On this day in 1789 the first presidential election is held (and I don't need to tell you who won). Now, 219 years later, the process continues, visibly different, perhaps unrecognizable to those first American voters, but, nevertheless, fundamentally unchanged. On to today's top stories:
"Candidates Criss-Cross State, Make Their Final Pitches" (Garry Rayno, New Hampshire Union Leader) If they weren't trying to be the most powerful person on the planet, perhaps you could pity the candidates who are operating on little sleep, riding around in buses, saying the same thing over and over again. Twenty-four hours until the first primary in the nation, the campaigns are at full tilt once more.
"Bruised in Iowa, Clinton, Romney Change Styles" (Elizabeth Holmes and Amy Chozick, Wall Street Journal) Faced with a second consecutive defeat, both Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney have changed their campaigns and approach to voters ever so slightly in the few days between Iowa and New Hampshire. Some of the changes reflect the differences between the two states, others, however, reflect perceptions where the campaigns were falling short.
"Romney Dials Down Expectations Hard" (Jonathan Martin and Jim VandeHei, The Politico) Down in all the post-Iowa New Hampshire polls, Mitt Romney has also scaled down his expectations. Ignoring a bit of recent history, where six months ago John McCain was considered dead in the water, Romney is now saying that a second in New Hampshire would be "something" -- as in "That's really something!"
"GOP Hopefuls Square Off on Taxes and Ads" (Lauren Dorgan, Concord Monitor) Compared with Saturday's firefight, Sunday's "Republican Forum" hosted by FOX News was a walk in the park. Still, the candidates went after each other over taxes and negative advertising. Also, Romney was finally able to put Mike Huckabee on the defensive over taxes.
"In New Hampshire, Bill Clinton Finds Less Spark" (Mark Leibovich, New York Times) Has the Clinton nostalgia tour finally reached the end of the road? Faced with uncertainty over how best to use the former president, the Clinton campaign is finding that Bill is less of a draw in New Hampshire than they had hoped, especially since this is the state which bestowed on Mr. Clinton (actually, he bestowed it himself) the title "Comeback Kid" in 1992.
"GOP Doubts, Fears 'Post-Partisan' Obama" (Jonathan Weisman, Washington Post) Barack Obama's rise hasn't only upset Hillary Clinton's carefully laid plans to walk back into the White House; it's also upset the GOP's years-long preparation to run a general election against Hillary. Obama's "post-partisan" image seems to be working, yet Republicans feel fairly confident that, should Obama win the nomination, it won't be terribly difficult to cast the first-term senator as just another partisan liberal.
"Independents Size Up McCain at Salem Rally" (Trend Spiner, New Hampshire Union Leader) McCain's atop the polls in New Hampshire, but he still is relying on independent voters to come out for him -- maybe not in the droves they did back in 2000, but enough so that he can credibly claim to have broad appeal. Of course McCain is fighting with Obama for independents, and prognosticators will see the level of support each gets as evidence of what might happen in a general election show-down between the two.
"Underdog Edwards Says He Won't Give Up Fight for White House" (Seema Mehta and James Rainey, Los Angeles Times) At the debate on Saturday, Edwards teamed up with Obama to go after Clinton. It's a smart strategy, if Edwards survives long enough to see Clinton exit the race. That's not a good bet, unless Edwards can pull out another second place finish in New Hampshire.
"Bloomberg and Others Begin Talks on a Nonpartisan Path" (Nicholas Confessore, New York Times) Obama isn't the only one singing the 'post-partisan' siren song, but he is the only one actually in the race. Meanwhile, Mike Bloomberg and pals are busy trying to capture the post-partisan high ground.
Get these and today's other election stories at RCP's Politics and Election page.
