Politics: USA: State primaries bunch-up on calendar, at Feb 5, 2008, for the Nov 2008 presidential election

More than a majority of delegates to both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions will be chosen on a single day in 2008, February 5. The Conventions will be held later, with the formal election campaign launching from their choices. The vote itself will take place in November 2008. This updates our more complete schedule of all the state primaries posted in our Feb23,2k7 blog-entry.

The Mar6 update to our Feb23,2k7 blog-entry also includes a correction to an absurd mistake in the headline!

Politics: USA 2008: CNN presents a full rogue's gallery of prez candidates to date

Thanks to CNN, you can survey and dig-deep into specific profiles of all the USA prez wannabes -- as uptodate as I can keep the list. The list comes in three parts. First the Republicans, then a few general notes on the overall shape-up the coming elections, then the list for the Democrats.

Republicans
with Updates: (Feb23,24 thru Mar23,2k7)

1. Sen. Sam Brownback, Kansas - Prez Candidate (a formerly a leading Evangelical in political life, more recently a convert to Catholicism)

Sam Brownback, born September 12, 1956 in Kansas, senior Senator from that state. In April 2005, the Associated Press reported that Brownback, who is little known outside his home state, "is using a network of social conservatives and Christian activists to raise his profile" in such battleground states as Iowa and New Hampshire. On December 4, 2006, Brownback announced that he would form an exploratory committee. On January 20, 2007 Brownback officially announced his candidacy.

2. Mr. Jeb Bush - incumebent and outgoing Governor of FloridaJeb Bush, former Governor of Florida; his family connections and history indicate that he may be next in line to continue the Bush family legacy, although his mother, former First Lady Barbara Bush, has stated that he will not seek the 2008 Republican nomination, and many analysts state that he would be a natural frontrunner for the Vice President slot on the Republican ticket. -- Wikipedia

3. Mr. Jim Gilmore, former Governor of Virginia (Mar23,2k7) One of the things that’s very big on everyone’s minds is for any presidential candidate to describe how he will appoint judges. If you’re going to have the opportunity to appoint Supreme Court justices, judges to the courts of appeals -- that reflects on everything from border crossing to prisoners of war to abortion to gun rights to everything else. If Jim Gilmore’s President of the United States and he’s given the opportunity to appoint someone to the Supreme Court -- how is he going do it?<br /><br />Gilmore: First of all, I’m steeped in the law. I graduated from the University of Virginia law school in 1977. I was a courtroom lawyer for 10 years myself. I actually went into court to deal with the evidence and judges and court evidence and so on and then was elected chief prosecutor and tried cases on behalf of the Commonwealth -- tried 13 murder cases myself personally -- as the Commonwealth attorney and managed a large number of other prosecutors. I became the attorney general of the state of Virginia and so I understand the law and I was trained in constitutional law. The direct answer is I’m going to appoint judges who will not make law from the bench and who will not carry out societal norms by virtue of twisting up the law and therefore undermining people’s confidence in the law. I will attempt to appoint strict constructionalists. I doubt seriously I’m going to direct them to rule in any particular way in any particular case or philosophy. But I’m going to look for somebody at this point that understands that the law is made by the legislatures, the Congress, based upon the traditions, values and history of the people of the United States… That’s what I expect to do. And finally -- I actually have and while I don’t think it’s of great constitutional significance -- I was the governor of a state and I had the chance to appoint a few judges.<br /><br />And how did you go about doing that?<br /><br />Gilmore: I looked at exactly what type of people I thought would carry out that type of philosophy and that were trained in the law and that were people who would do a good job -- they were bench judges.<br /><br />As governor, you promoted and signed a number of bills restricting abortion but what are your personal views on abortion?<br /><br />Gilmore: First thing I’m going to do is I want to remind people of exactly what a friend of the right to life movement I was as governor of Virginia. My sense was that the right to life movement was being pushed to the margin. They were not having a fair opportunity to participate in the public dialogue and I wanted to enable that and I did every chance that I got. I was always friendly, warm, supportive, and gave them opportunities to push their ideas forward. The result -- not of that -- but of their efforts, which I think I assisted them in -- during my administration [we] passed the 24-hour waiting period, we passed parental notification, we passed informed consent. I signed the partial-birth abortion ban which was later overturned by the courts as a matter of a fact --but I signed it during that time.<br /><br />We had an identical case to the Terri Schiavo case in Virginia, the Hugh Finn case. And while I didn’t know that I was going to be embroiled in such a controversy when I went into that case I simply wanted to do a little timeout to find out what was going on with this guy. It turned out to be an explosive issue and people who were in opposition to the life movement came in and condemned me roundly and I still bear those scars here today. I became concerned about human cloning during my administration -- it emerged as a scientific possibility -- and I passed a law to ban human cloning in Virginia and it’s still on the books today as far as I know. And I want to say this: I don’t know about all the other candidates but I’m not aware of any other candidate in this race that has a better record.<br /><br />That being said, my view is that after about a period of about eight weeks where there is time for a baby to form. After that period of time I think there should be no further abortions -- because I think the child has emerged -- except to save the life of the mother and situations of extremes. Those are my views…<br /><br />The reason I asked the question is because a lot of anti-abortion people have said to me, “He’s good on a lot of things but he doesn’t want to outlaw abortion from the moment of conception”?<br /><br />Gilmore: That has never been my position. My position has been historically the same, and it is never deviated. And I’m not going to shift or change simply because I am now a candidate for the presidency. But I think my track record is second to none…<br /><br />What about the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Is that something you would support?<br /><br />Gilmore: I don’t think I’m going to appoint a judge and tell him he’s got to go do that..<br /><br />But you personally?<br /><br />Gilmore: But my personal view was all the way back in law school we concluded that Roe v. Wade was wrongly decided…<br /><br />You’re going to have to address other issues like same-sex marriage and embryonic stem cell research--<br /><br />Gilmore: Which I can do…I’m not interested in sending a message of anger or hatred to anybody in this race -- anyone. But I don’t support gay marriage. I think that the traditional marriage values that we’ve had over generations in America is the appropriate thing. The extent that people can find some way to build some kind of contractual relationship between themselves, fine, but I don’t think it should rise to a civil union which is really a substitute for the concept of marriage and I don’t support that either. But at the same time, I think that if people who are gay want to try to create some kind of relationship between themselves, I should probably be able to do that under American law.<br /><br />As for stem cell research, if I ban human cloning its because I’m nervous about experimenting with people. I don’t like that. I think it’s a dangerous path to go down. I’d like to find some ways that we can do some of that work under federal supervision that doesn’t create people for the purpose of destroying people for experimentation. I think it’s dangerous. --Human Events interview



