Late Merry Christmas!

I didn't have a chance before, but here's hoping that all of you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday season. God Bless!

Huckabee Soaring/Romney's Chances Fading, More Iowa

Everyone's been talking about how Huckabee has come from nowhere to compete for Iowa, but now he is pulling away by a wide margin according to a recent Newsweek poll. According to this poll Huckabee has pulled ahead by 22 points with 39% of the vote. Romney is downward at 17% and Thompson is at 10%. Giuliani, Paul, and McCain are other candidates still getting high single digits. This is the third staight poll to show Huckabee ahead, and any other poll showing Romney ahead is within the margin of error. At this point, Romney's chances are getting darker and darker as his only hope was in winning Iowa. On top of that, his large lead in New Hampshire is steadily falling also.

In the same poll that shows Huckabee ahead by 22%, also shows Obama storming ahead to a lead of six points. Obama is at 35%, Clinton is at 29%, with Edwards hanging around with 18% of the vote. I don't know if it is enough to win the entire primary, but this is the fourth poll out of five to give Obama the edge. The last two have him above the margin of error also.

Hard to believe, but a month ago Clinton and Romney seemed to have things wrapped up in Iowa.

Now, I'm Almost Convinced, Murtha Sees Progress

For month's the jury has been out on how well the 'surge' is actually working. After last month's reports on troop deaths and Iraq Security/Civilian deaths, I am starting to feel more and more confident that this thing is actually working. American troop deaths fell to 37 deaths in November, 1 lower than last month and the lowest since March of 2006. As far Iraqi deaths are concerned, it fell again to 560 deaths down more than a 100 of last month that was also a low over the last 2- plus years. I'm nearly convinced that the surge is working, but until violence is proven to be sustained and we are seriously stable enough to consider troop withdraws, I'm not entirely convinced.

On another note, the progress has been so significant that even John Murtha acknowledged that the surge is working. Murtha just returned from a Thanksgiving visit to Iraq and stated that he was most encouraged by the progress of a once out of control area of the Anbar province.

Who knows, times have been hard, but things might be starting to turn around.

Does the Public Feel Progress?

I took a look at Pollingreport.com today and found an suprising poll that shows the public "might" be seeing some progress in Iraq. Now this is coming from Pew Research, not a Republican based poll. In fact, it has Bush's approval numbers barely at 30% (4 points lower than the average). Here's what I saw.

Now I'll be hounest, if someone asked me how that poll would turn out before it was taken, I would have been more likely to have said it would drop instead of increase. I have thought for a while that the surge has helped Iraq. Not saved, mind you, but it should be fair to say that it has been very beneficial to the progress in Iraq. Maybe the public is finally starting to believe that a stable Iraq is possible. This is a man that really hopes so.

Early Thoughts on Senate & House, Corker Comments

I haven't really commented much on the Senate and House races thus far, but really my thoughts are about the same as everyone else. At this stage of the races, Democrats are clearly the favorite. Aside from Louisiana, Republicans don't seem to have a lot going for them. Any other races that could be a possible pick-up, so far looks like a long shot. Demcrats, on the other hand, are in gear for another 4 or 5 pick-ups assuming things continue to go in their favor. In the House, I first thought that the Republicans should eaisily take back 5 to 12 seats, but I'm not convinced that ALL of the Democratic wave is over, and may be in line to pick up yet another 5 or 6 seats.

A couple of you who were wondering about the Bob Corker statements, I put the main part of the conference below. Some have made a big deal about this, but personally I don't have a problem with it. I think if Republicans and Democrats alike have a lot of unrest with this war (Liberals just love to rub the whole disaster in Republican faces for political points), and Corker is the same way. It is no secret that Bush hasn't been very plain since day one of this war and Corker as a new senator hasn't really found the awnsers that he and the American people are looking for, Corker stated:

"Underwhelmed. I was in the White House a number of times to talk about the
issue, and I may rankle some in the room saying this, but I was very
underwhelmed with what discussions took place at the White House,” Corker
said. A reporter would later ask, "I was concerned about your statement that you
were underwhelmed with what was going on in the White House. Did you mean with him or with his staff?”

