Articles of Interest 1-4-08
307 Days until Election Day
MORNING UPDATE:
Mike Huckabee won Iowa as expected, where approximately 60% of the Republican participants identified themselves as Evangelical Christians. Romney came in a strong second and Thompson pulled off a close third place finish over John McCain.
Barrack Obama pulled off an impressive and historic victory. But the real story is that 2 out of every 3 Democrats rejected Hillary Clinton.
The Democrats who got the “3 tickets” out of Iowa were Obama, Edwards and Clinton.
On to New Hampshire where today this appears to be a two-man battle between Romney and McCain…focusing on the issues of immigration and tax cuts.
Thompson continues to play in South Carolina, Giuliani’s Super Tuesday strategy is clearly still in play and now electability and a nationwide ability to compete will play a bigger role.
Michigan voters will play a big role on the Republican side, as it appears we won’t have an heir apparent and the Republican race for our nomination remains very competitive.
The “Stop Hillary Democrats” are organizing to vote “uncommitted” in Michigan. The Michigan Dem Party has been actively encouraging their members to vote for “uncommitted” on their web page and elsewhere. Interesting politics on the Dem side.
Taxpayer Fraud??? The state announced a SURPLUS of some $350 Million dollars…after the Democrats jammed through the largest tax increase in Michigan’s history. Republicans argued we could balance our budget without raising taxes…this is before any meaningful reforms.
Republicans are committed to standing up for the taxpayers. Now that the Democrats got their tax increase…how about a bi-partisan approach at reforming the way Michigan spend our tax dollars?!?
Attorney General Mike Cox was featured on Bill O’Reilly’s show on FOX. It was a great story about Mike Cox’s efforts to stop illegal immigrants from getting Michigan drivers licenses. Congratulation on great national coverage…and great work on behalf of Michigan’s citizens/taxpayers!
Our 2007 Annual Report was emailed out to our party activists yesterday and is posted on our blog at:
http://migop.blogs.com/blog/2008/01/2007-annual-rep.html
We also have our quarterly RNC meeting coming up at the end of the month where we will consider what system we use next. We have proposed another option that provides for what I believe is a “fairer” way to have the system set up nationwide. For more information go to:
http://migop.blogs.com/blog/2007/12/dingell-anuzis.html
The U.S. Senate race for the Republican nomination is picking up. Andrew “Rocky” Raczkowski and Bart Baron have filed the appropriate paperwork to form their committees and many have been talking to Jack Hoogendyk about running as well.
THE REST OF THE STORY:
No further commentary today.
Saul Anuzis
STATE STORIES
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080103/UPDATE/801030461
Michigan's November jobless rate still nation's highest
Associated Press
Thursday, January 3, 2008
LANSING -- Seasonally unadjusted unemployment rates increased in 12 of Michigan's 17 regional labor markets in November, state officials said today. Total employment rose in 13 regions with an average gain of a little less than 1 percent. Michigan's three northern labor markets posted large seasonal drops in employment. Regional unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted, but national and state unemployment rates are adjusted to remove seasonal influences such as production cycles, holidays, model changeovers in the auto industry and climate conditions.
http://freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/OPINION01/801040327/1069
State should sock away surprise surplus
Detroit Free Press
January 4, 2008
Save it. That's the only decent response to news that Gov. Jennifer Granholm's budget gurus managed to end the last fiscal year with a $353-million surplus. Those dollars can sit to best advantage in the state's rainy day fund. There are three minor exceptions. Granholm and lawmakers have tentatively agreed not to close a State Police crime lab, which requires adding $2 million to the department's budget. Because lawmakers couldn't face raising fees for hunting and fishing licenses or for pollution permits, the Departments of Natural Resources and Environmental Quality both need cash infusions, roughly $5 million and $11 million respectively.
