade. He’s in Columbia today; Sam Brownback visits later in the week.

Newt Gingrich- An expansive interview with Newt Gingrich that pre-dates the SOTU is reprinted in The Desert Son. Here’s what he has to say about Iraq:

Q: Bob Novak was saying today that an unnamed Republican pollster told him that if U.S. soldiers are still in Iraq and are still dying in 2008 it’s going to be worse for Republicans in 2008 than it was last fall. Do you agree?

A: If people feel that we are not winning, and that we are just mired down in a mess, then it will be much worse than in 2006. If people feel that we are winning, and that we are gradually defeating the bad guys, and that the Iraqis are gradually taking control of their own country, then I think you can have Americans in uniform still in Iraq. We’ve had people in Germany now for 62 years, people in Japan for 62 years, people in Korea for 57 years. The American people can be very patient if they think that it makes sense and if there is progress. What they will not put up with is a sense of being mired down without progress.

Q: So it’s the not-dying part that is key here?

A: No. It’s not the not-dying part. If you have to risk young men and women for a cause that is doable, then Americans will reluctantly but with great courage take that risk. If you are having young Americans killed and wounded with no progress and no achievement, then they get fed up very fast.

Rudy Giuliani - Giuliani was in New Hampshire. He’s receiving mixed signals from Republicans - mostly over abortion - but relatively strong signals from independants and Democrats. If he survives the primaries, he’ll be formidable. You can copy and paste the text of this article - you’ll be seeing it over and over again in the months to come.

Please leave love, hate, comments, tips, or anything else in the comments…

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Monday Night Roundup

Republicans:

Newt Gingrich: Newt is sitting down to talk with Sen. Schumer this Friday in DC in a forum about America’s Political Future. Also, draftnewt.org has been founded to raise awareness for Newt’s possible candidacy.

Mike Huckabee: Gov. Huckabee might be cursed to forever talk about Bill and Hillary Clinton. Huckabee is also in the race, and tell us why in this link. Not surprisingly, he’ll run his campaign out of Little Rock. Also in Little Rock, an ethics complaint was filed over the hard drives Huckabee used discretionary funds to erase; the complaint was filed by a random civilian; Huckabee denied any wrongdoing on Monday.

Mitt Romney: Some people are charging Mitt Romney with hypocrisy, this time on the immigration issue. Meanwhile, the Romney and Clinton camps sparred over the war in Iraq. Between barbs, Romney campaigned in South Carolina, picking up three key endorsements.

John McCain: He’s got Curt Schilling, for whatever that’s worth. Also, as you’ll see everywhere else, he and Hillary helped dedicate a Rehabilitation Center in Texas. I don’t see the big deal, myself. Everyone will have forgotten it (in terms of its political ramifications) next week.

Democrats:

Tom Vilsack: Weird day for Vilsack. He accepted a part time teach job at Drake Law School. The article is noteworthy in that it doesn’t mention once that he’s running for President of the United States. I can’t make any sense out of this one. At least Al Gore waited until he lost before he accepted a part time professorship at Columbia. Vilsack is quoted as saying, “What I’m interested in doing and I think what any institution needs is a pair of fresh eyes that comes in and says, ‘You know, this is the way you look at a class, but how about if you look at it in a slightly different view?’ Giving students not only an opportunity to learn what the law is but encouraging them to think about how should it be different.” Also, Gov. Vilsack made a couple campaign stops tonight, including at the Two Brothers Restaurant. Gov. Vilsack has raised $1.1 million in the past 7 weeks - at this pace, he’ll have a cool $9 million in the bank by the Iowa caucuses, or about $90 million less than his competitors, and that assumes things break his way. In other words, the Governor needs to pick up sooner or later. The best way to do that would be in the polls in Iowa. Let’s see what he can do.

John Edwards: Edwards may be the most liberal candidate the mainstream Democrats have looked at in years, but The Nation finds grounds to criticize him on Iran, saying that could cost him in the primary. I’m not so sure - mainstream Democrats who don’t support the war in Iraq aren’t all afraid of using it as a tool, or at least talking tough.

Hillary Clinton: See above anecdotes under McCain and Huckabee and Romney. Hillary also met with leaders of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, which has 1.3 million members.

Barack Obama: There’s a good story about Obama inside this Hillary article. On a flight Obama was on, he was asleep on plane (flying economy!) with RFK’s biography next to him.

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Edwards Touts His … Inexperience and Bad Judgment? Say What?

In a forum at Wake Forest University today, John Edwards spoke about his 2004 run and his Iraq vote in the Senate. Regarding the run in 2004, he stated, “When I ran in 2004, I spent most of my time thinking about being a good candidate. These days I think about what I want to do as president of the United States.” That’s probably something voters needed to hear at some point - (otherwise, why pay attention to someone who was only good enough to come in second 4 years ago?). There are risks, though… mainly that voters will fault his judgment for running as an inexperienced candidate; secondly, that a couple years worth of working on poverty would change that equation. In fact, there’s almost no reaction to this statement that would really surprise me.

His comments on Iraq were in a similar vein: “I was wrong. I’m not interested in blaming anyone else for that. I have to take responsibility.”

I’m not sure this is a good strategy. Americans love commanders in chief who lead, not that admit faults left and right, particularly judgmental faults. Americans would probably be willing to forgive errors of omission … but generally admitting wrong on whether you are qualified to be President and whether war is justified … those tend to be decisions that are held in the highest regard. That’s when you should make your best decisions… not your worst ones.

