From NBC's Mark Murray
In Richardson's shout-out to organized labor, he added: "I will continue taking your financial support." The line got some laughs.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
A little context on the question that was just asked...

Obama voted YES on House Bill 1284 on Nov. 30, 2000 on renovations on Soldier Field after apparently not being sure how he'd vote even that day, according to a Chicago Sun Times story previewing the vote:
 
"At this point, I'm persuaded that this is not a bad deal for the state. Where I think the Bears need to do more work is persuade me it's a good deal for city residents," said Sen. Barack Obama (D-Chicago), who has not made up his mind on the stadium vote.

"I think the city is obviously getting something back from this deal in terms of overall improvements in the area. But whether that sufficiently makes up for the huge amounts of money flowing to the Bears and the McCaskeys is an open question." (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 11/30/00)
 
Obama also sat on the Soldier Field Redevelopment Project advisory (CHICAGO CITIZEN 12/31/01)

Here's what Obama said the day of the vote on the Illinois Senate floor about the bill:

"Thank you, Madam President. Just a -- brief comment. I'm going to be supporting this bill and -- because I think that -- for many of the reasons that have already been stated. If we're looking at this from the perspective of State legislators and State interests, then it does not appear to me that the State is on the hook for anything. And we often talk about, in this Chamber, issues of local control. I think this is an opportunity to facilitate Chicago doing something and the State doesn't need to be blocking it just for the sake of blocking it.

"So I'm going to be supporting the bill for that purpose. In addition to being a State legislator, though, I'm also a resident of the City of Chicago and a legislator who -- represents constituents in Chicago, and I would just want to send a message to the City that there may be a range of concerns that residents in Chicago have about this new stadium and the structure and the construction, how it's going to operate, what it's going to look like, what are going to be the impacts in terms of traffic and so forth. I don't think that that's something that necessarily should be debated in this Chamber, but I would urge the City of Chicago to look carefully at its plans and make sure that the local process for approving the site, figuring out how the construction is going to take place, and so forth, is not simply a rubber-stamp process, but that citizens actually have some significant input into the process to make sure that, in fact, if this stadium is built, that it ends up being the first-class facility that we deserve in Chicago. And with that, I will urge an Aye vote." (11/30/00, STATE OF ILLINOIS, 91ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY, REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT)

From NBC's Chuck Todd
John Edwards clearly wants to talk about lobbyists; Obama wants to talk about national security; Clinton seemed the most comfortable staying on the subject matter of infrastructure.

On a question on infrastructure, Edwards repeated his challenge -- that seems clearly aimed at Clinton -- for candidates not to accept money from lobbyists.

From NBC's Chuck Todd
Is there anyone better prepared to speak at a football stadium than Joe Biden? He's got a speech pattern that works well outside; not sure how it comes across on TV, though.

 

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Clinton started with a pander line of being a Bears fan and invoking that her dad woulda been proud of his little girl on the 10-yard-line. She did something similar with her YearlyKos Cubs' line that she still has a "No lights at Wrigley Field" T-shirt.

Not to be out done, Obama welcomed the crowd to Chicago -- the "home of the NFC champion Bears."

Obama: "Welcome to Chicago ... home of the NFC Championship Bears."

From NBC's Chuck Todd
Obama sort of dodged the first question and decided to focus solely on Iraq and whether we're safer now or not after 9/11. Interesting decision on his part; clearly he'd like to have a conversation about foreign policy tonight. The question was NOT designed to elicit a foreign policy answer.

From NBC's Chuck Todd
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Hillary Clinton made the first reference of this campaign to her brothers... with the noting that her late father would have been proud that one of his children was on the Bears' 10-yard line.

From a candidate....Clinton said in her first question "My late father was a fanatic Bears fan."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Watching from Washington... looks like the trophy presentation at a big game. Sweeney has a blazer patch and everything.

From NBC's Mark Murray
Obama, Clinton, Edwards and -- yes -- Kucinich got the biggest applause lines from the crowd in Olbermann's introduction, even though the crowd was instructed to hold off their applause until the end.

