Liz Elsewhere

The youth vote: It has been eagerly courted by politicians for years, and with just weeks to go until the Iowa caucuses, 2008 is set to prove no different.
But while a number of candidates continue to devote plenty of time and resources to cultivating strong support from youth voters, it remains unclear whether such backing is a valuable ingredient in the recipe for electoral success.
Past experience suggests it could be. Though both Sen. John F. Kerry and President George W....

HIV/AIDS policy is hardly the gripping stuff of tax cuts or universal health care proposals in the mind of the average American. But in the wake of World AIDS Day celebrations earlier this month, it's gaining increased attention in the nation's capital.
That's thanks to a political "odd couple" -- the Bush administration and a bloc of 36 Democratic House members, including Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wa. Both want changes to existing policy under which the Department of Homeland Security...

Yesterday former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney launched the first negative TV ad of the 2008 cycle, hammering former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in Iowa for having "supported in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrants" and "taxpayer-funded scholarships for illegal aliens."
While a valid critique (Huckabee has never denied Romney's assertions), it was an odd maneuver. Obviously, Romney's campaign is concerned about Huckabee rising in the polls -- especially in Iowa, where...

2008 might not be the "Iraq election" after all, writes LIZ MAIR.
"It's the economy, stupid," was the Clinton campaign catchphrase that defined the 1992 presidential election. But, with less than a month to go until the Iowa caucuses, it could easily reemerge as the chief slogan for 2008 as well.
According to a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, 52 percent of Americans say their top two priorities in selecting a president are the economy and healthcare; terrorism and...

Yesterday, in College Station, Texas, ex-Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney gave his "Faith in America" speech. Designed to allay concerns among the mainly evangelical bloc of Republican voters nervous about nominating a Mormon for the presidency, the speech was the political equivalent of a base hit. Romney's speech will help him, at least in the short term, but it wasn't the home run he needed to vastly improve his chances of winning the Republican nomination.
Sure, the speech offered...

In just over a month, the first round of presidential decision-making will kick off with the 2008 Iowa caucuses. Yet, despite the early state focus, several Republican front-runners already are directing their attention to the Evergreen State, which they believe could be competitive next year.
Surprising, isn't it? Washington has not gone to a Republican since Ronald Reagan in 1984, and the state boasts two Democratic senators, six Democratic members of Congress, a Democratic...

Romney punished himself by introducing crime at the debate.
Last weekend, fresh upon news that a killer freed without bail, by a judge appointed by ex-Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, had allegedly killed two people in Graham, Washington, crime emerged as a new issue in the campaign for the 2008 Republican nomination.
This was not a necessary development. True, according to October figures from Gallup, 57 percent of Americans view crime as an "extremely serious" or "very serious"...

By pushing for welfare reform, British opposition leader David Cameron has taken on a political giant.
Welfare reform is becoming a hot topic in Great Britain, where Conservative Party leader David Cameron is calling for a radical shakeup of the benefit system. Why the sudden fuss? For one thing, welfare rolls have barely contracted under a decade of Labour government. Despite the party's pledges to get people off the dole and into work, since 1997 the number of benefit recipients...

On Monday, ex-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee released his second presidential campaign ad. Focusing on the onetime preacher's faith, it features the phrase "Christian Leader" flashing across the screen and shows Huckabee speaking to the religious conservative faithful at the Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit. It's less than subtle, to be sure. But then, the Other Man From Hope has never been shy about making religion -- as opposed to mere positions on subjects like abortion or...

Hillary Clinton may be an object for revulsion on the part of many conservatives, but give her credit for achieving something that few thought possible. With Hillary’s recent bashing of free trade, she’s made her NAFTA-backing husband look like a good guy – even among those on the right side of the political spectrum.
It all started last month, during a speech in Iowa, in which Hillary called for U.S. trade agreements to be reviewed every five years, and for...