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McCain to launch 2008 exploratory panel
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061110/ap_on_el_pr/mccain2008
Anyway, this announcement comes days after:
Iowa Democrat jumps in presidential race
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061109/pl_nm/usa_elections_vilsack_dc_1
But everyone is waiting for Hillary to step into the ring.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061110/ap_on_el_pr/mccain2008
Hmmm. http://www.straighttalkamerica.com/ Hmmmm.WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain, considered the front-runner for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination, intends to launch an exploratory committee next week, GOP officials said Friday.
The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid pre-empting a public statement from the four-term Arizona senator.
McCain, the GOP maverick who unsuccessfully sought his party's nomination in 2000, already has opened a bank account for the committee, one official said.
"The senator has made no decision about running for president," said Eileen McMenamin, a McCain spokeswoman.
Aides to McCain say the senator will discuss a presidential bid with his family over the Christmas holiday.
McCain is a former Navy pilot who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam. He was elected to the Senate in 1986, and served in the House for four years before that.
If McCain were to run, he would turn 72 on Aug. 29, 2008, at the height of the campaign. Only President Reagan was older — 73 at the start of his second term. McCain's health could be another issue. The senator has had several cancerous lesions removed from his skin.
Since losing to Bush in 2000, McCain has alternately challenged and embraced the president, building an independent reputation who isn't afraid to speak his mind. At the same time, he's sought to mend fences with conservatives he alienated in his first presidential run.
After Republicans lost control of both the House and Senate on Tuesday, McCain called for a return to the conservative principles he said make up the foundations of the Republican Party.
"We came to Washington to change government and government changed us," lamented McCain. "We departed rather tragically from our conservative principles."
. . . .
Anyway, this announcement comes days after:
Iowa Democrat jumps in presidential race
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061109/pl_nm/usa_elections_vilsack_dc_1
DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa jumped into the 2008 U.S. presidential race on Thursday, saying voters want a new direction for the country "and that's what I intend to do as president."
Vilsack, a two-term governor who is leaving office this year to concentrate on his White House bid, stressed his moderate record and a bipartisan approach on education, economic development and health care as governor of Iowa.
"Americans sent a clear message on Tuesday. They want leaders who will take this country in a new direction," Vilsack said. "They want leaders who share their values, understand their needs and respect their intelligence.
"That's what I've done as governor of Iowa, and that's what I intend to do as president," he said."
Vilsack, chairman of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council, has been traveling the country laying the groundwork for his campaign for a year.
But everyone is waiting for Hillary to step into the ring.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/midterms2006/story/0,,1942920,00.htmlThe slogan pushed by the Democrats during the campaign was "A New Direction for America". It may have captured the imagination of the voters, but just how it translates into reality will define the remaining two years of the Bush presidency - as well as the Democrats' prospects in the 2008 presidential election.
"The storm finally broke, and we can see blue again," said Democratic strategist Donna Brazil, who ran Al Gore's unsuccessful run for the presidency in 2000. But while the skies may have cleared for the Democratic party, victory - and the power that comes with it - may muddy the field for 2008.
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