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/columns-3/1199375440278770.xml&coll=7
Legislature should take up Land's reforms in 2008
Kalamazoo Gazette
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Nearly two years ago, Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land unveiled a list of 20 election-related reforms that she urged the state Legislature to enact. They ranged from pre-registering 16-year-olds to vote when they came to her offices to apply for drivers' licenses, to making it easier to vote by absentee ballot to creating a real-time campaign finance reporting system that would require campaigns to report fundraising and spending activity as it occurred -- not just before and after an election, which is now the case.
http://www.mlive.com/columns/bctimes/index.ssf?/base/news-1/119937692527760.xml&coll=4
Pull together and put the brakes on state's population trend
Bay City Times
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Michigan's population is plummeting like an out-of-control SUV heading downhill. It's a scary ride that's gaining momentum. What's more, nobody can see where this trend may end. The U.S. Census Bureau late last month listed Michigan as one of only two states to lose population last year. The other state was Rhode Island. As in that tiny eastern state, experts in Michigan are blaming a soured economy and a lack of good jobs for the 30,500-person drop in the state's population in 2007. That is hardly surprising. The shrinking of the Great Lakes State is all about opportunity. Michigan's educated youth have always sought their fortunes wherever their college degrees have taken them - mostly outside the state.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/OPINION03/801040358/1031
This Big 3 sequel is scary
Problems confronting automakers nearly three decades ago still haunt them without change.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Daniel Howes
Twenty-seven years ago -- when oil breached an inflation-adjusted $100 a barrel, lines formed at gas stations and the Japanese began a generation-long march into the American car market -- Detroit and its hometown automakers faced an existential crisis. Chrysler Corp., teetering on bankruptcy, wrested loan guarantees from the federal government and concessions from the United Auto Workers. Ford Motor Co. drafted bankruptcy papers it never filed, and General Motors Corp. waited to exploit the weaknesses of its rivals. Twenty-seven years later, what's changed? Everything, and not much of anything. Oil again is at historic highs, this time driven by surging global demand instead of interruptions in supply.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8TUIOI80&show_article=1
Toyota Passes Ford for No. 2 in US Sales
Associated Press
January 3, 2008
DETROIT (AP) - Toyota Motor Corp. overtook Ford Motor Co. to become the No. 2 automaker by U.S. sales in 2007, using new products and relentless strategy to break Ford's 75-year lock on the position. Toyota sold 48,226 more cars and trucks than Ford, according to sales figures released Thursday. Toyota's sales were up 3 percent for the year, buoyed by new products like the Toyota Tundra pickup, which saw sales jump 57 percent. Ford's sales fell 12 percent, ending with a whimper a year that is expected to be the worst for the auto industry since 1998 as consumers fretted over high gas prices and the economy.
Winter heating bills will be lower than expected in Michigan
1/2/2008, 4:07 p.m. EST
The Associated Press
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan residents can expect to save on their natural gas heating bills the rest of the winter. State energy regulators report that it's been warmer than normal, and that the amount of cheaper gas available is higher than in the past. The Michigan Public Service Commission says those two factors will save consumers money during the next three months.
http://www.landlinemag.com/todays_news/Daily/2008/Jan08/010308-03.htm
Michigan governor says gas tax increase a no-go for roads
Keith Goble
January 3, 2008
Like nearly every other state, Michigan is in need of more money to make repairs to roads and bridges throughout the state. However, Gov. Jennifer Granholm has said she doesn’t want to increase the fuel tax rates to help reduce the funding gap. The state has an estimated $700 million annual shortfall in maintaining roadways managed by the Michigan Department of Transportation. Local routes have repair needs of at least $2 billion. Some road building and business groups have touted the benefits of boosting the state’s gas tax rate by 3 cents each of the next three years to 28 cents per gallon. The plan could generate $425 million in annual revenues at the end of the three-year period, The Associated Press reported.
http://www.hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080103/OPINION01/801030438/1201/NEWS13
You Are a "Good Man" Judge Warren
Tom Watkins:
January 3, 2008
He is a conservative and compassionate Republican and I am a reform-minded Democrat. He cast a deciding vote to help propel me into a major statewide policy role and I spoke at his investiture to become a circuit court judge. We come at public policy issues from a different slant, yet on a number of issues; especially debates dealing with kids, we remarkably end up at a similar space. We have learned that we can disagree, and do so often but we do not need to be disagreeable and in fact can and are friends. We both wish there was more of this behavior taking place in our state and nations capital today. What brings us together is a sense of obligation to make government work as effectively and efficiently as we can while upholding our democratic principles and ideals.
http://www.hollandsentinel.com/stories/010208/opinion_20080102035.shtml
A win for Michigan farmers
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
By Sen. Carl Levin
Many of us associate Michigan produce with a stroll through a local farmers market. Fresh sweet corn is a delicacy in the fall, and cherries are a summer treat. But Michigan's farmers reach far beyond the local market and even beyond Michigan super markets. In fact, Michigan is a national leader in agriculture. One-third of our land is farmed, and agriculture is our second largest industry. The importance of agriculture to our economy means that the farm bill that the U.S. Senate passed in December is critical for our entire state. While the final legislation remains to be completed in 2008, this Senate-passed bill is an important step forward.