former Virginia Gov. James S. Gilmore III was the biggest surprise ... when questioned Saturday night after both Mr. Gilmore's and Mr. Gingrich's speeches, more CPAC attendees remembered the former Virginia governor's address and said the Virginian -- a former RNC chairman who headed the Gilmore Commission to assess terrorism threats -- got all the nuances right on foreign policy, while [CPAC attendees] also [were] praising Mr. Gingrich's emphasis on basic Republican themes of individual freedom.

4. Mr. Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House of Representatives (Mar9,2k7) How will family-values voters receive Gingrich's apology for his hypocrisy in foaming day-in-and-out against Prez Bill?, while then-Speaker Newt himself was actively involved in similar misbehaviour?, wonders Craig Richardson to Deal Hudson (on the latter's blog) "...[Y]ou are right about Newt Gingrich taking a big step toward a possible presidential run by airing his dirty laundry at a place and time of his own choosing. This is a common political strategy of inoculation so that when someone raises these personal issues down the road, the candidate can say, "[I] already dealt with that last year, not going to rehash old news."<br /><br />I had always heard rumors that Gingrich was involved in an extra-marital affair during the time of the Clinton impeachment, and quite frankly I was horrified. How could the Speaker of the House be so reckless and arrogant as to carry on this way while his Party pursued the sitting President of the United States for basically doing the same thing. Here is his explanation as reported by the Associated Press:<br /><br /> Newt: "I drew a line in my mind that said, 'Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say [to the Congress and American people] that you cannot accept ... perjury in your highest officials."<br /><br />Yes, perjury was the legal basis for attempting to impeach Clinton but it was much bigger than that. It also had to do with the type of moral conduct and leadership we expect from the President of the United States, understanding that someone with that high a position has a tremendous influence over the conduct of the people he leads.<br /><br />Beyond the obvious immorality of Gingrich's actions and his other personal indiscretions, one must be very concerned about his lack of judgment. We are not talking about electing someone to the City Council. We are talking about the President of the United States, the leader of the free world. The standards must be high and the people who seek the office, while obviously not perfect since we're all sinners, must possess a minimal level of moral fortitude. <br /><br />We deserve better.

(Mar5,2k7) Ralph Z. Hallow & Stephen Dinan, "CPAC embraces Steele, Gingrich," WaTi: This year's Conservative Political Action Conference was ... a boon for Mr. Gingrich, as the former House speaker acknowledged after his Saturday speech that closed the conference. "I got more bang for my buck than the other [2008 presidential hopefuls]," a smiling Mr. Gingrich told The Washington Times after he marched from the back of the Regency Ballroom at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, amid stirring music nearly drowned out by applause and cheers. Mr. Gingrich was the only top-tier potential contender for the Republican nomination who hadn't formed a presidential exploratory committee or bought any CPAC banquet tables for supporters. Yet in the largest presidential preference straw poll in the conference's history, he placed fourth (14 percent).... Perhaps most importantly, the conference poll conducted by the Fabrizio-McLaughlin firm allowed attendees to indicate their second preferences. Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Giuliani each got 16 percent of the second-choice votes, so that when first- and second-place were combined, Mr. Giuliani was on top (at 33 percent), with Mr. Romney and Mr. Gingrich tied for second at 30 percent each. [Many praised] Mr. Gingrich's emphasis on basic Republican themes of individual freedom. "Newt showed he is the strongest spokesperson for today's conservatives," said Tom Edmonds, a veteran campaign strategist and chief executive officer of the Edmonds Hackney media-consulting firm.



5. Mr. Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City, hero of 9/11 recovery (Mar21,2k7) A Flashback of Rudy Giuliani's Family Affairs <br /><br />By now everyone knows that Rudy Giuliani's kids are unhappy with him for one reason or another — something to do with his marriage to Judi Nathan and his lack of parental attention.<br /><br />But flashback to April 27, 1995, to a story this reporter wrote for New York magazine's late, lamented Intelligencer. If the kids are unhappy now, maybe it's because they know they were used by their dad and his former rumored girlfriend for publicity purposes when they were toddlers.<br /><br />As I wrote a dozen years ago: Caroline Giuliani, then 6, was brought to New York City's morning budget presentation session for bankers. There was no press. Caroline sat beside then Giuliani aide and rumored girlfriend Cristyne Lategano (Lategano and Giuliani denied that they had a romantic relationship).<br /><br />After the mayor finished his introduction, Lategano, according to my sources then and they remember it well now, "whispered in Caroline's ear," and up the little girl went to the podium, where she disrupted the presentation.<br /><br />Giuliani quipped, "You must have learned this from Andrew," a reference to a previous such intrusion by her older brother at a prior press conference. The audience chuckled. The whole thing seemed so cute.<br /><br />That wasn't all: The skit went so well that at a press presentation the same afternoon, Giuliani and Lategano evidently decided to try it again. Caroline returned, this time accompanied by Lategano's secretary, Beth Petrone.<br /><br />Just as the mayor began talking about grim welfare cuts, Caroline broke loose and skipped up to the stage again. The mayor repeated his joke from the morning: "She learned this from Andrew." The audience applauded and chuckled. It seemed so spontaneous.<br /><br />It was only a few days later, in the magazine, that they learned it had all happened twice, and it was orchestrated each time. --Roger Friedman's Fox 411 entertainment newsletter

