A Speech In Iowa Last Night Reverberates From Coast To Coast

Barack Obama may have been speaking from Iowa last night, but every single American could hear what he was saying. Congratulating Hillary Clinton for her valiant effort, attacking John McCain as he will from now to the general election and giving us all a vision of hope and change that will transform our nation for the better was the message. Another brilliant speech by the Senator from Illinois:

Oprah-bama

One star comes out for the rising political star out in Iowa this weekend. With friends like these....and a crowd that numbers in the thousands if not tens of thousands, Hillary has got to be nervous.

The Ron Paul Effect

Many Republicans try to dismiss the conservative libertarian, but Ron Paul's fundraising and more importantly his message might have an effect on the race, even if he doesn't become the Republican nominee.

You Know Its Bad For McCain When....Part 4

Its a bad sign for a Republican presidential candidate to lick the feet of the current unpopular commander in chief. It is never good to have less cash on hand than the "fringe" candidate. Its terrible to see your staff leave the campaign in disgust. But when Republican voters favor a Democrat over you, it really is time to walk away.

From The Carpetbagger Report:

Less than a month ago, with his campaign in free-fall, John McCain’s presidential campaign circulated talking points to supporters, explaining the skeleton of the senator’s comeback plan. In a nutshell, the strategy was premised on McCain excelling in three early-voting states: Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.

Success in these three states would get McCain back on track, and victory would beget more victory. The plan looks a little shaky in light of the senator’s wholesale collapse in Iowa.

How bad is that collapse? Oh, its really, really bad.

The changes among Republican voters since March are dramatic. Romney is now the preferred candidate at 21.8 percent — double his March support.

Giuliani’s support, 10 percent, decreased by almost 8.5 percent. McCain’s support has collapsed in Iowa. His support among registered Republicans dropped from 14.4 percent in March to 1.8 percent in July-August. UI political scientists note that McCain has been passed in popularity not only by former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., who earned 5.2 percent support, but also by a Democratic challenger, Obama, who is supported by 6.7 percent of Republicans. No other candidate received more than 3 percent support. (emphasis added)

Republicans Censoring Ron Paul

The power brokers of the GOP do not like this Texas Libertarian-Republican who likes to stray from his party on key issues. Iowans for Tax Relief simply do not want to hear what this controversial candidate has to say. Is it because of the war or something to do with taxes? You would think that a Republican tax group would want to hear from a man that hates government control. So what was their excuse?

From Associated Content:

According to Failor, Paul is not a "credible" presidential candidate. For planning purposes, Failor said that his group, along with the Iowa Christian Alliance, "made a determination" of who to invite to the forum. Failor said that the groups could not invite "every person who claims to be a candidate," and that in order to "serve our membership," the forum would only include the "most credible candidates."

When talk show host Jan Mickelson called Failor's excuse "lame," Failor responded that "we don't have to offer the forum to everyone." Failor went on to say that "a bunch of people from out-of-state are calling my home at all hours" to protest the decision to not include Paul in the forum. He also claimed that Paul supporters were trying to "hack" into the Iowans for Tax Relief server in an attempt to shut down his website. Failor said that his group made the right decision to not include Paul in the forum "if that's the kind of people who support him."

Failor also criticized Paul's campaign staff, saying Paul's website contained "lies" about the reasons given to the staff regarding Paul not being invited to the forum. Paul's website said that no reason for not being invited to the forum was given to the Paul campaign staff. Failor said that he told the campaign staff that Paul was not a "credible" candidate and that campaign manager Lew Moore "yelled" at him when told that answer. Failor concluded by saying that the Paul campaign has provided their supporters with "inaccurate" information and "lacks scruples," calling Paul a "fringe" candidate.

With all the buzz around Ron Paul, calling him un-credible is a bit out of line. Of course he barely stands a chance in Republican circles but he has a lot to add to their debate. Paul hails from the old school Republican clan (for the most part) that was more isolationist than the 'world police' role the new guard likes to pursue.

If I were an average Republican voter, (a ghastly thought) Ron Paul probably wouldn't look as good as the front-runners but hearing his ideas would be important in shaping a platform that would be more digestible in the General election. Then again, we are talking about Republicans, and being narrow-minded is far more important.

Edwards Starts Throwing More Punches

Even though it is only June, Senator Edwards must have started to feel the strains of recent polling showing him way back in third place. Now these polls really mean next to nothing seven months before the Iowa caucus (btw Lieberman had double-digit leads at this time four years ago for the Prez nomination) but that didn't stop Edwards from attacking the two candidates at the top.

From The Iowa Independent:

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards Sunday warned Iowa voters about what he perceives as the perils of nominating a candidate who down-ticket Democrats in some parts of the nation may decline to appear with in their own campaign events.

Speaking in Carroll, Edwards made the observation after saying there are "three of us who are most likely to be the Democratic nominee."

"It's not just a question of who you like," Edwards said. "It's not just a question of whose vision you are impressed with. It's also a question of who is most likely to win the general election. It's a pretty simple thing. Who will be a stronger candidate in the general election here in the State of Iowa? Who can go to other parts of the country when we have swing candidates running for the Congress and the Senate? Is the candidate going to have to say, 'Don't come here. Don't come here and campaign with me. I can't win if you campaign with me.'"

He added later, "I think it's just a reality that I can campaign anyplace in America."

Some in the media see that as an attack on both Hillary and Obama, but I believe it's meant for Mrs. You-know-who. The fact is, Edwards' assertion has legs to stand on. Many candidates in smaller races will decline her campaigning presence. It's not because she's a woman, it's because she is Hillary. Her negatives remain high despite the currently large lead. I know that she is trying to become funny now for damage-control's sake, I saw that Sopranos spoof with the campaign song. Ha ha......ha.

Hillary's Aide Is A Fool

A memo just leaked out of Team Hillary suggests that one adviser thinks that Mrs. Clinton should focus on other states and avoid Iowa. This is because Clinton is lagging in the crucial Hawkeye state, currently in 3rd place while John Edwards sits on the top of the heap. Conserving resources is great for the environment, but when it comes to Presidential politics, you give it your all in Iowa.

From the AP:

NEW YORK — Warning that her campaign needs "a new approach to winning," Hillary Rodham Clinton's deputy campaign manager wrote a memo this week urging the Democratic front-runner to bypass next year's Iowa caucuses to focus time and money on states where she's faring better.

Her advisers fearing backlash from Iowa Democrats who cast the first votes of the 2008 presidential race, Clinton denounced the memo hours after it leaked from her headquarters and played down an internal debate over campaign strategy. "I am unalterably committed to competing in Iowa," she told The Associated Press.

The memo from Mike Henry emerged days after a Des Moines Sunday Register poll of likely caucus-goers showed Clinton trailing rivals John Edwards and Barack Obama in Iowa, which is to hold its caucuses Jan. 14, 2008.

Thankfully for Clinton's sake she denounced the memo (and the guy should be fired IMHO) because Iowa is worth whatever it takes. It wasn't long ago that the new Democrat on the block Wesley Clark saw his star fade fast after ditching the Democratic faithful in Iowa.

What Clinton's real problem now is her vote on the war. She's a hawk trying to put on sheep's clothing, but it just ain't working. She says she's against the war, but wouldn't come out and denounce the new "compromise" bill that gives Bush everything he wants without any actual compromise. If she wants to win in the Democratic primary, she better start listening to the people about Iraq.