http://www.mlive.com/news/bctimes/index.ssf?/base/news-11/119937692827760.xml&coll=4
Standish casino opens with little fanfare, but plenty of gamblers
Thursday, January 03, 2008
By CRYSTAL McMORRIS and HELEN LOUNSBURY
STANDISH - It opened with little fanfare: no billboards, no advertisements, not even an announcement on the Web site. Just some spotlights, shining in the night from the quiet darkness. But word got around. Folks caught a whiff of a jackpot. The eagle has landed. The Saganing Eagle's Landing Casino, which quietly opened on New Year's Eve, was abuzz with business on Tuesday and Wednesday. Folks flocked from near and far to try their luck on one of 700 slot machines lined up in the little casino by the bay, just south of Standish on Worth Road.
NATIONAL STORIES
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-01-03-iowa-gop_N.htm?csp=34
Huckabee: 'A new day in American politics'
By David Jackson, USA TODAY
January 4, 2008
DES MOINES — Long-shot Republican candidate Mike Huckabee declared "a new day in American politics" Thursday after riding strong support from evangelical Christians into a decisive victory in the Iowa caucuses. Huckabee, an ordained Baptist minister and, like Bill Clinton, a native of Hope, Ark., managed to win despite trailing badly in national polls for most of the year. He out-hustled runner-up Mitt Romney and better-known candidates John McCain, Fred Thompson and Rudy Giuliani with a coalition of pastors, home schooling adherents, gun rights advocates and supporters of a new national tax system."This election is not about me. It's about we," the former Arkansas governor told supporters here. He said the victory would ignite "a prairie fire of new hope and zeal."
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/01/03/politics/main3673124.shtml
Why Huckabee Won
Evangelicals Boost Former Ark. Governor To Victory In Iowa GOP Caucuses
Monika L. McDermott
NEW YORK, Jan. 3, 2008
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee won the Republican caucuses in Iowa on the strength of religion and values, according to a CBS News poll of attendees entering caucus sites on Tuesday night. Evangelicals put in a strong showing at the caucuses - they made up an overwhelming 6 in 10 of attendees - and Huckabee was their darling, garnering 46 percent of their support in the crowded Republican field. Participants in the Republican caucuses wanted a candidate who shared their moral values and religious beliefs, and Huckabee was their choice on both counts. Forty-five percent of caucus-goers said they were looking for a candidate who "shares my values" when deciding whom to support, compared to a third who wanted a candidate who says what he believes, and 14 percent who want a candidate with experience.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/POLITICS01/801040377/1022
Huckabee rises on 'faith, family' theme
The Baptist minister taps activist wing to climb polls to contender status in GOP race.
Mark Hornbeck / Detroit News Lansing Bureau
Friday, January 4, 2008
When evangelical Christians grew increasingly disheartened with the records and positions on key social issues of the frontrunners in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, many turned to a southern Baptist minister who was singing from their hymnal: former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. Once a distant also-ran in the contest, Huckabee has tapped into that activist wing of the party with his "faith, family, freedom" message and catapulted to contender status in early caucus and primary states Iowa, New Hampshire and Michigan. The affable, multifaceted 51-year-old candidate -- who plays bass guitar in his own rock band and wrote a book on weight loss after he recently shed more than 100 pounds -- also is winning points on the campaign trail for his folksy wit and self-deprecating charm.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/POLITICS01/801040393/1022/POLITICS
Huckabee, Obama triumph in Iowa
Results could pare presidential field; Romney 2nd in GOP race; with McCain, looks to N.H., Michigan; Edwards edges Clinton in battle for 2nd
David Espo and Mike Glover / Associated Press
Friday, January 4, 2008
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Sen. Barack Obama swept to victory in the Iowa caucuses Thursday night, pushing Hillary Rodham Clinton to third place and taking a major stride in a historic bid to become the nation's first black president. Mike Huckabee rode a wave of support from evangelical Christians to win the opening round among Republicans in the 2008 campaign for the White House. Obama, a 46-year-old first-term senator from Illinois, told a raucous victory rally his triumph showed that in "big cities and small towns, you came together to say, 'We are one nation, we are one people and our time for change has come.' " Final Democratic returns showed Obama gaining 38 percent support. Former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina gained second, barely edging out Clinton, the former first lady.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/NEWS07/801040346/1009
Obama, Huckabee win first round
Democrats: Edwards takes second; front-runner Clinton finishes in third Republicans: Mich. native Romney can't fend off ex-governor's late surge
January 4, 2008
BY KATHLEEN GRAY and TODD SPANGLER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee scored decisive if improbable victories in Iowa's first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses Thursday, buoyed by huge turnouts at church basements, school auditoriums and even living rooms across the state. Both now have the early edge in a compressed schedule of caucuses and primaries across the nation. Obama, the charismatic Democratic senator from Illinois who has touted himself as the candidate for change, beat former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, who advisers had warned might want to avoid a possible defeat in Iowa.
