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Connecticut’s Hartford Courant has an item suggesting it may just be on:
He hasn't made any announcements yet, but insiders say that Republican Rob Simmons is sounding more and more every day like a candidate for the U.S. Senate.
Simmons is currently unemployed after the Democratic-controlled legislature voted to transfer his job as the state's business advocate to another agency, and he is now looking to the future for a possible race against Democrat Christopher Dodd in...

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Last week, Utah Governor (and Republican) Jon Huntsman shocked a variety of political onlookers by announcing his support for same-sex civil unions (not least of whom was Eagle Forum's Gayle Ruzicka, who offered as a reaction "Shame on him" and conjectured that Huntsman must want to go work for President Obama... because, of course, there's no other sensible reason to support civil unions for gay couples).
Some pundits speculated that this was a risky move for Huntsman, whose name has...

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New American Research Group poll results for the NH-Sen race:

Sununu: 52%
Shaheen: 41%

MOE = 4.2 percentage points

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Tancredo endorses Romney.

That's a pretty big deal. It's also, I'd suggest, not something Fred's going to be very happy about. He's been talking about immigration a lot, and to many people looks more consistent than, well, pretty much the whole field on the subject (OK, I'll adjust that statement-- McCain looks consistent, too, just not in the way immigration hawks like). Yet he misses out.

Interesting.

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Not that I like to link to him, but yesterday, Kos posted something about GOP factions. As he sees it (outsider's perspective, bound to be at least a bit off), there are four of them: corporate cons, paleocons, theocons and neocons.

What about libertarian Republicans, I have to ask? And why is Ron Paul lumped in with Pat Buchanan here, when it's quite clear that on at least one of the big "moral values" issues, Ron Paul actually isn't at all in the same league (gay marriage/the Federal...

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Firedoglake's Jane Hamsher asks if Huckabee had gastric bypass surgery. Apparently, this is a relevant point to contemplate because:

Much of Huckabee's "can-do," likeability quotient rests on his remarkable weight loss story, and the book he wrote about his experience -- crediting his success to diet and exercise.

Well, that's deep political analysis for you. Next thing we'll be reading the tea leaves to ascertain the relevance of Hillary Clinton evidently having switched to...

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Readers will note there have been quite a few Christmas/Holiday ads put out in the last 24 hours. I must say, I am not a fan of the bulk of them. I thought Obama's was surprisingly boring and a bit lame. Hillary's felt predictably crass and not terribly clever. Rudy's was funny, though I'm a little unconvinced by the sweater vest. Apart from his, I don't really know what any of them bring to the party (so to speak), apart from being I suppose somewhat heart-warming and accomplishing some...

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This is just a bit amusing. From CQ (subscription required):
Pelosi, D-Calif., said she miscalculated on the biggest issue of the year: Iraq War policy.
After President Bush's party lost control of Congress in an election in which Iraq policy was a central issue, "The assumption I made was that the Republicans would soon see the light," Pelosi told reporters.
[...]
"That was a revelation to me because I felt the American people's voices were so strong and still are in this...

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Usually, when I write anything involving the words "Democrat" and "Colorado," it's to point out what a stellar job Democrats have done in kicking GOP butt in the state. But not today!
From Politics West:
Boulder Democrat Jared Polis was slammed by opponents Thursday after releasing a television ad blasting corporate "war profiteers" in Iraq - including two companies in which the congressional candidate owns stock.
Within hours of the ad's release, an opposing campaign pointed out...

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Charles Krauthammer has a great piece running today at NRO (and I presume also the WaPo, though I trawled past NRO first this morning, so can't be sure).

In it, he points out that one's religious devotion shouldn't confer special status where politics is concerned-- even though several candidates (and not just Republicans, I might add) are trying it on. He says he "hasn't exactly invented hot water" with this argument, but I have to say, his point feels rather novel and noteworthy,...

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