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Duncan Hunter - The Anti-Kerry Candidate

At a campaign stop in New Hampshire this morning, Hunter took an opportunity to criticize Kerry.

I don’t yet believe Hunter’s campaign has enough traction to make him seriously influential nor do I believe that that is possible, as others do. However, there’s no denying the fact that he’s been able to raise some serious cash for a minor candidate, nor is there denying that he’s been receiving quite a bit of press attention. Let’s see if his re-negotiate trade deals with China position catches on.

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Monday Morning Roundup

YNet News examines the potential relationship of Israel to either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. There’s an interesting summary of both Hillary’s and Bill’s history regarding Israel. It seems possible, even likely, upon reading the article that Hillary is farther to the right on Israel than Bill was. However, the article condemns Obama for being weak on foreign policy, and perhaps believing in a philosophy which would endanger Israel. The source of the criticism is Obama’s book, the Audacity of Hope. The criticism is mostly because Obama did not support the Iraq war, which seems to be something of an outrageous proposition on face: any candidate that didn’t support the Iraq war would be weak on foreign policy? The article does additionally mention, though, that the reasons Obama gave ( “even a successful war against Iraq will require US occupation of undetermined length, and undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences”) would apply to every war ever undertaken. This is a valid point. The problem, at its root, with using criticism of the war as any sort of litmus test is that one’s opinion depends on the intelligence one has. And I’m not sure ’so and so didn’t support the war’ will get traction at all as a negative in this campaign cycle: perhaps on the fringes, at best.

Jump for the rest of the mornings updates.
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McCain invades Massachusetts and more

John McCain is rallying support in Massachusetts, which everyone seems to be interpreting as a clear shot over the bow of Mitt Romney’s campaign. A former senior advisor to Romney is also now leading support for McCain.

Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe are leading the campaign for McCain in Maine.

No word yet if McCain said Danka Shane, or if he’ll be riding a train with a Great Dane, or if they declined would he have been in pain. Or if he first asked Billy Zane. We do know that that state will not be his bane, but rather his gain. (I do, though, occasionally wonder if I am sane.)

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Hillary Wants Troops out of Iraq Before Next Inauguration

The big news yesterday was Hillary Clinton calling for Troops to be out of Iraq by the time the next Commander in Chief takes the oath of office in January 2009. She stated, “I am going to level with you, the president has said this is going to be left to his successor. I think it is the height of irresponsibility and I really resent it.” She also stated, “”This was his decision to go to war with an ill-conceived plan and an incompetently executed strategy.”

It’s an interesting position to take, as she clearly wants to take advantage of the anti-war feeling pervasive among Democrats while also staying to the right of Edwards and Obama and the rest of the Democratic field (incidentally, I don’t see that much of a difference between her position on Iraq and Obama’s; Edwards, though, is a different story). Also, this position is ripe for her to run to the middle for later; while others are promising to ‘get out now,’ that message won’t resonate in a general election, I think. (see Ned Lamont.)

What Hillary is saying is that Bush should set a timetable for himself. What she is NOT doing is saying what she will do if given the keys to the car in 2009 with circumstances no one can forecast right now. If circumstances change between now and August or September, 2008, Hillary can easily postpone her timetable she’s setting today. Eventually, she’ll be locked into a position on a timetable - all she’s doing now is criticizing the President for not setting one himself.

The only risk for Hillary is people bringing up she voted for the war, and again sounding duplicitous. And yes, that is a risk (and possibly a reality, depending on where you stand) . But if Chuck Hagel can beat that off, I think Hillary can as well. Between Hillary, Hagel, and McCain, it seems now there is an unquestionable move towards accountability in regards to the war. That can only be a good thing.

Also, the White House responded today to these comments, saying they hurt the troops.

Do you think it was a tactical blunder? A masterstroke? Leave a comment.

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Everything about Draft Committees You Never Knew You Didn’t Know

Matthew Mosk at the Washington Post today has an article about the legalities behind Draft Committees and what they can do with the money and information they raise before a candidate gets into the race. The most prominent Draft Committee right now is the Draft Rudy Giuliani one. The long story made short: If a Draft committee raises too much money, spending it could become a problem.

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Wow, People Actually Read … Books?

Pop matters reviews the arti of the presidential book. The cited model, as always, is JFK’s Profiles in Courage. The benefits of books include: getting a name out there (such as that of Mike Huckabee), getting an early start on campaigning (such as John Edwards), and just generally being able to move past soundbites and offer people a comprehensive look at a candidate. Aside from the previous two examples, Barack Obama is also cited for leading the NY Times best selling list.

Also interesting is who has a book coming out this may: Al Gore, with The Assault on Reason.

The only other book not currently available that is mentioned is John McCain’s Hard Call: Great Decisions and the Extraordinary People Who Made Them, which is due out this fall. Tom Vilsack is additionally thinking about publishing his correspondance as governor.

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Romney Addresses Flip-Flopping

At the National Review Institute, Romney finally addressed his flip-flopping…

On abortion…
“On abortion, I wasn’t always a Ronald Reagan conservative, neither was Ronald Reagan, by the way. But like him, I learned from experience.’’

On gay marriage…
“I opposed then, and I do now, gay marriage and civil union. I am proud of the fact that I and my team did everything within our power and within the law to stand up for traditional marriage.’’

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