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Monday, December 31, 2007
WATCH: New Huckabee ad, "Our Values"
Mike Huckabee's new Iowa ad, called "Our Values," highlights his opposition to abortion: "The pro-life position was the one espoused by our founding fathers," he says in the ad.
Huckabee shot this ad and two others in Little Rock on Sunday. One of the other ads was the negative ad he decided not to run today. In a note to supporters, Huckabee explained his decision on that ad:
"This morning, I ordered my staff to pull the ad; I told them I do not want it to be run. If it was run at all, it would be until the stations pulled it off their schedules. And we are now committed, from now through the rest of the caucuses, that we will run only the a ds that talk about why I should be president, and not why Mitt Romney should not.
Common Sense Issues is a 501 c4 non-profit group running this ad, which favors Mike Huckabee in a comparison with Mitt Romney. The ad is titled "Trust."
Mike Huckabee has two new Iowa ads. "Founding Fathers," shown above, is an upbeat ad that shows graphics touting his record as governor with audio of Huckabee discussing the values of the country's founding fathers. "Start Now" criticizes the "desperate and dishonest" attacks on him coming from other candidates and outside groups.
Two new ads from Barack Obama today:
-- "Interest" highlights the money spent by outside groups to attack Obama's health care plan.
-- "Listening" features footage of Obama's speech before Iowa Democrats at this year's Iowa Democratic Party Jefferson Jackson Day Dinner and endorsements from Iowa newspapers.
Mitt Romney's new ad, "Ready," criticizes rival Mike Huckabee for being "soft on government spending," and granting more than 1,000 pardons and commutations as governor.
Clinton: "President"
Here's the script of Hillary Clinton's new ad, titled "President":
ANNCR: What if we had a different president this year?
ANNCR: Hillary Clinton called for action on America's housing crisis in March… in June… in August.
ANNCR: George Bush and Wall Street did nothing.
ANNCR: Since then home prices have plummeted and millions may lose their homes.
ANNCR: Hillary's plan: freeze home foreclosures, freeze rates on adjustable mortgages, provide real tax relief for the middle class.
ANNCR: When we choose a president next year, let's choose one that would have started fixing our economy this year.
ANNCR: Hillary Clinton: "I'm Hillary Clinton and I approve this message"
Fred Thompson's new ad calls him the "clear conservative choice" and ticks off a list of endorsements and praise for his plans on taxes, immigration and the military.
Here's the ad script:
Fred Thompson: I'm Fred Thompson and I approve this message.
Announcer: The Wall Street Journal says Fred Thompson's tax cut plan "leads the GOP field."
A leading economic group calls it a plan "conservatives can rally around."
The conservative National Review says only Thompson has outlined "specific, conservative policies" on immigration.
Investor's Daily says Thompson's national security plan features a "Reaganesque rebuilding of our military."
And the National Right to Life Committee endorsed him because they know he can win.
Democrat Joe Biden's new ad "Office" asks voters to think about the kind of person they want sitting in the Oval Office in 2009. His campaign is using the ad in a fundraising push in hopes of paying for ad time.
WATCH: Two new Edwards ads, "Choice" and "Time for Truth"
John Edwards has unveiled two new ads in Iowa, "Choice" and "Time for Truth." Here are the transcripts:
"Choice" (30 seconds) I'm John Edwards and I approve this message
Here's the choice:
Keep going the way we are,
Pretend the system works while corporate greed rules,
Insurance lobbyists kill health care,
Energy giant make billions from insane gas prices,
And the middle class is squeezed to the breaking point.
Or tell the truth – the status quo and good intentions aren't enough
We're not going to look our kids in the eye and say corporate greed stole your future.
We're going to say America rose up, saved the middle class, gave you a better life,
And it started right here in Iowa.
"Time for Truth" (30 seconds)
It's time to tell the truth.
These big corporations and their greed,
They are stealing your children's future.
We will never change this country
Unless we're willing to take those people on.
I believe that on the night of January 3rd,
You're going to say enough is enough.
There's going to be a rising that begins right here in Iowa
And it's going to spread across America
And it will be a wave of change that cannot be stopped.
I'm John Edwards and I approve this message.
John Edwards' campaign is airing a new television ad in Iowa, "30 Years." The ad features the Democratic presidential candidate's wife Elizabeth, who discussed her husband's character and strength.
Sen. Hillary Clinton is airing a new television ad in Iowa called "Stakes." The ad focuses on what is at stake in the upcoming election such as the war, foreclosure crisis and national debt.
WATCH: New holiday-themed ads from Clinton, Edwards
The campaigns of Hillary Clinton and John Edwards have introduced two new ads for the holiday season.
The Clinton ad, titled "Presents," shows the New York Senator wrapping gifts with tags labeled 'Universal Health Care,' 'Alternative Energy,' and 'Universal Pre-K,' among others.
The Edwards campaign ad, which will begin airing Sunday, features the candidate asking Americans to remember the homeless and poverty-stricken during the holiday season.
"This is the season of miracles, of faith and love," Edwards says in the ad. "So let us promise together: you will never be forgotten again."
Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama will release a new holiday TV ad starting Friday in Iowa.
Obama, wife Michelle and their two daughters are shown gathered around a Christmas tree in the new ad. Obama and Michelle thank Iowans for their hospitality in the past 11 months as well as wishing them a merry Christmas.
In addition, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee wishes Iowans a Merry Christmas in his new ad, which in part criticizes the excess of campaign ads on television.
Hillary Clinton has a new ad running in Iowa and New Hampshire. The ad, "Proud," features her mother Dorothy Rodham and daughter Chelsea Clinton. It is the first ad Chelsea has appeared in during the 2008 presidential campaign.
John Edwards has released a new television ad called "Voice." The ad features James Lowe, a coal miner from Virginia who lived 50 years without speaking because of a cleft palate he could not fix be due to being unable to afford the surgery.
"This is wrong," Edwards said in the ad. "It is immoral. When are we going to stop letting drug companies, insurance companies and their lobbyists run this country? America belongs to us. James Lowe finally got his voice, now it's time for yours."
ONE Vote '08, a group co-chaired by former U.S. Senate Majority Leaders Bill Frist of Tennessee and Tom Daschle of South Dakota, is encouraging caucus-goers to vote for the presidential candidate with the strongest policy proposals to improve global health and alleviate extreme poverty.
WATCH: New Huckabee ads - 'Secure Borders' and 'A Better America'
Republican Mike Huckabee is on the air with two new TV ads beginning Monday. The ad shown above is called "A Better America." The other ad, "Secure Borders," deals with Huckabee's plan to curtail illegal immigration.
WATCH/LISTEN: Pundit panel gathers at Drake to discuss caucus race
A panel of political reporters and commentators assembled at Drake University to discuss the triumphs and tribulations of the Iowa caucuses and the campaigns running in the 2008 race. The event included: Rick Pearson, political writer for the Chicago Tribune; M.E. Sprengelmeyer, Iowa’s Bureau Chief for the Rocky Mountain News; David Price, chief political reporter for WHO-TV of Des Moines; and Dennis J. Goldford, a Drake University professor and analyst for KCCI-TV of Des Moines.