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZDIzMTM5MDExNDJjYzY2NDY5YzhmNDY2MTJkN2Q2OGU=
The Eve of Destruction?
Is Mike Huckabee the stake in the heart of the Reagan coalition?
By James Bopp Jr.
January 2, 2008 2:30 PM
Republicans have enjoyed victories in five of the last seven presidential elections by uniting the Reagan coalition of social conservatives, economic conservatives and foreign-policy conservatives. Mike Huckabee’s campaign manager, Ed Rollins, however, declared Sunday in the New York Times that the Reagan coalition “is gone.” In designing the Huckabee campaign strategy, Rollins has decided that some, unspecified, part of the original triad must “go by the wayside.”
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/POLITICS01/801040386/1022/POLITICS
Huckabee ran ad after saying he wouldn't
John Solomon / Washington Post
Friday, January 4, 2008
WASHINGTON -- An attack ad that Mike Huckabee promised never to air ran three times in Iowa on New Year's Eve, according to a tracking agency. The television spot, which calls Republican rival Mitt Romney "dishonest" for airing ads that distort Huckabee's record, ran in the afternoon in Davenport, at dinnertime in Cedar Rapids and during a 9 p.m. newscast in Davenport, according to the Campaign Media Analysis Group. The on-again, off-again ad has been at the center of one of the oddest events in the run-up to the Iowa caucuses. After days of withering attacks by Romney, a former Masachusetts governor, Huckabee took a day off the campaign trail Sunday to fly to Arkansas and film a 30-second counterattack ad, which was prepared for release in Iowa the next day.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/POLITICS01/801040392/1022
Michigan looms bigger for Romney
Weakened by Iowa defeat, GOP contender faces battles with Huckabee, McCain.
Gordon Trowbridge / Detroit News Washington Bureau
Friday, January 4, 2008
Mike Huckabee's underdog victory over Mitt Romney in Thursday's Iowa caucuses will reverberate through the Republican presidential contest all the way to Michigan's Jan. 15 primary. The former Arkansas governor's surprisingly easy win was a sharp blow to Romney's hopes, and sets up Michigan as a likely must-win for the Michigan native. Romney enters Tuesday's New Hampshire primary weakened by Huckabee and threatened by John McCain's resurgent campaign. Pre-Iowa polls show that race very tight between McCain and Romney.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080104/ap_po/romney
Romney falls to Huckabee in Iowa
By GLEN JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer
Fri Jan 4, 12:23 AM ET
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa - Republican Mitt Romney failed Thursday to pick up the first of two back-to-back wins he hoped would propel him toward his party's presidential nomination, losing the Iowa caucuses five days before what is now for him a pivotal New Hampshire primary. The former Massachusetts governor, who spent more time and money in this state than his rivals, was upset by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, a late-blooming challenger who ultimately became a target of Romney's negative advertising. During the past two months, Romney surrendered a double-digit lead in the polls, in part on the strength of Christian conservative support for Huckabee, a former Southern Baptist minister.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/01/a_hard_loss_for_romney.html
A Hard Loss for Romney
By John Ellis
January 04, 2008
It's one thing to lose as you are. What you lose is an election, but there's always another election and in the case of presidential primary politics, a new electorate that awaits you in the next state. It's another thing to lose as you aren't. Mitt Romney was never the 700 Club right-winger his campaign managers conceived. He was and is a man of business and a very capable one at that. He's all but doomed now. Senator John McCain will beat him in New Hampshire, probably by a lot, and Romney's media coverage will evaporate and his candidacy will consequently die.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/01/03/politics/main3673188.shtml
N.H. May Be "Win Or Bust" For Romney
Reeling From Iowa Loss, GOP Candidate Goes After Rival McCain In Hopes Of Salvaging Campaign
David Miller
Jan. 3, 2008
Mitt Romney, having suffered a crushing defeat in Iowa - a state in which he led the polls for months and invested millions of his own dollars - is now looking to rebound in New Hampshire, which holds its primaries on Jan. 8. Yet for all the differences between the two states, Romney is facing a situation in New Hampshire not unlike what he saw in Iowa, at a time when a victory there may be his only hope for salvaging his campaign. Just as in Iowa, Romney, after dominating surveys for months, is now fighting off a stiff challenge in New Hampshire from a rival many pundits had previously written off.