(Feb1,2k7) Page, USA Today: Although Giuliani in a recent USA Today/Gallup poll had more voter support than other candidates for the Republican nomination, his support of abortion rights and other social issues could cause him to lose the Republican nomination, USA Today reports. According to USA Today, one in five Republicans who participated in the poll said they did not know that Giuliani supports abortion rights and same-sex civil unions. When told about Giuliani's views on such issues, one in five Republican respondents said that would "rule him out as a candidate".

(Mar2,2k7) Linda Feldman, "Clinton, Giuliani most electable, poll" CSM: Two New Yorkers – Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D) and former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) – have the greatest chance of being elected president in 2008, according to a new Gallup Poll.<br /><br />In a nationwide sample of 1,018 adults taken Feb. 22-25, 74 percent of Americans ranked both candidates' chances as either excellent or good.<br /><br />Of all the candidates, Senator Clinton got the highest "excellent" score – 24 percent – and Mr. Giuliani came in second with 20 percent. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois came in second among the Democrats, with 19 percent "excellent" and 52 percent "good." Among Republicans, Sen. John McCain of Arizona ranked second, with 16 percent "excellent" and 54 percent "good."

(Mar5,2k7) Ralph Z. Hallow and Stephen Dinan, "CPAC embraces Steele, Gingrich", WaTi: Former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani pulled off CPAC's biggest coup...Mr. Giuliani made his decision to accept CPAC's speaking invitation four days before the conference, yet managed to place second (17 percent) in the straw poll behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (21 percent), who had invested heavily in pre-event organization. ... Perhaps most importantly, the conference poll conducted by the Fabrizio-McLaughlin firm allowed attendees to indicate their second preferences. Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Giuliani each got 16 percent of the second-choice votes, so that when first- and second-place were combined, Mr. Giuliani was on top (at 33 percent), with Mr. Romney and Mr. Gingrich tied for second at 30 percent each. "I think Giuliani is doing much better among conservative audiences than anybody could have imagined six months ago," said Michael Toner, a Federal Election Commission member appointed by President Bush. Following Mr. Giuliani's Friday speech, several previously skeptical conservatives stopped a reporter to express their admiration for how thoughtful Mr. Giuliani appeared and to say they liked the way he conveyed a sense of leadership.



6. Sen. Chuck Hagel, Iowa (Mar8,2k7) "The president says, 'I don't care.' He's not accountable anymore ... You can impeach him, and before this is over, you might see calls for his impeachment. I don't know. It depends how this goes." --Esquire, via Dail Briefing (Sojourners)

7. Rep. Duncan Hunter, incumbent, House of Representatives, California(Mar15,2k7) Congressman Hunter explains his Core Princciples as a stalwart conservative, in detail regarding several areas: Abortion/Life; Budget/Economy; Constitutional Issues; Property R+ts / Eminent Domain; Judicial Appointments; Value Issues; Education; Families and Taxes; Foreign Policy; Internatioanl Law and Institutions. Official Candidate's website URL [ http://www.gohunter08.com/inner.asp?z=4 ]

(Mar3,2k7) Spartanburg, SC – With John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Duncan Hunter all finishing in a statistical tie for first place at 24% each in the Spartanburg County, South Carolina straw poll, the big story is that of the surprise top finish by Duncan Hunter.<br /><br />Mike Dixon, longtime GOP activist and former South Carolina 4th District Party Chairman, said “However you stack and restack the top three, the results are clear, Duncan Hunter has emerged as the conservative alternative South Carolina Republicans have been looking for.”<br /><br />Commenting on Hunter’s strong showing, Spartanburg Republican Gerald Emory said, “Now we have a true Ronald Reagan conservative that we can support. This is a proud night for the Grand Ole Party.”<br /><br />Duncan Hunter when speaking to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, D.C., about his finish in the South Carolina poll said, “You know, I woke up to … one of the commentators saying that the only reason that Hunter beat all those guys in South Carolina is because his Marine son has been there for a week. Well, I looked down at that army of consultants, everybody who was vertical in South Carolina was hired by the other guys, and I said, ‘You know, that is a good match-up: One Marine versus 550 consultants.’ We did have the advantage!”<br /><br />Dead-heat for: McCain: 24 % Giuliani: 24% Hunter: 24%<br /><br />Followed by Brownback: 13% Romney: 12% Huckabee: 3%