From NBC's Chuck Todd
SOLDIER FIELD -- Well, the weather cooperated (I think); Why, "I think"? Because it's still hot... but rain would have been a major downer... This certainly is a more unique debate than anything online. We're in a football stadium; if only Brent Musberger were doing the P.A. right now to announce that "YOU ARE LOOKIN' LIVE, At SOLDIER FIELD in Chicago..."

Anyway, expect this forum to turn into a debate.

BTW, it's hot, with a capital "H." Biden just now on stage asked, "Man, where are THOSE air conditioners..." The candidates will have cool air pumped on the stage. After all, they are going to be standing up there for more than 90 minutes.

 From NBC's Mark Murray
... Giuliani? His campaign's communications director put out this statement on the about-to-start AFL-CIO forum: "Debate after debate, the Democrats ignore the threat of Islamic terrorists and fail to address the Terrorists' War on Us. Yet they have no problem talking about raising taxes on the American people. Each of the leading Democratic candidates has made campaign promises that will lead to tax hikes. It's about time they play it straight with voters and are honest about how much their tax hikes will cost the American public."

From NBC's Mark Murray
Just a reminder that your First Read team will be live-blogging tonight's AFL-CIO forum, which airs on MSNBC beginning at 7:00 pm ET. Chuck is there on the ground at Soldier Field, while Domenico and I will be watching from our offices here in DC.

From NBC's Mark Murray
Possible blogger-in-chief Fred Thompson has a new commentary on his Web site -- this one on the economy. Outside of touting Bush's tax cuts, Thompson doesn't offer any concrete policies. But he makes this eyebrow-raising suggestion: that Bush's economic record was as good, or even better, than Clinton's. 

He writes, "If you're generally predisposed to not support tax cuts and economic growth, you're probably satisfied that the U.S. economy isn't bragged on more. But you'd also be out of step with Americans [sic] traditional optimism, and out of step with reality, too... Since the spring of 2003, the economy has had an average growth of over 3%, 8.2 million jobs have been created, and the inflation rate has stayed low. The current unemployment rate, 4.6%, is a full percentage point below what it averaged during the 1990s."

More: "People have pointed out that journalists were trumpeting economic statistics during the Clinton administration that were not as good as those we have now."

Now wait a second...

During the eight years of the Clinton Administration -- which, by the way, raised taxes -- about 23 million jobs were created, which comes out to about 240,000 jobs per month. By comparison, only a net of 5.6 million jobs have been created during the Bush years, which comes out to about 71,000 per month. Even taking away the job losses caused by a recession and the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Bush years come up short: In the 47 consecutive months of job growth since the fall of 2003, the per-month average has been about 177,000 jobs.

What's more, many Americans don't feel that great about the economy right now. In the latest NBC/WSJ poll, 68% of respondents say the country is in an economic recession -- or will be in the next 12 months. And on a 1-to-10 scale, the mean grade respondents gave the economy in the poll was 5.6. By comparison, the grade they gave in June 1997 (well before the tech boom of the late 1990s) was 6.2.

From NBC's Lauren Appelbaum
In a rare display of emotion, Clinton began her speech on rising home foreclosures this morning by imploring the audience and members of the media to help a New Hampshire woman who is losing her home.
 
"I don't know whether there is anybody in this audience or anyone who through the media might be following this who can do anything to help Christy and her family, but I hope somebody will try," Clinton said, in a softened, subdued voice. "The bank actually bought the home at higher than market value, so maybe if somebody with the bank, or with someone associated with Ameriquest, which started this downward spiral, could step forth and try to show some humanity and compassion. That would be a good way to start."
 
Speaking in a school gymnasium in New Hampshire, Clinton said one of the root causes of home foreclosure is an affordability gap because wages have been stagnant while housing prices "have been going literally through the roof."