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/01/04/post_262.html?hpid=topnews
Disappointed Romney Supporters Note 'Reagan Lost Iowa'
By Michael D. Shear
DES MOINES, Jan. 3 –
They packed into Mitt Romney's victory party, and were quickly disappointed. But the boisterous crowd was anything but defeated. "Huckabee had too much of a surge at the end, but in New Hampshire, he's off the charts," said Chip Tobey, 54, a computer consultant from Dayton, Ohio, who had come to campaign for Romney in Iowa. "This is just one of 50 contests." Just as Romney urged them to do, his most fervent supporters expressed optimism that Romney's failure to win in Iowa would not be the end of the presidential road for him. Dell Tschudin, 55, a retired pastor from Papillion, Neb., was an early Romney volunteer and was rewarded with a membership card that looks like a credit card. He noted that the expiration date says 12-31-2008, almost a year from now.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/OPINION01/801040308/1022
Mitt Romney: We need to stimulate economy
GOP candidate: 'Rest of nation is beginning to feel what Mich. has felt'
Excerpts of The Detroit News editorial board's interview with Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor and GOP presidential hopeful:
Friday, January 4, 2008
Faith
Q . You gave what some billed as a make-or-break speech on faith in early December. Did put to rest the Mormon issue?
A . It wasn't a speech trying to put to rest the Mormon issue. It was a speech about faith in America, an opportunity for me to describe the fundamental role that faith has played in the foundation of our nation and, in my view, the future of this nation. I anticipate that as long as I'm in the race, people will ask me questions about my faith from time to time, and I'll respond.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080103/NEWS07/80103063/1118/rss
Giuliani praises Huckabee's win, but says he will prevail
January 3, 2008
By RASHA MADKOUR
ASSOCIATED PRESS
HIALEAH, Fla. — Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani praised rival Mike Huckabee for his win in the Iowa caucuses tonight — a contest Giuliani skipped — yet insisted his own early-state campaign could win over the long haul. “I think we’re in good shape. We’re ahead in maybe 16, 18 of the 29 states that are coming up,” the former New York mayor said. “This was the first one. I think it’s one that, quite honestly, we didn’t expect that we would win. And we didn’t put a lot of resources into it. And now we’ll move on to the others.”
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0108/7703.html
Iowa leaves GOP in total disarray
By: John F. Harris and Jonathan Martin
Updated: January 4, 2008 12:58 AM EST
DES MOINES, Iowa — Mike Huckabee’s startling, not-even-close victory over Mitt Romney and the rest of the GOP field in the Iowa caucus means the Republican Party is in for a wildly unpredictable ride in the weeks ahead. Here’s what’s certain: Romney’s dethroning has created a big opening for a John McCain revival in the New Hampshire primary next Tuesday. The Iowa results, with a victory for a populist social conservative deeply mistrusted by many people in the Republican establishment, also virtually guarantee that the nomination contest will not simply be a battle over personalities and credentials. Instead, the race will now be a deep and probably intensely negative fight for the direction of the party in the post-Bush era.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080103/NEWS07/80103071/1118/rss
Republicans: Race pitted religious values against big money
January 3, 2008
By RICK PEARSON
DES MOINES, Iowa — In a battle pitting a grassroots network of religious conservatives against corporate-style organization, Mike Huckabee stunned Mitt Romney in Iowa’s leadoff Republican caucuses tonight and recast the dynamics of an already fluid GOP presidential contest as it heads into New Hampshire. The victory by Huckabee, a Baptist minister and former Arkansas governor, represented a rejection by Iowa Republicans of the massive money apparatus that Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, had used on the ground and with a constant flurry of TV ads to blister Huckabee to try to win over core conservatives.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/03/us/politics/03cnd-campaign.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
Obama Triumphs in Iowa Contest as Clinton Falters; Huckabee Rolls
By ADAM NAGOURNEY
Published: January 3, 2008
DES MOINES — Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, a one-term Democratic senator trying to become the nation’s first African-American president, rolled to victory in the Iowa caucuses on Thursday night, lifted by what appeared to be a record turnout of voters who rejected the criticism that he did not have enough experience. Mr. Obama’s victory amounted to a significant setback for Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, who just months ago appeared to be the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, but has watched her position erode over the past several months. The result also left uncertain the prospects for John Edwards, a former senator from North Carolina, who had staked his second bid for the White House on winning this state.
