6/5: All Eyes On Mitt

The Blogometer doesn't even need to look at the polls to tell who is currently ahead in NH. Judging by blog attacks, both anonymous and not, Mitt Romney is clearly the frontrunner in the Granite State. Whether it's shots on Mormonism from Rudy Giuliani or questions on abortion from Sam Brownback, the GOP field is signaling all guns will be trained on Romney 6/5. Will CNN's apparent preference for top-tier air time, will Romney benefit from more time to respond to opponent charges, or will John McCain and Giuliani shy away from challenging Romney head on?

DEM FIELD: Less-Blind Faith

Christian Broadcasting Network's The Brody File attended Sojourners Presidential Faith Forum at GWU, anticipating before the start: "OK, this is put on by the liberal Christian group Sojourners so the candidates will come up and talk about poverty, health care, Darfur. They'll say each one is a moral crisis and that will be that." Brody later admitted how wrong he was:

For the next hour I sat in my seat in awe. There was conservative Christian 'red meat' everywhere. Topics ranged from evolution to abortion, to forgiveness of sin, to prayer, to homosexuality, to whether this is a Christian nation, etc. ... I think Clinton, Obama and Edwards helped themselves last night. These faith conferences further the discussion about religion and politics and that's always a good thing.

CLINTON: Do Not Underestimate The Powers Of The Dark Side

Commenting on mostly positive reviews of Hillary Clinton's 6/3 debate performance, Atrios blogs: "I do get a sense that a lot of online negativity against Clinton is misplaced and counterproductive to the cause, that is the cause of derailing her candidacy if that is your goal. ... People like Clinton. She's the clear frontrunner in national polls. ... I'm not writing any of this to make the case for Clinton, I'm just trying to make the case that her detractors underestimate the strength of her support at their peril. Whatever the reasons, her support is real and significant."

Marshalling ahead with online HRC negativity, TPM Cafe's Greg Sargent explains why her "I am a senator from New York. I have lived with the aftermath of 9/11" irks liberals so much:

Here's why this sort of thing gets people hot and bothered. It seems designed to imply that Edwards doesn't grasp the import of terrorism itself -- in other words, that he doesn't take terrorism in general as seriously as she does. In this sense it carries echoes of the bogus Dems-don't-grasp-the-terror-threat talking point used so frequently by wingers and by the GOP to slime Hillary herself and Dems in general.
We have no problem believing that Hillary actually does believe in the "war on terror" frame. But we'd genuinely like to hear her explain why she believes this, rather than implying she has a better gut-level grasp of the import of terrorism than other Dems do.

OBAMA: Either Get Busy Living ...

Netroots anticipation for a more forceful Barack Obama challenge to Hillary Clinton continues to grow. Not backing of her assessment that HRC won the 6/3 debate, Obama lover Arianna Huffington blogs:

Barack Obama's strategy also appears to be rising above the fray. But that is no way to unseat a front-runner. Iraq is Hillary's Achilles heel. But it will become less and less so if Obama keeps letting her off the hook on the war and on national security. ... In the spin room after the debate, David Axelrod, Obama's chief media strategist, told reporters that debates like last night's are part of a larger sequence -- and that there is still a long time to go before the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. ... But he'd better get started -- and stop leaving choice opportunities on the table.

In IA, Bleeding Heartland admits Obama faces an uphill climb in her state but still comments: "But if I were Obama, I would fire the scheduler who put him at a west-coast fundraiser instead of in Cedar Rapids on Saturday night. That was a crazy decision. He's rolling in money and is probably going to outraise Clinton in the second quarter. He's trailing in the Iowa polls and should have taken that opportunity to make the sale with party activists. ... Ordinary voters won't care a bit about who came to the Hall of Fame dinner. But every one of the 1,000 people who attended can probably influence at least a dozen friends and neighbors.

At MyDD, Jerome Armstrong notes the latest Gallup Poll showing Obama besting Clinton 37%-36% when independent voters are included (but trails Clinton 43%-29% among Dems) and blogs: "Independents could crumble as voters unaffiliated with the Democratic Party cannot always participate in nominating contests and Independents are less likely to turn out for a Democratic Primary than Democrats. Nonetheless, if Obama ... can run up a major lead among Independent voters and turn them out in the states where they can participate (particularly in New Hampshire), there is a potential that this voting clique can in fact play an oversized role in picking the next Democratic nominee."

Finally, The Brody File posts video of his interview with Obama Dir. of Religous Affairs Joshua DuBois.