Her solution is part stricter enforcement on the lenders and part better education for the borrowers: (1) crack down on unscrupulous brokers by creating national standards for brokers and requiring them to tell families upfront that they get paid based on the size of mortgages they sell; (2) crack down on mortgage lenders by eliminating prepayment penalties; (3) do more to help people to avoid foreclosures; and (4) create more affordable housing.
 
She added that she believes there is hope for those facing foreclosure.

"Today we have a clear choice," Clinton said. "We can look at the statistics, wring our hands and continue to do nothing, or we can do what America has done in times of difficulty -- acknowledge that we have a real challenge and confront it head on with real solutions. I think we need to act now with smart, practical solutions to strengthen our housing and mortgage markets."
 
Clinton promised to work with Congress for practical solutions, including $1 billion federal fund to help people avoid foreclosures.

"We're going to try in the Democratic congress to push forward on this agenda," she said. But if the President won't sign our proposals that we will send to him in the next months, when I'm president, I will take a very active role in making this a priority and I will sign into laws provisions to do exactly what I am outlining."
 
In March, Clinton talked about problems with sub-prime mortgages, loans typically for people with bad credit histories or low incomes. Clinton calls these sub-prime mortgages "the canary in the mine," since these problems have now spread to the conventional mortgage market. She also said home ownership rates directly correlate to the economy and facilitates economic growth, making an argument for all people to care about this issue.
 
Bill Clinton's Take
NBC's Jenny Anzelmo reports Bill Clinton briefly touched on the subject of predatory lending and mortgages last night. While Hillary Clinton said today that some people being targeted by the lenders "have no business getting into home ownership until they got their credit straightened out," Bill Clinton emphasized the need for every American to have bank accounts and establish credit. He says it would save a collective $1 billion a year.

"They can't establish credit, so they can't get a home mortgage," Bill Clinton said, "and if they do get a home mortgage its one of these sub-prime deals."

In response, Dodd issued an "I did it first" memo, using his position as Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee to show that he has practical experience in fighting predatory lenders. He cited bills he has co-sponsored on fighting sub-prime lending practices and spokeswoman Colleen Flanagan said: "We're glad that Mrs. Clinton is concerned about this important issue that Sen. Dodd has already taken leadership on. But addressing the crisis will require more than rhetoric on the campaign trail. That is why as Banking Chairman, Sen. Dodd has taken the reigns on this issue and plans to continue ensuring that American homeowners are not taken advantage of."

From NBC's Joel Seidman
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said today that he will decide by the end of October whether he will enter the presidential race.

On NBC's "Today" this morning, Gingrich said, "There will be a yes or no by the end of October" and he reiterated that at the National Press Club in DC.

VIDEO:  Newt Gingrich, on NBC's Today Show, talks about the 2008 presidential race.

Prior to his decision deadline, Gingrich said he was planning to float some ideas on the Internet. "We are planning to have American solutions workshops on September 27 to 29th," he said, "nationwide on the Internet, open to everybody for free."

Gingrich said the response he receives from the Web forum will be a determining factor in his decision to wade into presidential politics. "After that I'll look at the race," Gingrich said.

At the National Press Club, Gingrich said he would consider a presidential run only if there "was a large enough vacuum...large enough demand" from the public. He also said that Fred Thompson would make a "formidable" candidate and so is Hillary Clinton. For the GOP, he thinks Giuliani, Romney, Huckabee and Thompson are the strongest.

Yesterday in Georgia, Gingrich predicted that the Democrats' chances of taking over the White House next year are a good bet.

He told business leaders at a gathering of the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce, "The odds are fairly significant that the left will win next year."

And he had a further prediction on who will make up the Democratic presidential ticket. "My personal bet is that it'll be a Clinton-Obama ticket. I think they have a very high likelihood of winning," Gingrich said.

From NBC's Andrew Merten
Huckabee was also interviewed by NBC's Matt Lauer on MSNBC, and touted himself as a "Washington Outsider," striking a tone somewhat similar to Obama's and Edwards.'