http://opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110011083
Out With the Old, In With the New
Obama and Huckabee rise; Mrs. Clinton falls.
Peggy Noonan
Friday, January 4, 2008 12:01 a.m. EST
And so it begins. We wanted exciting, we got exciting. As this is written, late on the night of the caucuses, the outlines of the decisions seem clear: Barack Obama won. Hillary Clinton, the inevitable, the avatar of the machine, lost. It's huge. Even though people have been talking about this possibility for six weeks now, it's still huge. She had the money, she had the organization, the party's stars, she had Elvis behind her, and the Clinton name in a base that loved Bill. And she lost. There are always a lot of reasons for a loss, but the Ur reason in this case, the thing it all comes down to? There's something about her that makes you look, watch, think, look again, weigh and say: No.
Obama Takes Iowa in a Big Turnout as Clinton Falters; Huckabee Victor
By ADAM NAGOURNEY
January 4, 2008
DES MOINES — Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, a first-term Democratic senator trying to become the nation’s first African-American president, rolled to victory in the Iowa caucuses on Thursday night, lifted by a record turnout of voters who embraced his promise of change. The victory by Mr. Obama, 46, amounted to a startling setback for Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, 60, of New York, who just months ago presented herself as the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination. The result left uncertain the prospects for John Edwards, a former senator from North Carolina, who had staked his second bid for the White House on winning Iowa.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080104/D8TUS2RG0.html
Obama Says His Victory Will Bring Change
Jan 4, 12:15 AM (ET)
By AMY LORENTZEN
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - A victorious Barack Obama portrayed his decisive first-place finish in the Iowa Democratic caucuses as a "defining moment" that he said would lead the way to change in Washington and an end to the war in Iraq. The first-term senator from Illinois promised "a nation less divided and more united" and told those at a victory rally they could some day "look back and say this is the moment where it all began." Obama, 46, is bidding to become the first black president. He garnered about 38 percent of the vote, comfortably ahead of former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former first lady.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0108/7709.html
Obama victory leaves Clinton scrambling
By: Mike Allen and Ben Smith
Jan 4, 2008 12:24 AM EST
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) heads out of Iowa as the biggest news story in the world and a force that strategists for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) are uncertain how to stop. With the New Hampshire primary just four days away, Clinton and her team now must convince voters that choosing Obama would be risky for the party and the country — but they must do it in a way that doesn’t make her look small or desperate. “Everyone underestimated this conflagration,” said a former Clinton administration official. “If people think he’s electable, they’ll vote with their hearts and not their minds.”
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MGVlMDcyZjBkYTRkMjk4NDg0NmE0NzcxNWU1YTUzMzA=
They’re Not That into Him
Netroots vs. Obama.
By Stephen Spruiell
January 3, 2008 7:15 AM
The Des Moines Register’s final Iowa poll has Barack Obama trouncing Hillary Clinton in today’s caucuses, 32 to 25. This, the Register tells us, is thanks to high projected turnout from self-described independents, 40 percent of whom favor Obama. Nationally, polls show Obama beating prospective Republican nominees by wider margins than any Democrat running. One could make the case that Obama is more authentically liberal than Hillary Clinton or John Edwards, yet could attract more independent voters in the general election than either. On top of that, he has higher favorability ratings than Hillary and a lot more money than Edwards.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8TUUIN00&show_article=1
Clinton Unbowed by Third-Place Finish
Jan 4 03:05 AM US/Eastern
By BETH FOUHY
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, claiming to be unbowed by a third- place finish in the Iowa Democratic caucuses, hailed a "great night for Democrats" and said the strong turnout pointed to the sure election of a Democratic president in November. She said she would "keep pushing as hard as we can."