OBAMA II: Mend The Market, Don't End It

Obama's approach to health care reform is slowly gaining more blogger adherents. BlueMassGroup's Charley blogs at firedoglake: "Obama tapped Harvard econ prof David Cutler to help him wonk out a plan - and to sell it. ... Cutler's emphasis has changed to making health care markets work more rationally. So it shouldn't be surprising that Obama's plan is chockful of very appealing market reforms. ... Bottom line: The Obama plan envisions a much bigger role for the federal government as an honest broker for the health care free market, and bolsters and expands the government health care system to include more people - especially the working poor and children."

Brad DeLong is also on board: "The right should embrace it for its market elements - allowing people to vote with their feet for the mechanisms that they want and the promise to support successful institutions. The centre should embrace it because the right has no strong ideological reason to oppose it - hence it is politically viable. And the left should embrace it because it promises the utopia of ending the problems of the uninsured."

Finally TAPPED's Ezra Klein reports The Politico was wrong when they reported Obama once favored mandates as part of a health care solution. From Klein: "A fuller transcription of his quote is below the fold, and it's clear in this version that he was offering mandates as one idea, not personally backing the concept."

HUNTER: Ahead Of The Anti-Bush Curve

Power Line's John Hinderaker promotes columnist Michael Tremoglie's Duncan Hunter in their forum. Tremoglie favors Hunter because he has: 1) Demonstrated his willingness to serve this country in time of war; 2) Demonstrated a family history of such duty. (He is the only candidate whose son has served in combat in Iraq.); 3) Been ahead of the curve about the issue of unfair trade with China; 4) Is an illegal immigration hawk who has been ahead of the curve on this issue as well; 5) He has a stable family background and a political career with no hint of corruption; 6) He is a tax cutter.

Hinderaker adds: "My own view, for what it's worth, is that once the field starts to narrow, Hunter could get some serious interest. He could be a viable alternative to Fred Thompson for those who are looking for a down-the-middle conservative. Apart from the Presidential race, he certainly could be a credible Vice-presidential candidate in 2008.

MCCAIN: He Was For Amnesty Before He Was Against It

Politico's 6/4 story on John McCain's past use of the word 'amnesty' to describe his immigration legalization efforts gave conservatives a fresh excuse to bash him on the issue. The Corner's Mark Krikorian links to a Dallas Morning Newsstory showing the National Council of La Raza has been advising politicians to not utter the 'A' word since focus group testing found the term put legalization proponents at a disadvantage."

Power Line's John Hinderaker links but begins to doubt whether immigration really hurts McCain: "In the conservative world, the conventional wisdom is that McCain/Kennedy dooms McCain as a Presidential candidate. I've heard that said enough that I was starting to believe it. Now, I'm not so sure. Undoubtedly, McCain's position on immigration hurts him with a big segment of the base. But those are mostly the same people who weren't going to vote for him in primaries anyway, because of McCain/Feingold and other issues."

Kausfiles has no doubts immigration is hurting McCain and has SurveyUSA data to back him up: "McCain supports legalization of illegal immigrants [and] loses 5 points over the month among Hispanic Republicans in California. Fred Thompson blasts the legalization bill from the right and his support among Hispanics quintuples, putting him ahead of McCain (and Giuliani) among Hispanics."

ROMNEY: Wonder Who Everyone's Really Worried About In NH

NY Sun's Ryan Sager exposed efforts by the Rudy Giuliani campaign to promote a Salt Lake Tribunestory tying Mitt Romney to a disavowed Mormon prophecy.

Sager later posts an apology from the Giuliani campaign: "This was a regrettable mistake and is not acceptable. We extend our sincere apologies to Governor Romney and reaffirm our commitment to running a clean campaign."

Townhall's Matt Lewis comments: "Until now, it was unclear whether this story was being pushed by the McCain campaign, the Giuliani campaign -- or was merely spreading organically. Sager's revelation demonstrates that the Giuliani campaign is pushing the anti-Romney story." The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez adds: "If There Is Going to be a Mormon Whisper Campaign ... I suspect it won't be Romney, but the camp that is doing the whispering, who will be hurt."

Townhall's Lewis also notes that Sam Brownback's campaign is "going after Mitt Romney for his failure to label abortion 'murder.'"

ROMNEY II: Wiggler In Chief

In other Romney attacks, Townhall's Matt Lewis posts video of Romney endorsing 'leagal residence' and explains that anti-Romney forces our touting the video as more proof of Romney flip-flops. Lewis isn't buying: "But the statement is nuanced enough to allow for some wiggle room. For example, he is calling for "legal status" -- not "citizenship," per se. I'd like to see the full video."

