The New Republic

Overnight all three of the leading Democratic presidential contenders began airing “closing messages” to the caucus-goers of Iowa. All three spots are quite good--a reminder, I think, of just how strong this field of candidates is. But I was struck by how perfectly the advertisements captured the essence of each campaign, warts and all. . Start with Clinton's spot. READ MORE >>

My colleague Jonathan Chait suggests, gently, that I am off my rocker for even suggesting that Hillary Clinton might have more appeal to swing voters than Barack Obama.  While I’m hesitant to engage Jon over this – my primary purpose in writing that item was to show why Obama’s support among independents was impressive, regardless of what actually READ MORE >>

For those who spent the past 36 hours celebrating (and recovering) rather than obsessing over presidential politics, the big news over New Year's was the final Des Moines Register poll.  Released just hours before the end of 2007, it showed Barack Obama increasing his lead in Iowa over fellow Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Edwards. READ MORE >>

Manchester, New Hampshire--The early conventional wisdom is that Thursday’s tragedy in Pakistan will help the Republican candidate with the most foreign policy experience (John McCain) and the one most associated with 9/11 (Rudy Giuliani). For all I know about the dynamics of Republican primary politics, that’s correct. But listening to Mitt Romney during an impromptu press conference here on Thursday, I thought he acquitted himself pretty well--at least, once he left his prepared script and began answering questions. READ MORE >>

I'm not going to offer an opinion on who "won" the Democratic debate because the question seems pointless to me. (What does it mean to "win" anyway?) But I can pinpoint a winner from today's report on steroids in baseball. It's Barry Bonds. READ MORE >>

With the Iowa caucuses less than a month away, it's important to scrutinize the health care reform plans of the leading Democratic presidential candidates.  But it's also important to keep these differences in perspective.  Hillary Clinton and John Edwards would require everybody to obtain insurance, Barack Obama wouldn't.  But they're all talking about the same goal: Covering every single American though some sort of government action.  And their plans still have a great deal in com READ MORE >>

After all three Democratic presidential candidates released their health care proposals this year, a general consensus emerged on who was going to do what. Barack Obama had put forward a substantial plan that would reach a lot of people; Hillary Clinton and John Edwards had put forward even more ambitious plans that would reach even more people. READ MORE >>

For those who aren't yet convinced Barack Obama is on the wrong side of the health care debate—like, for example, whoever wrote this piece for the Concord Monitor—my latest take on the issue is now up here. Quick and dirty version: Mandates good, Obama wrong. Of course, you'll have to read the article to see why. READ MORE >>

By now, almost everybody in Iowa and quite a few people beyond it have heard Hillary Clinton or John Edwards attack Barack Obama over his health care plan.Edwards and Clinton would both require every American to obtain insurance, a proposal known to policy wonks as an “individual mandate.” Obama would require all children to have insurance, but not all adults. Citing that difference, Edwards and Clinton have said that Obama's plan could leave as many as 15 million people without insurance. READ MORE >>

I agree with a lot of what Jason writes below. The experience issue should be tricky for Hillary Clinton—and it's best we see now whether she can deal with it. But I disagree with him—and, more importantly, with Barack Obama—that she's constantly trying to take credit for her husband's successes and avoid blame for his failures. The reason? Health care. Even before she ran for president, she was talking constantly about the mistakes she made and the flaws of that plan.   READ MORE >>