“Let me say this. George Bush is a very compassionate person. He’s a very
good person. And a lot of people don’t see that in him, and there’s many
people in this room who might disagree with that…. I just felt a little bit
underwhelmed by our discussions, the complexity of them, the depth of them.”

Huckabee on the Move?, Endorsements

If any of you have seen the latest Rasmussen poll for the Republican nomination, you will see that Huckabee is third among the candidates for president. Giuliani earns 24% of the vote, Fred Thompson attracts 17% of the vote, and Huckabee grabs 13%, with McCain and Romney tied at 12%. If Huckabee was not already considered a real contender before, then he should certainly be added onto that top list.

If you're wondering about the democrats, it is still about the same. Clinton grabs 39%, actually the lowest amount of support since Semptember, Obama has got 21%, while John Edwards remains back at 16%

In another note, Pat Robertson has shockingly thrown his support to Giuliani for President. Many think this could give Giuliani a bit of a boost, thinking that conservatives may make the move to Giuliani. This is also a downer for Mitt Romney who has been fighting to get social conservatives for some time. Speaking of endorsements, Sam Brownback, who has already withdrawn from the race for president, is expected to endorse John McCain pretty soon. I don't see much coming from this, considering Brownback didn't have a long list of followers or money in his bid for office.

Where I'm Leaning

For quite a while I had decided that I might stray away from my normal right of center vote and go pretty much to the middle, meaning I was leaning toward Rudy Giuliani. But I have really been suprised by how much I've liked Mike Huckabee lately, both his beliefs both personal and presidential level. I did not pay much attention to Huckabee, even after his strong showing in the Iowa straw poll, but as the debates have went along and he has got more in the open, I really have started to enjoy the prospects of him being a candidate.

Meanwhile, I have started trailing away from the prospects of Fred Thompson and Mitt Romney. I was never high on Romney, but Thompson has been a drag for me lately. Giuliani hasn't really changed for me. I kind of knew what I was expecting from Giuliani from the beginning so he is still my second choice for the time being.

On the Democratic side, it has closed up in Iowa. Obama may have gained, but I still think Clinton is the easy favorite. Obama IS making progress though and still has the potential for an upset. John Edwards is the only democrat I actually like, even though I don't really agree with him a lot. Either way, his campaign has been slipping and it doesn't seem as if he will survive very long.

This may come as a shock, but expect things to change before it's all over.

A New Poll

I know it's been a while again, but things have gotten really difficult schedule wise, and before you know it another month has passed by. So again I'll try to keep up, add more features, and update, but for now take a look at the newest poll. God Bless Guys.

Getting Back Into It...

I've been out for a while, but I guess I haven't missed that much. I am trying to get back into the thick of things however, and you should see some more things being put in place. On the candidate page, I'm looking to continue to include new information, and new things will continue to come as time goes along.

Quick Prayer

I would like to take a second to say a quick prayer for those related to the tradegy that occured in Minneapolis. As sad and unthinkable as it is to believe that this happened, there are those that need your prayers in any way you can bring them in this sad moment. It is intresting that one of my favorite bloggers in Cold Heart lives in that area and I'm sure he is being affected in his own personal way. My deepest prayer is that we rebound like we all have before and work hard to prevent such a tradegy from ever occuring again.

Jim Gilmore Drops Out, 08 Leaders

Jim Gilmore is offically out the race for president. He has cited little money, late start, low poll numbers as the reason for his withdraw. This comes as little suprise as Gilmore stood almost no chance of winning the nomination. He is now the first semi-major candidate to drop out for either party, and should be followed soon by other candidates that have not drawn much attention.

Although I liked Gilmore, he is not a candidate that had much of a Chance to win. At this point, I believe that John Edwards or Hillary Clinton will win for the democrats; the edge handed to Clinton as she barley has the lead in Iowa. I wouldn't be suprised to see a Clinton/Edwards ticket, but I don't know if Edwards would want to go through the whole deal again as VP. On the Republican side, it is in the air. The edge seems to be for Romney as he has the lead in many polls in both Iowa and New Hampshire, but Fred Thompson isn't even an offical candidate and he is on his heels. He actually leads in Iowa in one poll. In the Grand picture, Thompson has already taken the lead in places like Texas, North Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, and his home state of Tennessee. I would place my odds on Thompson before Romney at this point.