(Feb1,2k7) Bio: Since first being elected to Congress in 1980, Duncan Hunter has devoted himself to ensuring that our military is second to none, securing our nation’s borders, and protecting American workers from unfair competition. Hunter works on these issues because he believes that America’s greatest strength is our freedom and its protection requires our effort in all areas.<br /><br />A Vietnam veteran, Duncan Hunter served in the 173rd Airborne and 75th Army Rangers and, after coming home, utilized the G.I. Bill to attend Western State University Law School in San Diego (now Thomas Jefferson School of Law). While completing his degree, Hunter supplemented his income by working in farming and construction, and opened a storefront legal office after graduation where he began serving many in the Hispanic community, often without compensation.<br /><br />In 1980, Hunter was asked to mount a challenge for the Congressional seat held by 18-year incumbent Lionel Van Deerlin. Despite the district having a 2-to-1 Democrat registration, Hunter won the seat in an upset. Coming to Washington, Hunter successfully sought a seat on the House Armed Services Committee where he could work on America’s national security needs. Serving on this committee throughout his career, Hunter became Chairman of the full committee in 2002, overseeing a $532 billion defense budget. During his chairmanship from 2002-2006, and now as Ranking Member of the committee, Hunter focuses his efforts on providing President Bush with the necessary resources to win our nation’s military conflicts, protecting our men and women in uniform, and developing modernization initiatives that will move new and more effective technologies into the field of battle.<br /><br />Living in a border community, Hunter also came to Congress to make securing the California-Mexico border a top priority. Hunter’s goal was to make the region safe for communities on both sides of the border by providing the necessary resources to our border enforcement agencies. September 11th, however, made border security a national security issue and Hunter responded by leading efforts in Congress to seal a porous border susceptible to illegal aliens, drug trafficking and terrorism. Hunter’s efforts have resulted in over 59 miles of fencing and border infrastructure to date in San Diego County. Hunter also wrote the Secure Fence Act, extending the San Diego fence 854 miles across California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. These fence provisions were signed into law by President Bush on October 26, 2006.<br /><br />On the House Armed Services Committee, Hunter has protected U.S. defense jobs in aircraft, ship repair, machine tools, textile, steel and titanium to ensure that what he calls the “Arsenal of Democracy,” the U.S. industrial base, is maintained to provide security in time of war. Hunter’s other legislative priorities include retaining and increasing jobs across this nation, providing tax relief to hard-working families, keeping our promises to America’s veterans, protecting Social Security for present and future generations, and promoting strong family values.<br /><br />Hunter resides in East San Diego County with his wife Lynne where they, like many of their neighbors, just completed re-building their Alpine home after it was lost in the October 2003 wildfires. In 2006, Duncan and Lynne celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary; they have two sons, Duncan Duane, who served two tours in Iraq in the U.S. Marine Corps, and Sam Hunter, a business student at San Diego State University. Duncan D. and his wife, Margaret, have three children, Duncan Lee, Elizabeth Grace and Sarah Louise, and reside in Boise, Idaho. Sam was married on Valentine’s Day 2004 to the former Theresa Heger of Jamul and they had their first child, Marin, in October of 2006.


8. Sen. Mike Huckabee, former Governeor of Arkansa (an outspoken Evangelical) (Mar14,2k7) Huckabee Faces Fiscal Conservatives<br /><br />Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee is paying a tax penalty - not the kind you get from the IRS. During his 10 years as Arkansas governor, Huckabee supported numerous tax increases. Now that he's left office and is running for president, the Southern Baptist minister is struggling to convince fiscal conservatives - who wield significant sway in the GOP nomination race - that he can be trusted not to sin again.<br /><br />Huckabee recently signed a no-tax pledge, but anti-tax activists remain wary of his claim to have reformed his ways. The Club for Growth, which advocates limited government and lower taxes, has repeatedly criticized Huckabee since his formation in January of a presidential exploratory committee. It notes that as governor, Huckabee increased taxes on sales, gasoline, cigarettes and nursing homes. "I'm glad to see he signed the pledge, but as a given matter what politicians have done is a better indicator than what they say they're going to do. His record clearly does not indicate a strong commitment to limited government," said Pat Toomey, president of the Club for Growth.<br /><br />Last week, Huckabee delivered a signed copy of the Presidential Taxpayer Protection Pledge to the Americans for Tax Reform, another limited-government, anti-tax advocacy group. In it, he pledged to "oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates" for individuals and businesses, and to offset "dollar for dollar" any rollback in tax deductions with corresponding decreases in tax rates.<br /><br />It didn't work that way in Arkansas during Huckabee's tenure as governor, but the candidate defended those tax increases as justified. Huckabee said that when people look at his record, they'll realize that he's actually "a strong fiscal conservative." Some of his fiscal decisions were driven by court-ordered spending increases or increase for federal entitlement spending for programs "over which you don't have executive control," Huckabee said.<br /><br />Only the third Republican governor of Arkansas since Reconstruction, Huckabee enjoyed relatively strong support among voters during his time in office. He might not have been as popular if he had promoted himself as an "anti-government conservative," University of Arkansas political scientist Janine Parry said.<br /><br />Huckabee's record on taxes also reflects the fact that he leads an impoverished state that has faced tax increases to pay for needs, including an ongoing school funding battle, Parry said. "He doesn't have the luxury of being from a state that's ever been financially well off," Parry said. "He inherited a legacy of poverty and poor health and low education and low economic development. He's had to balance some concerns and actions that governors in other situations don't have to, at least not on that scale."<br /><br />Among the increases Huckabee advocated while in office was a 1/8-cent increase to pay for conservation programs, a $60 million-a-year fuel tax increase to pay for road construction, and a 1/2-cent sales tax rise. The sales tax increase was tied to a voter-approved constitutional amendment that trimmed property taxes by $180 million.<br /><br />And, he allowed a 7/8-cent sales tax increase go into effect without his signature in 2004 in response state Supreme Court order to improve schools.<br /><br />But Huckabee also signed into law nearly $100 million in income tax breaks and other relief measures targeting poor and middle-income taxpayers _ the largest tax cut in Arkansas history at the time. He later signed into law a 30 percent cut in Arkansas' capital gains tax.<br /><br />Huckabee successfully pushed for a Property Taxpayers' Bill of Rights intended to clarify how property taxes are calculated and how the money is allocated to schools, local governments and other purposes. The law made it easier to challenge tax bills, including provisions for after-hours meetings to accommodate working people.<br /><br />"We improved test scores and accountability and increased teacher pay while maintaining fiscal responsibility," Huckabee wrote in a recent fundraising letter to supporters. "When I left office on Jan. 9 of this year, Arkansas had a surplus of almost $850 million."<br /><br />This year, Huckabee's successor, Gov. Mike Beebe, a Democrat, has signed nearly $200 million worth of tax cuts, including the reduction of the state sales tax on food from 6 percent to 3 percent. The $121 million cut is the largest tax cut ever passed by state government.<br /><br />"I can guarantee that if they didn't have a surplus, they wouldn't be doing it," Huckabee said. -- Andrew DeMillo©2007 The Associated Press



