Presidential Campaign

When Dick Gephardt eked out a win in the 1988 Iowa caucuses, no one was under the illusion that the contest for the Democratic presidential nomination was over. Nor was it over in 1992 when Iowans chose favorite son Sen. Tom Harkin and Paul Tsongas won in New Hampshire, both defeating eventual nominee Bill Clinton.  John McCain found that a lopsided New Hampshire win was not enough to survive the awaiting Bush 2000 machine.

But in 2004, John Kerry went from single digits to a surprise win in Iowa in what seemed like the blink of an eye, and by the time voters had rubbed their eyes and refocused, Kerry was already the presumptive nominee. His Iowa glow carried into a win in New Hampshire, and the campaign was effectively over long before the alleged “super Tuesday Read more...

In this video, released by the Edwards campaign this week, Elizabeth Edwards urges Americans to join her husband's campaign.

"We have a lot of time to make the difference," Elizabeth Edwards says, "The truth is: we don't have all the time in the world." Mrs. Edwards has remained active in her husband's campaign despite being diagnosed with terminal bone cancer in March.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) released his first television ads of the '08 presidential campaign Thursday to begin airing in New Hampshire this weekend.

Accompanying one 60-second radio spot, the ads showcase McCain's experience as a prisoner of war and public perception of corruption in Congress.

In the first ad, a narrator says Americans have lost trust in their government and that they are looking for a leader "with the judgment and experience to keep us safe." The viewer hears McCain say "live free or die" as a crowd waves signs at a rally near the end of the ad.

See the ad below:



The second ad shows McCain as a prisoner of war in Hanoi, Vietnam, telling an interviewer his rank and that he ejected from his aircraft, breaking both arms and one leg.

"One man sacrificed for his country; one man opposed a flawed strategy in Iraq," a narrator says. See the ad below:



The radio ad contains audio of the same bedside POW interview. Click below to hear it.

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) says he would like to see former Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-Neb.) run for Sen. Chuck Hagel's (R-Neb.) now-vacated Senate seat and that he will not endorse a presidential candidate until the convention.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) released a new radio ad Monday, touting his refusal to grant former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami a police escort when Harvard University invited him to Boston in Sept. 2006. Romney cites Khatami's support for terrorist organizations.

"Now, another Iranian president is visiting America, coming to New York," the ad says, referring to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to Columbia University Monday, "And Gov. Mitt Romney is leading the opposition." In the ad, Romney then condemns Columbia's invitation and calls for tightened sanctions on Iran.

In this video Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) responds to protesters at the National Rifle Association's (NRA) Celebration of American Values Conference in Washington, D.C. Friday. Protesters, before being removed by security guards, shout for McCain to "end the occupation" in Iraq as McCain shuffles to the podium.

"Well, my friends," McCain responds, "We beat you yesterday, we beat you the day before, we'll beat you today, and we'll beat you tomorrow. We won't choose to lose."

In this video, former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) speaks to the Service Employees International Union about his decision to continue campaigning after his wife was diagnosed with cancer.

"This is the cause of my life," Edwards said. "Standing up for the men and women that you fight for everyday is what my life is about. And we're going to devote every minute of our lives is that cause."

In his newest campaign video, entitled "Change Begins with Us," former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) says change in Washington begins with members of the GOP cleaning up corruption and scandals within their own party. "When Republicans act like Democrats," Romney says, "America loses."

A small but vocal contingent of fiscal conservatives have responded to the unwarranted complaints of elections officials about the potential of an unfunded mandate for the voting system security requirements proposed in The Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2007 (HR 811). Still smarting from the previous Congress’ unwillingness to fully fund the Help America Vote Act of 2002, county clerks and Secretaries of State have been skeptical that Congress will actually come through with the $1.1 Billion authorized in the bill.

However, tying HR 811’s mandate to appropriations would set a dangerous precedent for eliminating the civil rights exemption in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). In enacting the reform measure, Congress recognized that the protection of civil rights superseded vagaries of funding allocations. Read more...

This week, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) released her presidential campaign plan for universal healthcare. The following video summarizes what her plan entails.