The Best Man for the Job

In his latest video and speech campaign Obama has tried to portray himself as "deeply sensitized to the needs and aspirations of women." It is not a coincident that Obama new feminist campaign comes after the breakthrough that Senator Clinton's campaign has had on woman voters, especially among liberal women in Democratic primary states. Obama has no choice but to compete for women's votes, because 54% of the Caucus goers in Iowa and New Hampshire are women. Spokesman for Obama say that it is acceptable for a woman, even a feminist, to back someone other than the woman. So could gender really be a deciding factor for the 2008 Presidential Election?

"Faith in America"

On Thursday Romney will deliver a speech that will "share his views on religious liberty, the grand tradition religious tolerance has played in the progress of our nation and how the governor’s own faith would inform his presidency if he were elected.” With this speech, Romney hopes to easy the suspicions that many conservative Christians have about his Mormon faith. Romney's faith has "dogged" his campaign since it began, which is demonstrated in the many polls that show a large number of Americans would be unwilling to vote for a Mormon Presidential Candidate.

Clinton Targets Elderly

Senator Clinton has geared her campaign toward women who were born before the 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920. Elderly woman have become set pieces at Clinton's political events in Iowa. These woman are "visibly demonstrating the candidate’s effort to highlight her sex and her overtures to female voters, whom the campaign is counting on to propel her to the Democratic presidential nomination." Many woman of younger generations have shown great enthusiasm in Clinton's campaign; however, Clinton shows great pride in her elderly supporters by spending extra time speaking with them and sharing their stories with her audiences. According to some polls, Obama and Clinton are running even among women voters, so it seems as if Clinton is hoping to pull out ahead by gaining support of the older women of the state who may feel a connection to her because of gender.

Obama Admits His Mistakes

On his tour through Iowa, Obama invited his audience to ask whatever question they would like. Making this statement was like an open invitation for the type of questions that candidates try to avoid. One such question involved the use of marijuana. Obama was asked if he inhaled, and unlike president Clinton, who is infamous for lying when it comes to admitting his faults, Obama said he did inhale and "It’s not something I’m proud of. It was a mistake as a young man." I believe that Obama's willingness to tell the truth and show how he has learned from it is a trait we should welcome in our next President.

Clinton's Push for Iowa

Hillary Clinton is doubling her staff in Iowa, and increasing the number of her appearances there in order to gain more support in the state. Her campaign has been on the defensive since the last Democrat debate, and this seems to be her way of trying to regain some of the support she lost due to the attacks she suffered from her fellow Democrats. The only problem with this is it shows that Clinton is not as confident with her lead in the polls as she seems.

Democratic Candidates Promise to Combat Global Warming

Saturday Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Dennis Kucinich all expressed their views on how to fight global warming and encourage energy independence. They all expressed the need for government mandate to reduce greenhouse gases, as well as their willingness to negotiate treaties on the environment. According to many surveys, After immigration, reducing oil dependence and global warming is the second most important issue among independent voters. Therefore this issue could help to sway the undecided 20% of voters to the Democratic side in 2008.

The Immagration Issue

The Republican candidates have placed great importance on the issue of immigration during this primary season. The New York Times stated that the Republican cadidates "talk about illegal immigration as if they were in an arms race on toughness." Could this platform hurt their chances of winning the 2008 race for the White House by offending the growing number of Hispanic voters? Or will it help them maintain the White House by using the issue against the Democratic candidates who have remained more or less silent on this issue until lately?