9. Sen. John McCain, Arizona - Prez candidate (Mar7,2k7) Sen. John McCain's campaign is mounting a stealth effort to change Republican presidential nomination rules in California to allow independents to vote in the Feb. 5 primary, party and campaign officials in the state have told The Washington Times. The impact could be huge -- and potentially damaging to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, currently the most acceptable to traditional-values voters among the three top-tier Republican presidential candidates. --Ralph Z. Hallow, "McCain seeks independents' primary votes," WaTi

(Mar5,2k7) "...[I]n the largest presidential preference straw poll in the [Conservative Political Action] conference's history, [Newt Gingrich' placed fourth (14 percent) -- ahead of Arizona Sen. John McCain (12 percent), who rejected an invitation to address the event. ... Pollster Tony Fabrizio took an unusual turn in the spotlight as the conference concluded Saturday evening, eliciting sometimes deafening boos from the packed ballroom every time he mentioned a poll finding associated with Mr. McCain. The Arizona senator snubbed CPAC, and a McCain spokesman called the annual gathering a bunch of Washington insiders even though the poll showed that 85 percent of its 4,800 registered attendees came from 47 states outside of Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. -- Ralph Z. Hallow and Stephen Dinan, "CPAC embraces Steele, Gingrich" Washington Times

10. Mr. George Pataki, former Governor of State of New York (Mar10,2k4) Takes credit for New York's economic turnaround by saying his tax-cutting and pro-business policies spurred growth. He says he provided more than $140 million worth of tax relief during his years in office. Claims his economic conservatism as governor resulted in the creation of some 700,000 new private sector jobs in New York State. Also claims to be the primary architect of the intensive effort to rebuild and revitalize Lower Manhattan after 9/11. --Boston Globe (cute & paste > http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/candidates/pataki/ )

11. Rep. Ron Paul, incumbent, House of Representatives from Texas. Formerly a Prez candidate for the Libertarian Party, author of 5 books, "small govt" advocate. (Mar10,2k7) "Ronald Ernest “Ron” Paul (born 20 August 1935) is an American physician and politician from the U.S. state of Texas. A Republican, he has represented Texas's 14th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1997, and had previously served as the representative from Texas's 22nd district in 1976 and from 1979 to 1985.<br /><br />In 1984, Paul ran in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by John Tower, but the nomination went to Phil Gramm. Paul also supported term limits for members of Congress at the time and likened himself to the famous Senator Robert A. Taft. Paul was the Libertarian Party nominee for president in the 1988 election. After his failed presidential bid, Paul returned to Congress in 1997. He was again elected as a Republican, but against the wishes of the party leadership, which had backed Paul's primary opponent. His opponent in the primary was the incumbent representative, a former Democrat who had switched his party affiliation to Republican in the aftermath of the 1994 Republican Revolution. On 11 January 2007, Paul announced the formation of an exploratory committee for a 2008 presidential campaign." -- Wikipedia

12. Mdme. Condoleeza Rice, Secretary of State (Mar11,2k7) Harry Belafonte has insulted Condi Rice as a nobody; obviously his advanced age has incapcacitated the singer's judgment. --iFilm audio; Hat Tip to Drudge Report.



13. Mr. Mitt Romney former Governor of Massachusetts(Feb1,2k7) Finnegan, LAT): Romney's "rightward shift in abortion" rights will be a major challenge in his campaign, the Times reports. Although Romney has said that he supports overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that effectively barred state abortion bans, during his Massachusetts gubernatorial campaign in 2002 he pledged to "protect a woman's right to choose," according to the Times. Romney's "ideological swerve" could raise doubts about whether he shares the core values, including opposition to abortion rights, held by many conservative evangelicals, who "dominate" the Republican primary elections, LA Times reports.

(Feb23,2k7) Robert Novak, Evans-Novak Report: House Republican opponents of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) for the presidential nomination are coalescing around former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, forgiving and forgetting his liberalism of a dozen years earlier. Romney is the fastest rising of the Republican candidates.<br /><br />However, Romney has not yet connected with rank-and-file conservatives, who seem to prefer former Speaker Gingrich. Nobody thinks Gingrich can be nominated. But if he runs, he could do grave damage to Romney.



14. Rep. Tom Tancredo, Colorado (leading anti-immigration, border-defense Congressman, called a "paleo-conservative") (Mar11,2k7) Colorado's own superstar, Rep. Tom Tancredo, [is] seeking the GOP nomination for POTUS.<br /><br />While Tancredo is expected to announce his plans -- which includes retirement after five terms in Congress -- to pursue what's considered a quixotic presidential bid in 2008, political observers are already speculating as to who will take Tancredo's congressional seat.<br /><br />Tancredo, highly regarded among conservatives for his uncompromising stances on immigration reform, will be tough to replace but some conservatives are already lining up to take a shot at the prize of representing this overwhelmingly Republican district. Much like the congressional district to the south (C0-5), the 6th District race will almost certainly be decided in the August primary election with only a slim chance of a Democrat ever representing this district. --Jim Kouri, The Conservative Voice (Jan 20,2k7)