GOP Hub, Adding Links

I have added a new blog to my blogroll called GOP Hub. This is a place where GOP bloggers can submit articles posted on their sites, without the risk of Liberal bloggers blocking or overshadowing their post. I think it is a great idea if you are searching for some top Republican posts. If you are looking for a combination of both or simply liberal, there are many sites on the web there, but I don't have them on my web page.

There have been a few leave a comment or e-mail me about adding blogs to my site, and I have a simple policy. Anything that is politically related and agrees to add me to their blog also, I am more than happy to accept.

If your website is not politically related, I will still take a look at your site, but I will only make certain exceptions. So don't be afraid to ask me about exchanging links because I am more than willing. If you do want to make a request, e-mail me at jordanbhuff@yahoo.com or leave a comment.

No Room to Talk, Things to Expect

If there was one person that should have kept their mouth shut following the Scooter Libby almost-pardon, it was Hillary Clinton. So much so that I expected her not to say anything about it. Maybe Clinton felt she had to do another Bush bash because Rudy Giuliani is leading her, and Fred Thompson has come from a 10+ down to now being tied with her. You can make any excuse you want but in the end, the only reason a democrat would make this almost-pardon worse than all of Clinton's 140 pardons his last week of office is to find another reason as to why Bush is the worst president ever. Libby is embarrassed for life over this, and Clinton didn't even catch heat for his crime so when calling Bush a horrible person and exclaiming his failure, at least don't leave yourself in a whirlwind of hypocrisy.

Some have asked for my opinion on what they should expect in the 2008 election. It's a little to early to know where everything is going, but personally here is what I think may happen. The GOP should make a number of gains in the house races. That is one thing that I feel confident about in 08. As far as the senate, both the GOP and Democrats have a strong chance to pick up places in 08. The best chance for Republicans is in Louisiana where Mary Landrieu is in a bad situtation because there may not be enough demcrats that left during Katrina to give her or any democrat to win in the near future. As for Democrats, Colorado is the best chance in the OPEN SEAT race. As for president, I feel it's up in the air. Either Thompson or Giuliani is likely to get the nod in my opinion, with Romney and McCain with a slim chance. Hillary and Obama seem to be the front runners, but I would not be suprised to see Edwards make a late run to steal the nomination. Of Course, this is all up in the air and will likely change soon. Either way, it should be fun.

Coulter Vs. Mrs. Edwards, O'Riley Vs. MSNBC

Ann Coulter was in the news again, and as wacky and pointless it is to hear her, the Liberal media found a way to twist things into making John Edwards wife a victim of radical religious right hate. Remember, this is coming form 'the most reliable news news networks' that present all the facts and are balanced and fair. When I turned on the television in the morning a few days ago I head this: "The wife of John Edwards has attacked on Ann Coulter on a radio show after Coulter said the day before that she wished John Edwards had died in a terrorist attack."

Personally, upon hearing that I was mad. My thoughts were that Coulter needs to shut up and get a life. This was in my head all day, and it took Glenn Beck on Headline News late at night to set it straight. Here are Coulter's acutal words: “..But about the same time, you know, Bill Maher was not joking and saying he wished Dick Cheney had been killed in a terrorist attack. So, I’ve learned my lesson. If I’m gonna’ say anything about John Edwards in the future, I’ll just wish he had been killed in a terrorist assassination plot.”

I know Democrats have something in defense of this balanced, one-sided report. On other news MSNBC and Bill O'Riley are at it again over claims made by O'Riley about a double murder suicide that was related to WWE super star Chris Benoit. I did not see this, but apparently Bill said that Beniot's wife was at part to blame over what happened. The only way I would agree with that is if she knew she and her child were at risk and did nothing about it. Maybe that was the case, but again I don't know all the facts. I could believe that he may have been abusive, and a report has claimed that he injected his son with steroids. All I know is that it seemed to perfect time for MSNBC to spout off on how stupid Bill O'Riley is, and they aren't afraid to say it on air. Another chance to be fair and unbiased.