Also pushing back for Romney at Townhall, Hugh Hewitt links to New York Timessuggestions that Romney enriched himself by cutting jobs to increase profits while at Bain Capital and responds: "As Romney's campaign increases its momentum, so too will the digging into Bain Capital's history. Expect detailed scrutiny of every business ever acquired by Bain Capital, and the publication of long lists of the numbers of employees laid off from each concern."

F. THOMPSON: Does Anyone Bother Defending Bush Anymore?

NY Sun's Ryan Sager picks up on Paul Wyrich's National Ledger thoughts on Fred Thompson including: "Both [Ronald] Reagan and Thompson were actors. Both men connect with the voters. Both men excite conservatives and even Republicans. Both men are seen as saviors, Reagan from the inept President Jimmy Carter; Thompson from the mistakes of fellow Republican George W. Bush, although that is not said out loud very much."

Sager comments: "I already reported Gary Bauer's very friendly remarks regarding a Fred Thompson candidacy. ... It looks like we have another not-quite-an-endorsement endorsement."

AmSpec Blog's Washington Prowler is also in a pro-Thompson mood, promoting Thompson's latest Paul Harvey commentary on the JFK plot as well as Thompson's Senate report "Government on the Brink" which the Prowler notes: "published before the September 11 attacks and Hurricane Katrina, while not predicting such failures in government coordination or basic services, certainly made the case that our government was due for a fall. Thompson has spoken of the report often in his public remarks of late."

BLOGGERS VS. MSM: Does Joe Need More Time With His Family?

Conservatives are more than ready to throw Joe Scarborough under the bus after the MSNBC talent attacked Fred Thompson's wife by asking a guest if she "works the pole." Reactions include:

• Michelle Malkin: "Scarborough owes Thompson and his wife an apology. Be a man, Joe. Would you let someone publicly joke about your wife that way?"
• RCP Blog's Tom Bevan: "The Curse of Imus ... This one has to be seen to be believed."
• Captain's Quarters: "Thompson's wife is beautiful, but that doesn't make her a whore or a stripper. Perhaps it speaks to Scarborough's view of women that he immediately associates one with the other. This is nothing more than character assassination, and especially egregious as it targets someone who isn't even a political player. Scarborough should be ashamed of himself."
• NRO's Jim Geraghty: "In related news, Scarborough has officially entered his fifteenth minute of fame."

In the minority, Townhall's Matt Lewis advises conservatives to "get over it."

BLOGGERS VS. BELTWAY: Meet The New Boss...

The 16-count indictment of Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) had the netroots hoping their party would take some kind of action to distance themselves from the embattled CBC member. Reactions include:

• MyDD's Jerome Armstrong: "Why in the world would Democrats linger and not act quickly on this matter? Why would Pelosi and the CBC let House Minority Leader John Boehner seemingly take the lead on getting rid of corrupt officials? Are the Democrats in the House (and specifically the CBC) going to squander the anti-branding effort achieved against the Republicans in 2006?"
• The Left Coaster's Erin Alecto: "The Democrats need to get ahead of the narrative on this, and strip him of his only remaining committee seat."
• Jack and Jill Politics' Jill Tubman: "Shame on all of us. I hope you agree and will speak out that African-Americans do not support this behavior. The Republicans are already seeking a tit-for-tat to brand Democrats (and African-American legislators) with the same brush of corruption they currently wear."
• Daily Kos' mcjoan: "Hopefully he'll recognize the drag he is on the Dems and will do the right thing by resigning."

Also, TPM's Josh Marshall posts video showing Fox News ran footage of Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) while covering Jefferson's indictment. Marshall blogs: "[A]pparently Fox News Channel can't tell one African-American member of Congress from another."

IRAQ: The Summer Of Nancy

The netrootsare trumpeting a new ABC News poll showing Dem approval has dropped from 54% to 44% in six weeks as evidence that Dems have not done enough to stop the war. Daily Kos' mcjoan blogs: "Given that upwards of 70 percent of the public in any given poll are steadfastly opposed to this war, that erosion in support for the Democratic Congress is worrying. It's not insurmountable, of course, but does show the the primacy of Iraq over every other issue now in the public mind. And that they want the Congress to stand up to Bush on the war."

Reports that Dems intend to create a "summer of repeated Iraq-related votes" to pressure GOPers into ending the war are not satiating the netroots either. Mcjoan, again:

That Iraq will stay on the front burner for Congressional leadership is great as far as it goes, but there's a problem in this formulation, for both the leadership and for MoveOn: the GOP is not showing any real sign of breaking with Bush on Iraq. ... The efforts by the Dem leadership in the coming months have to be about more than trying to put GOP members in a tough spot and the politics of 2008. This has to be about pressuring our own wavering members, building unity in our own caucus, and making the possibility of ending this war by not passing another funding bill after March 31, 2008 more of a probability.