15. Fred Thompson cols="50">New on list (Mar21,2k7). Hints of a possible presidential run by former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) have generated a surprisingly strong and wide reaction -- indicating Republican dissatisfaction with the present field. The question is whether Thomson will work hard enough to be a serious candidate. Novak-Evans Report



16. Tommy Thompson, former Governor of Wisconsin (14 yrs), former Secretary of Health and Human Services (4 yrs GWBush Admin)(Mar16,2k7) Let's take new approach: Create three Iraqi states<br /><br />There is no simple or perfect answer on how to achieve stability in Iraq. As we pursue the best answer, however, we need to start looking at the question differently.<br /><br />Instead of trying to force one Iraq upon people who dislike and distrust each other, we should focus our strategies on dividing Iraq into separate states, with each state providing a distinct home to the diverse cultures and religious sects of Iraq. At the same time, we should give the Iraqi people a stake in the success of their country by providing each person with royalties from the country's wealth of oil.<br /><br />The creation of distinct states - one for the Kurds, the Sunnis and the Shiites - would form a confederation that allows each group to operate their local affairs in a manner that best suits its people, religious beliefs and culture, and goals for the future. These states would provide representation to a national government that would provide a defense for all of Iraq and an economic infrastructure. -- Tommy Thompson

Some General Notes

See McCain, Giuliani, Romney don't stand out.

See these updates:

Wikipedia entry on Republican candidates seeking the party's nomination for President 2008

Washington Times Prez Campaign2k8, Christina Bellantoni, "Senate vote upsets '08 hopefuls' plans"(Feb16,2k7)The Senate's informal caucus of presidential hopefuls faces its first test in balancing their jobs with their White House ambitions tomorrow: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has scheduled a key vote on the Iraq war.<br /> <br />The Nevada Democrat yesterday said he did not take members' 2008 aspirations -- or planned weekend visits to Iowa and New Hampshire -- into consideration for his procedural move to debate President Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq.<br /> <br />"We hope everyone will be here," Mr. Reid told reporters. "It's an important vote." ...<br /> <br />Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut has skipped previous Saturday votes and political events because he observes the Jewish Sabbath. Aides for the independent, who caucuses with the Democrats, did not respond to inquiries as to whether he would vote tomorrow.<br /> <br />Mr. Lieberman is one of the few members of the Democratic Caucus who supports Mr. Bush's Iraq plan.

See Wikipedia article on Democratic Presidential Candidates 2008

See Ready or not, campaign '08 has arrived It may feel far too early to tune in to an election that's 20 months off, but trends are being set now. (Mar6,2k7) Editorial, Christian Science Monitor.

Democrats:

1. Sen Evan Bayh, Indiana (Nov6,2k6) Presidential candidate and Sen. Evan Bayh (D) tells a USA Today editorial board that people don't know what the Democratic party stands for. "Bayh said Democrats must focus on middle-class concerns, including affordability of health care and college, as well as pension and job security. But they also have to prove Democrats can be trusted with national security and should implement all the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. He singled out reducing the nation's dependence on imported oil as an area where Democrats could immediately prove their willingness to work with Republicans." -- First Read, MSNBC



2. Sen. Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Delaware - Prez candidate Material coming soon.



3. Mr. Wes Clark, former General

Wesley Clark, born December 23, 1944, in Illinois, a Vietnam war veteran, a retired United States Army four-star general and former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. He graduated first in his class from West Point. Clark is traveling widely through his Federal Leadership PAC WesPAC,[16] and is a commentator on FOX News, while grassroots campaigns for Clark have become active on the internet. Clark was a 2004 Presidential candidate as well, narrowly winning the Oklahoma primary. During a January 17, 2007, speech given to a local UAW group in Alabama and posted on YouTube, Clark stated "when I run, I'll be the national security candidate." -- Wikipedia



4. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, New York - Prez candidate (Mar2,2k7) Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) raised eyebrows among Democratic insiders when Washington Post columnist Al Kamen reported that Clinton dined last week at the 701 restaurant in downtown Washington with former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, his wife, Valerie Plame, and left-wing journalist Sidney Blumenthal.<br /><br />Leading Democrats have stayed away from Wilson since a Senate Intelligence Committee report in 2004 discredited him. Blumenthal was known as a vicious attack man when he worked as an aide to President Bill Clinton late in his administration. --Evans-Novak Report

(Mar2,2k7) Linda Feldman, "Clinton, Giuliani most electable, poll" CSM: Two New Yorkers – Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D) and former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) – have the greatest chance of being elected president in 2008, according to a new Gallup Poll.<br /><br />In a nationwide sample of 1,018 adults taken Feb. 22-25, 74 percent of Americans ranked both candidates' chances as either excellent or good.<br /><br />Of all the candidates, Senator Clinton got the highest "excellent" score – 24 percent – and Mr. Giuliani came in second with 20 percent. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois came in second among the Democrats, with 19 percent "excellent" and 52 percent "good." Among Republicans, Sen. John McCain of Arizona ranked second, with 16 percent "excellent" and 54 percent "good."


Front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton's decline in the polls stems partly from her attack on Sen. Barack Obama, her chief rival for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, political pollsters said.<br /> <br />The poll numbers changed after the senators traded political blows through their spokesmen when movie mogul David Geffen called Mrs. Clinton a disingenuous, "incredibly polarizing figure" who isn't electable and appeared to allude to her husband's past infidelity. Mr. Geffen, a former Clinton ally, is now backing Mr. Obama.<br /> <br />A Fox News survey of 900 registered voters nationwide conducted Feb. 27-28 found Mrs. Clinton's support had fallen to 34 percent, down from 43 percent the month before. Mr. Obama's support, however, climbed to 23 percent from 15 percent. <br /><br />-- Donald Lambro, "Hillary's snipe at Obama erodes standing in polls" (Mar4,2k7) Washington Times.