Now while I'm on a tear of the 'biased' stuff, I am up front with the fact that Fox News does plenty of the same thing for Republicans. But for some Liberals just to talk about how bad Fox News is and not be up front with how poor the other networks that are to thier liking is, they need to use their heads and find something resonable to complain about.

Bloomberg, Thompson Movement, and Updates

It is sorta the same old bad news for Republicans. Iraq has decreased GOP support on the war to all time lows, and if things couldn't get any better, Bloomberg, who is no longer a Republican, seems to be more and more interested in taking a swing as an Independent candidate. Early indications seem to be that it will affect Republicans more than it affect the Democrat. Which seems to mean Hillary, who is way ahead in most polls who have a better chance of taking the election (Like a Ross Perot helping Bill Clinton back in 92' and 96' deal). This of course is only a possible scenario.

There is good news though. Thompson has now stormed by Giuliani in the lastest Rasmussen poll, which puts him ahead by 5. If he can win the primary, it would seem that he wouldn't take as many votes away from him as he would Rudy in a general election. In fact, for those democrats and moderates who are scared to death of a Hillary presidency, Bloomberg is a pretty good alternative, but for the right-wing would not be, so it could actually help the Republican. Another possible scenario. It is at least fun to think about at least.

As for Thompson, a couple of new polls have been released and he has now taken over Nevada, and Texas. Those are good indications that Thompson is on a strong rise. Those are the only new polls at the moment that include Thompson. This can be found on my 2008 Primary page.

A Couple of Things...

If you take a look on the right sidebar you can now find the primaries page up and running. I almost think it was a bad idea considering the nature of primaries. Howard Dean seemed to lead every state until his little scream and the next thing you know he is behind in every poll. But I guess it is something to try out this year even if it doesn't work out in the end.

Also, I've got a new poll set up at the top of the site asking if you would support an invasion of Iran. Be sure to vote, and keep looking for more and more features to come.

Candidate Pages Now Complete

The candidate pages are now complete. There are a few twicks that I need to work out, but as far as I know all the pages are working the correct way. This is just the first in a long list of other things I am working on. At the moment I am beginning the stages of the 08 senate and house races, presidential primary pages, and some additional pages that will be added after that. If you see any problems that have occured without me knowing, please let me know. Thanks for stopping by!

Bush Signs Iraq Spending Bill

I'm not real sure why I actually like the Iraq spending bill. The one thing I really liked to see was that the Democratic held Congress and President Bush actually made a deal to where both sides got something. Maybe Republicans or Democratic leaders are not happy, but the people should be happy. For the first time in a while, I don't feel like we're trapped in Iraq either. Something about Bush saying that "if Iraq wants us to leave, then we will leave." makes me feel better (True or not) . Now things aren't exactly 'happy', but I, for the first time in a while, I feel like we won't bew there forever and maybe even things will work out in the end. Maybe I'm the only one, but I feel it. Hopefully someone else shares my feeling.

Why I Might Go For Rudy

Going into this election I think that I may be going more moderate than I would go in a typical elecion, at least for president. I still think that Rudy Giuliani making it through the primary will be a more than difficult task, but when I look at the way things are going I will certainly look his way. This may seem different, at least to those who follow me most often, but I look at it in this way. Republicans had their largest majority to date going back to the last election. They had an amazing advantage, so understand that I was looking for things to happen. They didn't. Going into the mid-term elections, the only thing that Republicans could muster was a Flag Buring Amendment that still fell short of passing. I was HIGHLY ashamed of Republicans for not doing anything that represents their party values. Going into 2008 I have no choice but to look at somthing different. If you vote strong conservitve (a candidate that will likely lose) then nothing is going to happen concerning moral values. If you get a moderate or liberal, nothing is going to change. So based on my strong respect for Rudy, I will be taking a strong look at him. He can be a president that can look at different issues and make right decisions on foriegn policy.

'Sister' Page

I thought it was fiinally time to create a sister page for my site. The regular site can be found at geocities.com/jordanbhuff. I'm still trying to figure this whole thing out, so I will wait to write good comments.