But her poor showing here was a searing blow to the former first lady, dissolving her image as her party's inevitable nominee and setting up a critical five-day race to Tuesday's leadoff primary in New Hampshire. Clinton told cheering supporters that she had congratulated caucus winner Sen. Barack Obama and the second-place finisher, former Sen. John Edwards. She promised to take "this enthusiasm and go tonight to New Hampshire."
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/usa/2008/01/richardson_misspeaks.html
Richardson misspeaks?
Freudian slip or sleep deprivation?
Elana Schor
January 3, 2008 1:01 PM
As speculation intensifies in Iowa about whether Bill Richardson will ask his supporters to back Obama on the second ballot tonight, the New Mexico governor made a potentially Freudian slip in a morning interview on CNN. Asked to defend his opposition to waterboarding of detainees in US custody, Richardson gave a slightly rambling answer that referred to Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf as a "terrorist". Read on.... Here is Richardson's answer to anchor John Roberts in full, per the official transcript:
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/POLITICS01/801040387/1022/POLITICS
Wyoming voters go to caucuses right after Iowa
But GOP presidential candidates have spent little time campaigning in the western state.
Mead Gruver / Associated Press
Friday, January 4, 2008
CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- Don't forget Wyoming. The state has been overlooked in the hoopla surrounding Thursday's Iowa caucuses and next week's New Hampshire primary. But Wyoming Republicans will caucus Saturday and choose delegates to the national convention in September. Candidates have paid little attention to the state, though. Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson, Duncan Hunter and Ron Paul have passed through since September. Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani and John McCain have not. "Yes, there have been some appearances by the candidates in this state that otherwise wouldn't have occurred this early in the process," said Jim King, who teaches political science at the University of Wyoming.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/POLITICS01/801040385/1022
Candidates' trail leads to New Hampshire
Presidential hopefuls fly in for one last push to impress the voters in Tuesday's primary.
Deb Price / Detroit News Washington Bureau
Friday, January 4, 2008
MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Fresh off the plane from Iowa, an upbeat and confident Sen. John McCain told reporters here Thursday night that he can win the Jan. 15 Michigan primary off the momentum of a victory in New Hampshire next Tuesday. "I am very confident that we can (win Michigan)," McCain said, adding that he is happy with the team he has in Michigan. "But I believe in straight talk. A lot rests on what happens here next Tuesday." Outside the small airport, McCain supporters, braving single-digit temperatures, waved signs reading "Vets for McCain" and "The Mac is Back." McCain climbed aboard his "Straight Talk Express" bus and began a four-day town hall blitz around the state.
Attention shifts to first presidential primary
By Martha T. Moore, USA TODAY
January 4, 2008
MANCHESTER, N.H. — The first plane landed here from Iowa even before the caucuses started Thursday. But the rest of the presidential pack was right behind Sen. John McCain, as planeloads of candidates, campaign workers and media arrive today for the last push to the first primary. After a year of sharing the spotlight and the candidates with Iowa, New Hampshire becomes the sole focus of the 2008 presidential race until Tuesday's primary. The last few days before voting "are always the most memorable of any primary campaign," state Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley says. "The electricity is amazing."
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110011072
President Bloomberg
It's his money, but a race for the White House might not be the wisest way of spending it.
Wall Street Journal
Thursday, January 3, 2008 12:01 a.m. EST
The first Presidential nominating contests are only beginning, but already New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is stealing attention as a potential third-party candidate. We trust he's read the history of what usually happens to such candidates--they lose, finishing essentially as spoilers. The billionaire mayor has no shortage of cheerleaders for such a contest, including his staff, assorted consultants, and even the usually hard-headed editors at the New York Sun and New York Post. He's rich enough to get on the ballot in every state, and has been widely quoted as saying he'd spend $500 million or more if he did decide to run. That's more than enough to get his message out, if he can find one.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/01/caucuses_less_than_desirable_w.html
Wait for New Hampshire
By David Broder
January 03, 2008
MANCHESTER, N.H. -- One final reminder: When you're reading the returns from the Iowa caucuses, remember you are viewing them through a double distortion mirror. The outcome of Iowa's first-in-the-nation voting is skewed by two big factors. The turnout is ridiculously small, barely 20 percent of the eligible voters. And those who choose to caucus are hardly representative of the population as a whole. This is not said in disparagement of Iowans, whose overall civic spirit and political acumen are as outstanding as any voters I know. But their traditional way of expressing their early choice for president and the disproportionate influence it exerts in winnowing the field leave a lot to be desired.