Sunday's event [in Selma, Alabama] attracted Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. Speaker after speaker said that neither Clinton or Obama would be running for president if it wasn't for the sacrifices made on Bloody Sunday. Clinton is seeking to become the first woman elected president; Obama is trying to become the first black president.<br /><br />Former President Bill Clinton joined his wife for the march and was inducted into the National Voting Rights Museum Hall of Fame in a ceremony.<br /><br />"If it hadn't been for Selma, there would be no Voting Rights Act. If it hadn't been for the Voting Rights Act, the South would have never recovered and two white southerners - Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton - never could have become president," the former president said.<br /><br />--Bob Johnson, "Jubilant Crowd Recreates Selma March (Mar5,2k7) Washington Times / AP


5. Sen. Christopher Dodd, Connecticut - Prez candidate Catch-up info will be forthcoming.



6. Sen. John Edwards, North Carolina, a trial lawyer and supported royally by that industry - Prez Candidate

(Mar11,2k7) ...John Edwards was the first candidate to officially say no to the Fox News debate in Nevada -- and because of the hard work of so many grassroots and netroots Democrats, news is breaking tonight that Fox is out.<br /> <br />Fox has already started striking backat John for saying no. (There's a surprise - Fox attacking a Democrat.) Last night, Roger Ailes - the life-long Republican operative who is now Chairman of Fox News Channel - said that any candidate "who believes he can blacklist any news organization is making a terrible mistake" and "is impeding freedom of speech and free press."<br /> <br />And John's not their only target. Tonight Fox News Vice President David Rhodes is telling news organizations not to get involved in the Nevada Democratic Caucus because of "radical fringe" groups - meaning grassroots Democrats (that would be you) - who objected to Fox's long history of spreading Republican propaganda at the expense of Democratic leaders.<br /> <br />The whole right-wing is getting in on the attack; the Drudge Report is blaring the headline: "War! Dems Pull Out of Fox News Debate."<br /> <br />Enough is enough. It's time to send a clear message to Fox News and their allies that their right-wing talking points and temper tantrums won't go unchallenged anymore - when it comes to what Democrats should do in the Democratic primary, we'll decide - no matter what they report....<br /> <br />Fox News has already proven they have no intention of providing "fair and balanced" coverage of any Democrat in this election.<br /> <br />In recent weeks they have run blatant lies about Senator Obama's background. And Fox was only too happy to give Ann Coulter a platform to spew more hate a few days after her bigoted attack on Senator Edwards and the gay community. --Edwards Campaign

(Mar2,2k7) WASHINGTON, March 2 (UPI) -- Best-selling right-wing author Ann Coulter, speaking to a conservative audience in Washington Friday, called former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., a "faggot." Coulter was a featured speaker at the 34th annual Conservative Political Action Conference. Following her prepared remarks, televised on C-Span, Coulter was asked to talk about Edwards. "It turns out you have to go into rehab if you use the word 'faggot,' so I'm kind of at an impasse -- I can't really talk about Edwards," she said. "Rehab" may have been a reference to "Grey's Anatomy" star Isaiah Washington's decision to go into rehab during a public relations firestorm after he called one of his co-stars a "faggot." -- "Ann Coulter calls John Edwards 'faggot' "


Bloggers Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwan came in from the heady environment of the blogosphere to the more staid climate of presidential politics, to work for John Edwards. The political cyberspace where they were known as Pandagon and Shakespeare's Sister is usually described with euphemisms such as "raucous" and "freewheeling." On that terrain, no weasel wordsmiths need apply. You win attention with controversy and get hits with an over-the-top persona and a vivid vocabulary. A campaign, on the other hand, no matter how much it wants netroots, is, well, controversy-averse. Marcotte's blog style was described by Time magazine as "issues-based but not above snark and a healthy dose of profanity." McEwan describes herself as a "firebrand" opponent of theocracy: "I am, however, vulgar. And I am trash-talking." I doubt these descriptions were in their job interviews with the Edwards campaign, but it didn't take long for a conservative watchdog to glean through the 24/7 postings of the two bloggers and come up with the sort of sound bites that leave teeth marks on a campaign. There was McEwan's description of Bush's "wingnut Christofascist base." There was Marcotte's slam on the Catholic prohibition on birth control as a way to force women to "bear more tithing Catholics." Within days, the two women resigned from the campaign and returned to the briar patch of their blogs. This may be the first certifiable staff flameout of the 2008 campaign. But it's also about a clash between two cultures and two languages.



7. Mr. Albert Gore, former Vice President, USA; leading Climate-Warming propagandistMr Gore won an Oscar for narrating the "documentary" scare-show, An Inconvenient Truth. But he's been overshadowed by the UN<br />Climate Cbange Report (IPCC) which was produced by real scientists.



8 Sen. John Kerry (Massachusetts), former Democrat nominee to Presidency (lost the 2000 election). Kerry has since backed out of 2k8 Prez race.(Feb4,2k7) "John Kerry can't shake loser label," Letterman, Edmonton Sun. Pay-for.

9. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, incumbent House of Representatives, Ohio; former Mayor of Cleveland (Mar11,2k7) Kucinich rejects the refusal of Edwards and other Dem prez candidates ducking out of the debates scheduled on Fox TV. "AUSTIN (TX) -- The cancellation in the past two days of two planned nationally televised debates because of candidates’ “scheduling conflicts” and unwillingness to participate smacks of “manipulation by some candidates who would rather run and hide than defend their records and their positions on the war,” Ohio Congressman and Democratic Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich said today while campaigning in Texas.<br /><br />Widely publicized Presidential debates in New Hampshire in April and in Nevada in August were cancelled after some candidates either backed out after agreeing to participate or declined invitations to attend.<br /><br />“Whatever their excuses, some candidates are clearly trying to avoid any head-to-head public debate where they will have to answer tough questions -- questions about their votes in favor of the Iraq war, their votes in favor of trade policies that have wiped out millions of American jobs, their votes in favor of abridging Constitutional rights by approving the Patriot Act, and their collaboration with insurance companies and pharmaceutical corporations to deny Americans adequate health care protection.”<br /><br />Kucinich said “it’s an insult to the voters, and the height of cynicism, for candidates to refuse to take the public stage and subject themselves to public scrutiny.”<br /><br />The New Hampshire debate was announced on January 12. Only two days ago, Kucinich pointed out, did some candidates back out because of “scheduling conflicts.”<br /><br />“Is it possible that the real conflict was having to take the stage to defend their votes to fund the war?” Kucinich asked. Votes in the House and the Senate on a $100 billion supplemental appropriation are expected soon.<br /><br />Other candidates were trying to sidestep the Nevada debate because they claimed that the sponsoring television network, Fox News Channel, was conservatively biased.<br /><br />“If you want to be the President of the United States, you can’t be afraid to deal with people with whom you disagree politically,” Kucinich said. “No one is further removed from Fox’s political philosophy than I am, but fear should not dictate decisions that affect hundreds of millions of Americans and billions of others around the world who are starving for real leadership.” --Kucinich campaign blog



10. Sen. Barack Obama - Illinois, Prez candidate (Mar1,2k7) Linda Feldman, "Black voters help Obama gain ground on Clinton -- The latest polls show Hillary Clinton's lead is shrinking, and Obama has pulled ahead among African-Americans," CSM: Sen. Barack Obama's dramatic rise in support among African-Americans signals a shift in the race for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination that is larger than just the black vote. Overall, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is still on top, but her lead is shrinking. And polls show Senator Obama of Illinois has more room for growth than she does, because of her high negatives. In short, if Senator Clinton of New York thought the primaries would result in her coronation as the Democratic nominee, she should think again. "We have a real horserace," says John Zogby, an independent pollster whose latest data show that Obama leads Clinton among black Democratic voters 36 percent to 27 percent. A Washington Post/ABC News poll released Tuesday showed a similar trend: Obama leads Clinton among black Democratic voters 44 to 30. In both December and January, the Post/ABC poll had Clinton beating Obama among African-Americans 60 to 20. Overall, the latest Post/ABC poll shows Clinton beating Obama 36 to 24, down from a 41-17 split in January. The Post attributes the gains of Obama, who is black, to his rise in support among African-Americans.

(Mar4,2k7) Donald Lambro, "Hillary's snipe at Obama erodes standing in polls" WaTi: Mr. Obama's candidacy has hurt Mrs. Clinton's campaign among black voters, who were among her husband's most loyal Democratic supporters during his two terms in office. Mrs. Clinton had led among black voters in January by 60 percent to 20 percent, but the latest ABC/Washington Post poll shows Mr. Obama leading among blacks, 44 percent to 33 percent. "Of course, 44 percent is a far cry from the 85 percent of the black vote he will need to win, but it's quite a turnaround in the past month," former Clinton campaign adviser Dick Morris wrote Friday on the Townhall.com political Web site. Mr. Obama's surge in the polls was especially impressive in Georgia, where increased support from a large black vote has helped to push his approval numbers higher. "Obama has gone from 18 percent support to 25 percent. Hillary has fallen from 35 percent to 28 percent. He's really surged in that state," Mr. Johnson said.



11. Gov. Bill Richardson - incumbent Governor of New Mexico [ http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0306/p08s01-comv.html?s=hns ] When candidates or their PR machines go on the offensive, the distinction has to be made between personal attack (not acceptable), and legitimate questioning of behavior and policy positions. Democratic candidate Bill Richardson got it right when, in the middle of the Clinton-Obama melee, he suggested that Democrats pledge not to attack each other. -- CSM

<p>* Governor of New Mexico: 2003-Present * United States Secretary of Energy: 1998-2001 * United States Ambassador to the United Nations: 1997-1998 * U.S. Representative from the New Mexico's 3rd congressional district: 1983-1997

12. Mr. Tom Vilsack, former Governor of Iowa Breaking NewsTom Vilsack, the first Democrat to officially enter the 2008 presidential race, dropped his bid for the White House [Feb23,2k7], saying he could not raise enough money to compete and underscoring the power of top-tier candidates Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama to crowd out the rest of the field.<br /><br />"We have everything to win the nomination and general election -- everything except money," he told supporters at his campaign headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, as he announced his decision.<br /><br />He will be viewed as a casualty of the new campaign world, in which big states such as California, Florida and New Jersey are considering moving up their primaries and in which $100 million is considered the ante.<br /><br />Even as a former governor of Iowa, who should have had an edge in that state's early primary season caucuses, Mr. Vilsack had struggled to attract money and attention from Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Obama and former Democratic vice presidential nominee John Edwards.<br /> <br />Mr. Vilsack, 56, said he had expected to win the Iowa caucus and finish near the top in the New Hampshire primary.<br /> <br />But he said that wouldn't be enough to win the race and that mounting debt forced him to call it quits.<br /> <br />"At the end of the day, it is not about good ideas or hard work; it's about money," he said later in a conference call with reporters.

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However, some on the list, like Rice (Republican) and Kerry (Democrat) have ruled themselves out, if my recollections are correct.

North America > USA 2008

I'll try to add info to the list, sculpt toward more uptodate accuracy, etc, as the campaigns proceed. Third parties and their candidates may also get some attention as the months proceed.