IMMIGRATION: Where All Reform Proposals Are Above Average

Conservatives are talking numbers to try and persuade wayward GOP Senators against the immigration bill. At Townhall, Jonathan Garthwaite promotes Heritage's new NoFreeMustang site which "gets its name from an analysis of the fiscal costs of illegal immigrant amnesty." The site quotes heritage's Robert Rector:

"The average illegal immigrant family receives an average of $30,000 in governmental benefits! Yet they pay only about $9,000 in taxes per year. That creates a $21,000 shortfall that the American taxpayer has to make up. That's like buying each of these illegal immigrant families a brand new Mustang convertible-each and every year!"

Also quoting Rector, The Corner's Rich Lowry pushes back against Washington Postclaims that immigrants have been a fiscal boon for NC. Lowery summarizes: "Rector says its odd how supporters of lax immigration say things about the wondrous economic benefits of low-skill immigrants that they would never say about native low-skill workers. But if low-skill immigrants are a great benefit to the economy, low-skill natives should be as well. This kind of thinking, Rector says, is like a 'fiscal Lake Wobegone, where everybody is a net fiscal contributor.'"

An original Senate bill proponent, Captain's Quarters is turning against after a CBO report estimates the bill will only reduce illegal immigration by 25%: "Any immigration bill has to succeed at two tasks: stop illegal immigration by securing the border, and reach a resolution of some kind for the millions of illegals already here. According to the CBO, this bill won't do either very well. All it does is reduce annual illegal immigration by 25% -- which is not nearly enough."

Finally, SC Daily Chaser asks emailers to dial their opposition down just a bit: "Here at the Shot we received an e-mail blasting Sen. Lindsey Graham for his public support of the Senate immigration bill. ... This e-mail, which came with the subject line 'Lindsey's Lies', comes in the midst of the debate on the Senate floor. ... While I disagree with Graham on immigration, I do not feel that he is a "liar". Overall I think Graham is a good Senator, and his willingness to reach across the aisle is a great complement to DeMint's staunch conservatism."

IMMIGRATION II: Interns Out Debating The WSJ

Best of the Web's James Taranto shares the Wall Street Journal's "astonishment" at National Review's invitation to debate, explaining that NR's Byron York already cancelled an appearance on their Fox show to debate the issue.

The Corner's Rich Lowry replies: "We already basically addressed what Taranto says in that post in our latest from this morning on our challenge to the Journal. But this is progress. Now we're debating the debate, soon I hope we'll be debating the shape of the table and then-if the Journal can ever bring itself to agree to the challenge-actually debating the immigration bill."

Townhall's Mary Katharine Ham channeling conservative sentiment on the issue: "The WSJ, as fellow intellectually curious conservatives, should accept just to give us all a good show. It's part of the spirit of the conservative movement to have these spirited debates. Hence, the Cato vs. Heritage interns annual debate, which is always a hoot. Come on, WSJ. What are you? Chicken? Don't let the interns outdo you."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: He's A Keeper

Reacting to news the Wikipedia entry for the late Steve Gilliard had been nominated for deletion, Blog P.I.'s Bill Beutler makes the case for his online immortalization:

Love him or hate him, he was controversial in his time and certainly well-known in political blogging circles. (Full disclosure being that I did interact with him infrequently). I also think Gilliard meets the notability requirement for web content. But what this really goes to show is that Wikipedia needs a notability standard for bloggers. As others have noted, bloggers of lesser note are included in Wikipedia, and if this actually comes to a formal debate, I will vote Keep. ... When the big book on the liberal netroots is written, Gilliard will be more than a footnote. Wikipedia has the ability to record that now, and I believe it should.

LEST WE FORGET: The Money Wants What It Wants

Responding news of Rep. William Jefferson's (D-LA) indictment, The Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum asks readers to name some perfectly legal reasons "why a congressman might have bricks of hundred dollar bills wrapped in aluminum foil and stuffed in his freezer." Entries include:

• A common energy saving tip is to keep your freezer full. (Keep the freezer full - A full freezer does not allow warm air in when the door is opened, and if there is a power outage, the freezer will stay cool longer.) ... So he was just trying to save electricity, and the wingnuts can't stand it when Democrats try to save the planet so he's being persecuted.
• I know a lot of guys who do this. It's kind of like putting your underwear on straight out of the dryer...
• The money likes it in the freezer! Who are we to deny it.