VIDEO: Mike Huckabee tells MSNBC he hopes to convince voters he is the outside-the-Beltway candidate who can change the way Washington works."One thing I do see is a separation between where I stand and where these other candidates stand," Huckabee said. "Most of them are from Washington; people are beginning to be real clear -- they don't want another Washington person because Washington has failed. They haven't delivered real answers for the problems that Americans face."
 
When asked about his plans for competing in the Ames Straw Poll this Saturday, Huckabee referenced his Arkansas hometown, saying, "We're going to be there with Hope watermelons. If nothing else brings them our way -- 150-pound watermelon should do it."

He also talked about not wanting to go negative on other opponents, using a basketball analogy to do so. The former Arkansas governor said in basketball, there are two strategies: play dirty, using elbows to "cripple" your opponents or be able to shoot well.

Huckabee said he'd like to think he can be the guy "who can hit the 3-pointers."

Obama, whose basketball interest has been well documented, has also used basketball analogies on the trail, saying he's "skinny, but tough" and that he has "sharp elbows."

From NBC's Andrew Merten
Just hours before tonight's AFL-CIO forum in Chicago, Edwards today reiterated his pro-labor stances and criticism of trade agreements like NAFTA during an interview with NBC's Matt Lauer. He also emphasized that he was the one who prompted the debate on lobbyist campaign contributions over the weekend at the YearlyKos convention.

VIDEO:  John Edwards tells MSNBC why he wants to eliminate lobbyists.

"I think that we can lead on this -- the Democratic presidential candidates and the Democratic Party at large, by saying, 'We're not part of this Washington insider crowd, and we're not taking their money, period,'" Edwards said from Soldier Field, the site of tonight's forum. 

The former senator also repeated his praise for Obama for not having accepted lobbyist money so far in his presidential campaign.

With regard to how he can get out of the perceived shadow of Clinton and Obama, he added, "We need to get off the glitz and glamour."

From NBC's Courtney Kube
The number of US troops in Iraq has hit its highest level since the beginning of the war, with about 162,000 US forces on the ground there. But keep in mind that the armed forces are in the middle of a transition, with three brigades re-deploying and preparing to re-deploy right now. Some of the replacement brigades are already in Iraq, so the overlapping soldiers have caused the bump in force levels.

Pentagon spokesperson Bryan Whitman chalked up the increase to "normal rotations," citing the fact that the troop levels have hovered around 158,000 for the past three months.

The details: The 36th and the 25th Combat Aviation Brigades are both re-deploying now, and the 13th Sustainment Command is preparing to re-deploy now that their replacement brigade is completely on the ground. The 36th has about 2,700 soldiers; the 25th has about 2,500; and the 13th has more than 5,000 soldiers -- for a total of more than 10,000 soldiers who will be transitioning and re-deploying over the next six weeks.

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro
*** Da Dems: In the words of Brent Musberger (oh how it cringes some of us to quote him), "YOU'LL BE LOOKIN' LIVE, From Soldier Field in Chicago..." -- home of Da Bears -- where the Democratic presidential candidates participate tonight in the first non-Mike Gravel debate, er AFL-CIO forum, moderated by MSNBC's Keith Olbermann, which airs on MSNBC beginning at 7:00 pm ET. While the last Democratic debate took place just two weeks ago, much has happened since then, including the Minnesota bridge collapse; the Clinton-Obama spat over talking with world leaders; Obama's remarks on Pakistan and his later comment on the use of nuclear weapons there; Edwards' challenge to his rivals not to take lobbyist money; and Clinton's defense of lobbyists. So who will be the aggressor tonight? All signs point to Edwards being that guy, since labor is more important to his primary campaign than either of the two Dem front-runners. Will Obama be as aggressive or will he want to keep a lower profile tonight, hoping Edwards does his dirty work? Fasten your seatbelts.

VIDEO:  NBC's Political Director Chuck Todd offers his first read on tonight's Democratic forum in Chicago.