Republicans Out-Raised Democrats for National Commitees
By Leslie Wayne
January 2, 2008, 6:03 pm
When it comes to fund-raising, Democrats have outpaced Republicans almost across the board. The lone exception is the Republican National Committee, which reported yesterday that it had raised $83 million for the year, easily topping the Democratic National Committee, which had raised $50.5 million in the first 11 months of 2007.
Republicans say that this cash pile — the Republican committee has $17.2 million on hand, compared to the $2.8 million the Democratic committee reported — should help the Republican presidential nominee in the fall.
http://washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080102/EDITORIAL/643894347
Gays and the military
By Elaine Donnelly
January 2, 2008, The first of two installments.
If there is a conflict between equal opportunity and military necessity, which one should have priority? The non-partisan Center for Military Readiness asked all presidential candidates to state their views on this and related military/social issues that affect discipline and morale (www.cmrlink.org). In 1992, candidate Bill Clinton downplayed his intent to lift the ban on homosexuals in the military. Mr. Clinton failed, but his administrative "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy/regulations moved the agenda half-way.During a June 2007 presidential debate, Sen. Hillary Clinton, New York Democrat, admitted that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was supposed to be a "transitional policy" toward full acceptance of professed homosexuals in the military. Where do Republicans stand on this and other military personnel issues?
Gays and the military
By Elaine Donnelly - The last of two installments.
January 3, 2008
Democratic presidential candidates want to impose the full weight of San Francisco-style liberal ideology upon the armed forces. You would never know it, however, given the silence or equivocation of Republicans on military social issues. As noted in this space yesterday, the Center for Military Readiness has been conducting a non-partisan survey to determine where the presidential candidates stand on military issues affecting discipline and morale. Candidates who did not respond to survey questions, including all the Democrats, missed an opportunity to proclaim sound, responsible priorities for the military.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/OPINION01/801040310/1007/OPINION
Trim pork from military appropriations bill
Congress should go back to work and cut dubious projects
The Detroit News Friday,
January 4, 2008
President George W. Bush's rejection of the defense spending bill gives Congress a second chance to cut the pork. The measure has nearly $8 billion in earmarks -- pet projects of lawmakers sending federal tax dollars back to their respective districts. Leaders of the current Congress promised to take a hard look at pork barrel spending. They might have taken a look, but they didn't stop the wasteful practice. President Bush claimed a pocket veto of the $696 billion military spending bill, citing an obscure provision that might put the Iraq government on the hook for millions of dollars in legal claims.
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/14960122/detail.html
Ex-Anderson Mayor To 'Rule From Exile' Pending Dispute
Lawsuit Questioning Election Winner's Residency Sent To High Court
POSTED: 8:28 am EST January 2, 2008
ANDERSON, Ind. -- Though a new Anderson mayor has been inaugurated, the man he replaced says he's not officially acknowledging the change, citing a lawsuit questioning the election winner's residency. Ex-Mayor Kevin Smith on Tuesday issued a statement contending it is his constitutional duty to keep claiming the office until the lawsuit -- which alleges new Mayor Kris Ockomon wasn't an Anderson resident for a required period before the election -- is adjudicated. On Wednesday morning, a judge sent the lawsuit to the Indiana Supreme Court, asking it to appoint a special judge to the case.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080103/D8TUFFC01.html
Musharraf: Bhutto Death Not Our Fault
Associated Press
January 3, 2008
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - President Pervez Musharraf on Thursday denied accusations that the military or intelligence services were involved in the killing of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto. Speaking at a news conference a week after Bhutto was killed in a suicide attack, Musharraf said he was not "fully satisfied" with his government's own inquiry, and had invited British investigators to assist the probe to dispel any suspicions about official involvement in her assassination. "We don't mind going to any extent, as nobody is involved from the government or agency side," he said. He also denied there had been a security lapse and implied that Bhutto, who was greeting supporters through the sunroof of her armored vehicle at the time of the attack, was partly responsible.