*** In A League Of Her Own: Just in time for tonight's forum, a new USA Today/Gallup poll has Clinton with a commanding lead over Obama and Edwards (48%-26%-12%). Clinton's 22-point advantage over Obama, in fact, is nearly double her lead from three weeks ago -- before the two Democrats began trading barbs over foreign policy. Now we know why the Clinton and Obama camps traded memos yesterday over the significance of the national polls: Clinton chief strategist Mark Penn penned a missive touting her lead in those polls, while Obama campaign manager David Plouffe responded by dismissing them, pointing instead to Obama's relative strength in Iowa and New Hampshire. Speaking of Penn, could he come up as a subject at the AFL forum? Today's Los Angeles Times quotes leading labor officials who aren't too pleased that the PR firm he heads has represented anti-union companies. Of course, Clinton's more difficult defense tonight may not be Penn, but rather her husband's record on trade. Remember, of all the Democratic interest groups, the one group where Bill Clinton isn't necessarily an asset is labor. 

*** Is Obama In Trouble? Whatever any of us thought about whether he was getting comfortable going toe-to-toe with Clinton, there's plenty of evidence that Clinton is the candidate with momentum, at least nationally. Look for Clinton supporters to argue that the dust-up on foreign affairs has hurt Obama nationally, particularly in the area of electability. Also, don't miss the Quad Cities coverage of Obama today -- it indicates he's still being put on the defensive regarding his Pakistan-terrorism speech, at least with Iowans. By the way, why did the Obama campaign allow the perception to linger that he was somehow sending troops into Pakistan? It isn't what he said, but it is the perception and the Quad Cities paper notes it. Contrast how slowly the campaign has put this "he'll invade Pakistan" storyline away with how quickly they beat back the "Obama's a Muslim" chatter. Put it this way: Obama's had better press days, and today's not one of them. By the way, why does the chattering class give Romney more of a pass for his poor national poll numbers than Obama or Edwards? That USA Today/Gallup survey has him in fourth at 8%, behind Giuliani at 33%, Fred Thompson at 21%, and McCain at 16%.

*** Wearing the Union Label: No interest group worked harder to elect a Democrat in the last two presidential elections than organized labor, even if it eventually came up short in these contests. And perhaps no interest group has more to gain from placing a Democrat in the White House in January 2009 -- especially after the Bush Administration's appointments to the National Labor Relations Board and stringent reporting requirements Yet it's unclear how big labor's role will be in the Democratic primaries. Back in 2003-4, Gephardt and Dean won most of the big union endorsements, and we know how those campaigns fared. It's unlikely the AFL-CIO will end up endorsing a candidate (which requires support from two-thirds of affiliated unions), meaning that the individual unions will be free to make their own endorsements.

*** On The Trail: Before the AFL forum, Clinton delivers a policy address on home ownership from Derry, NH; Obama holds a rally at Soldier Field; and Richardson, in Iowa, becomes the latest Democratic candidate to unveil his health-care plan. Also, with just a few days until the Ames straw poll, Giuliani, Huckabee, and Hunter are all in Iowa. And McCain is in Michigan. By the way, what will be the tailgating beverage of choice tonight at Soldier Field: Old Style or Pabst?

*** And It's Super Tuesday! For more on these events -- and especially tonight's forum -- tune into another installment of MSNBC's all-day Super Tuesday political coverage. Also, Dodd appears on MSNBC's Hardball's preview of the forum beginning at 5:00 pm ET.

Countdown to the Ames Straw Poll: 4 days
Countdown to MA-05 Special Election: 27 days
Countdown to LA GOV election: 74 days
Countdown to Election Day 2007: 91 days
Countdown to LA GOV run-off (if necessary): 102 days
Countdown to Iowa: 159 days
Countdown to Tsunami Tuesday: 181 days
Countdown to Election Day 2008: 455 days
Countdown to Inauguration Day 2009: 532 days

The Washington Post's Balz looks at Edwards' attempt to unify labor behind his candidacy. "Labor officials begin this campaign cycle in a more combative frame of mind, feeling they have been burned by candidates who check the right boxes on questionnaires but then do not fight hard for labor's interests once in office."

Click here for more on MSNBC's Super Tuesday political coverage and tonight's Democratic forum in Chicago.

also notes Edwards' courtship of labor support, and it has an anecdote about Teamsters' president James Hoffa being so smitten by Edwards' position that he decided to ask both Clinton and Obama whether they agreed with Edwards. But is that good for Edwards? Isn't this Hoffa anecdote proof that many in Big labor don't want to blindly support Edwards but are hoping to use him as a way to keep both Obama and Clinton from running away from labor's key issues?

Also in the article: "Hillary Clinton … has already put some distance between herself and the free-trade policies of the administration of her husband, former President Bill Clinton. Edwards's plank may force her to go further, starting tonight with the Democratic presidential candidates' forum before the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor federation… Tonight's AFL-CIO forum could be important for Obama, 46, who hasn't said a great deal about trade. He has said Nafta should be renegotiated and has broken with businesses that want to lower barriers to trade and capital… Obama, like Edwards and Clinton, also calls for labor and environmental provisions in trade accords and policies that address workers' interests, not just those of big business, without being as tough or as specific as Edwards."

Both Edwards and Obama are likely to share this piece about Mark Penn to any labor union that might be leaning towards Clinton: The AFL-CIO, the Los Angeles Times reports, isn't happy about Penn. "'Learning that Mark Penn was CEO of a company that in fact conducts some of its business busting unions was very, very problematic to the AFL-CIO, as well as to many other unions, and we made that clear' to the Clinton campaign, said Karen Ackerman, AFL-CIO political director. 'This is an issue that continues.'"

"Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa said in a statement: 'We have expressed our concerns to Sen. Clinton about Mark Penn and his firm's work for anti-union companies. We value Sen. Clinton's commitment to strengthen America's middle class. But as long as Mark Penn continues to profit from his company's involvement with anti-union companies, this issue will not go away.'"

"Penn is refusing to part ways with Burson-Marsteller, and Clinton has not asked him to do so. In an interview, he said he was avoiding a role in overseeing the part of the company's practice that involved management-labor issues. Penn said he also had invoked the company's 'conscience clause,' meaning that he would not work with particular clients 'because of personal feelings on the issue.'"

CLINTON: The

Washington Post examines her foreign policy positions, beyond just her shift on the war. "Clinton advisers say they see her rising on parallel tracks: among liberals who believe her when she says she would end the war, and among centrists who believe she is 'tough enough' to defend the country… Advisers to Clinton believe that her recent foreign policy moves have only made her more competitive, and they point to substantive steps she has taken, including introducing legislation requiring the Pentagon to report on its planning, co-sponsoring legislation to deauthorize the war and challenging Undersecretary of Defense Eric Edelman to explain whether the Pentagon had a strategy to withdraw troops." The piece also includes this positive quote from, of all people, the Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol. "'Obama,' he said, 'is becoming the antiwar candidate, and Hillary Clinton is becoming the responsible Democrat who could become commander in chief in a post-9/11 world.'"

The Wall Street Journal previews Clinton's speech on mortgage policy today. Clinton "is proposing a package of measures that would impose new disclosure requirements on mortgage brokers and curb their ability to dictate lending terms. Specifically, Mrs. Clinton is planning to say today that she would force brokers to state their fees in plain language, require a full disclosure of monthly tax and insurance costs for subprime loans, and ban prepayment penalties on all home mortgages. This latter proposal could shake up the industry, one analyst said."

Edwards and Obama "tag teamed" Clinton in Iowa on the issue of lobbying yesterday, writes the NY Daily News.

Today we see the power of Drudge. The story about the strained personal relationship between Clinton and Obama actually hit over the weekend (online). But because it's in the print edition of the New York Times today, Drudge seems to be making the bigger deal out of the story today. 

EDWARDS:

During his speech on trade yesterday, Edwards said, "While economists say that trade helps our economy overall, we need to be honest about the fact that it doesn't help everybody."

OBAMA:

The Quad City paper sees Obama as struggling still from last week's foreign policy debates. The paper's headline: "Pakistan, Afghanistan comments dog Obama." "As Obama visited Sioux City on Monday for the second time in 2007, the second audience question came from a man who wanted the U.S. senator from Illinois to make plain what he meant last week when he said troops withdrawn from Iraq should be sent into Pakistan and Afghanistan. Obama said there was 'misreporting' of his comments, adding, 'I never called for an invasion of Pakistan or Afghanistan.'" 

Obama went after agribusiness yesterday, the Boston Globe's Political Intelligence blog reports.

RICHARDSON:

In a press release announcing the unveiling of his health-care plan today, Richardson says, "My plan focuses on guaranteeing universal coverage, keeping down the cost of care for all, and improving care in general. My plan provides affordable health coverage choices to every American, without raising taxes. I am excited to share my plan for universal healthcare -- I am confident it is the best plan for our nation's future."

GIULIANI:

Newsday covers Giuliani's adoption speech yesterday and notes his attempt to win over pro-life conservatives. How do you do it? "'You do it by looking for common ground,' Giuliani said. 'The common ground here is that I have already a definable record of increasing adoptions and decreasing abortions. I would expand that nationally.'"

Even though he's skipping the Ames straw poll, the Washington Post's Balz notes that he's campaigning hard in the Hawkeye State. "His stops in Iowa and today, and his promise to audiences who turned out to hear him this weekend to return frequently, suggest that his campaign team has every intention of trying to make this state competitive. The same appears even more the case for New Hampshire."

Giuliani conceded that a reason he is not competing strongly for the Ames straw poll is, "We didn't think we had the resources to do both and do it justice, because we started [campaigning in Iowa] somewhat later," the Des Moines Register reports. "We thought we would be too far behind to catch up with regard to the straw poll, so we would put all our emphasis on the caucuses."

The news that Giuliani's daughter had indicated support for Obama on her Facebook page only seemed to bring attention to the fact that Giuliani's relationship with his kids is apparently somewhat estranged.

The New York Post's headline: "Rudy kid stabbed daddy in the Barack."

MCCAIN:

He had some harsh words for his own party in Iowa yesterday. "We came into power in 1994 to change government, and it changed us," he said.

PAUL:

In a rare Iowa appearance, Paul "sketched out his vision of a limited government that includes the abolition of the Federal Reserve, the end of federal involvement in education and amnesty for immigrants in the nation illegally," according to the Des Moines Register.

ROMNEY:

This week in the Columbia State, Lee Bandy writes that despite Romney's leads in Iowa and New Hampshire, he doesn't "connect" with South Carolina voters.

F. THOMPSON:

GOP analyst Jennifer Rubin writes on the revamped Thompson Web site and brings up something we've been wondering about ourselves: Just how ready is Thompson going to be to talk substance once he announces in September. Because of his late start, he'll be expected to have detailed policy proposals on par with the other GOP frontrunners when he announces; the press and his opponents will probably hold his feet to the fire on this.

Rubin: "Other than to satisfy anxious supporters I'm not sure what the purpose of the relaunch was. If you don't want the press to talk only about mechanics -- who is leaving, who is running the show, why you didn't meet money expectations -- then give them some substance, some indication about the rationale for your campaign and some bold ideas which the other contenders have missed."

Another thing we've learned about Jeri Thompson -- she's not a lawyer, as some newspapers have suggested. "A possible cause of the confusion is that at the time of Jeri Kehn's 2002 wedding to Fred Thompson, she was working at the D.C. law firm Verner, Liipfert, Bernhard, McPherson & Hand -- but as a political and media consultant, not as an attorney… Whatever the source of the mixup, one thing is for sure: until today, the Thompson campaign has not exactly made a concerted effort to knock down the notion that Jeri Thompson is an attorney."