Fox News, CNN, among other various news agencies are reporting that my previously endorsed Fred Thompson has dropped out of the race. Fred was the best conservative candidate besides Duncan Hunter running for President on the Republican side of things. now that Fred is out of the race I have to endorse someone else.

As if this really means anything. I endorse Mitt Romney. Sure he may have changed his stances on issues, but at least now he’s on the right side of those issues. I believe America’s “Hope” is now possible with only Mitt Romney as president.

The Last Fred Says?

Fred08.com:

“Today I have withdrawn my candidacy for President of the United States. I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort. Jeri and I will always be grateful for the encouragement and friendship of so many wonderful people.”

I woke up for an hour to watch the speech. I wanted less teleprompter and more from the heart spontaneous reflections about his religion and what it means to him. What we got was fine, but I was hoping for more.

From the Associated Press:

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) - Republican Mitt Romney, confronting voters’ skepticism about his Mormon faith, declared Thursday that as president he would “serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause,” and said calls for him to explain and justify his religious beliefs go against the profound wishes of the nation’s founders.

At the same time, he decried those who would remove from public life “any acknowledgment of God,” and he said that “during the holiday season, nativity scenes and menorahs should be welcome in our public places.”

In a speech less than a month before the first nomination contests, Romney said he shares “moral convictions” with Americans of all faiths, though surveys suggest up to half of likely voters have qualms about electing the first Mormon president.

“I believe in my Mormon faith and I endeavor to live by it,” Romney said. “My faith is the faith of my fathers. I will be true to them and to my beliefs.”

Nonetheless, he strove to clarify his personal line between church and state, recalling a similar speech delivered by John F. Kennedy in 1960 as Kennedy sought to become the first Catholic elected president.

“Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of any other church for that matter, will ever exert influence on presidential decisions,” Romney said at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, 90 miles from Kennedy’s speaking site in Houston. “Their authority is theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends where the affairs of the nation begin.”

He added: “If I am fortunate to become your president, I will serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause and no one interest. A president must serve only the common cause of the people of the United States.”

Romney’s speech lasted about 20 minutes and was interrupted a dozen times by applause from the invited audience. He said the word “Mormon” only once, otherwise referring to “my religion,” “my faith” and “my church.”

For Immediate Release from Fred08.com:

Fred Thompson Statement on the National Intelligence Estimate

McLean, VA - Fred Thompson released the following statement today on the latest National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) regarding Iran:

“The accuracy of the latest NIE on Iran should be received with a good deal of skepticism. Our intelligence community has often underestimated the intentions of adversaries, including Saddam Hussein’s Iraq and North Korea. And are all of the CIA detractors now going to take intelligence pronouncements at face value? It’s awfully convenient for a lot of people: the administration gets to say its policies worked; the Democrats get to claim we should have eased up on Iran a long time ago: and Russia and China can claim sanctions on Iran are not necessary. Who benefits from all this? Iran.

“And what if the NIE estimate is accurate? It’s essentially an analysis of Iran’s intentions at a point in time. Meanwhile, Iran continues to enrich uranium for allegedly peaceful purposes, but which would allow them to easily transition to a nuclear weapons program at any point in the future. Maybe even now–now that so many seem willing to forget Iran’s past deceptions and ongoing intransigence. After all, a nuclear weapons program is simply an extension of the process by why uranium is enriched for civilian nuclear fuel. To this day Iran has yet to comply with international demands and its Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty requirements for open inspections and other safeguard measures.

“The bottom line is that the United States must continue to improve its human intelligence capabilities and intelligence analysis. We must hope for the best, but not let our guard down for a moment. If something appears to be too good to be true, it very well may be.“

Huckabee: 20%
Giuliani: 17%
Romney: 13%
McCain: 13%
Thompson: 10%
Paul: 7%

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Wednesday shows a new national leader in the race for the Republican Presidential Nomination. While enjoying an amazing surge, Mike Huckabee has earned support from 20% of Likely Republican Primary Voters nationwide. Three points back, at 17%, is Rudy Giuliani. That’s the lowest level of support ever recorded for Giuliani in the tracking poll and represents a seven-point decline over the past week. Huckabee has gained eight points during the same time frame (see recent daily numbers).

After the attack War against Huckabee he still has managed to overtake Rudy in the national daily polls. Will this lead continue into the Iowa Caucus and New Hampshire Primary?

Mitt Romney is set to share his “Faith in America” speech tommorow.

From Reuters:

BOSTON (Reuters) - From baptism of the dead to a ban on coffee, Mormonism’s doctrines are alien to many Americans and that is unlikely to change when Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney gives a long-awaited speech on his faith this week, religious scholars say.

Thursday’s address by the former Massachusetts governor, who would be the first Mormon president of the United States, could fuel more questions than answers about a faith many powerful evangelical Christian voters dismiss as a cult.

“I can’t see him really making a kind of passionate defense of Mormonism. That’s not going to win votes. On the other hand, to pretend he is an evangelical is not going to win. He is in a very awkward position,” said Alan Wolfe, director of Boston College’s Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life.

During the Democratic NPR radio debate held here in Des Moines the candidates were asked one question they don’t have the answer to.

John Edwards answer revealed all I need to know from him…

“Who I would chose as my vice president and whether to consider any of these people sitting at the table,” he joked. “But seriously, restoring democracy and giving it back to the American people.”(From Cameron’s Corner FoxNews Blog)

Senator Edwards, of course you don’t have the answer to “Restoring Democracy.” But you do use some shiny keywords that I’m sure resonates with your voter base, regardless of the substance. So good for you! Thanks for stopping by in Des Moines.

Remember during the CNN/Youtube debate when Rudy Guiliani took instant jabs against Mitt Romney for hiring a landscaping firm that had Illegals on the work roster. Romney disputed the claim by saying he didn’t ask the company about the status of its works.

Here is the update from Reuters:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Tuesday fired a landscaping company for using illegal immigrants to work on his lawn, a week after a tussle with rival Rudy Giuliani over the issue.

Romney said in a statement released by his campaign that he had given the company, Community Lawn Service of Chelsea, Massachusetts, a second chance last year to get rid of its undocumented workers, but it had failed to do so.

“Today I fired a landscaping company that I learned was employing people who are not permitted to work here in the United States,” the former governor of Massachusetts said.

Honest Questions: If its known that this company hires ‘undocumented workers’ shouldn’t there be some sort of investigation, fines, and possible deportation of the workers? Isn’t that how the current law works?

Update I:
Boston Globe has the full story. In short, a day after Rudy made his claims the illegals continued their yard work.

Standing on stage at a Republican debate on the Gulf Coast of Florida last week, Mitt Romney repeatedly lashed out at rival Rudy Giuliani for providing sanctuary to illegal immigrants in New York City.

Yet, the very next morning, on Thursday, at least two illegal immigrants stepped out of a hulking maroon pickup truck in the driveway of Romney’s Belmont house, then proceeded to spend several hours raking leaves, clearing debris from Romney’s tennis court, and loading the refuse back on to the truck.

In fact, their work was part of a regular pattern. Despite a Globe story in Dec. 2006 that highlighted Romney’s use of illegal immigrants to tend to his lawn, Romney continued to employ the same landscaping company – until today. The landscaping company, in turn, continued to employ illegal immigrants.

Two of the workers confirmed in separate interviews with Globe reporters last week that they were in the country without documents. One said he had paid $7,000 to a smuggler to escort him across the desert into Arizona; the other said he had come to the country with a student visa that was now expired. Both were seen on the lawn by either Globe reporters or photographers over the last two months.

Oops. This isn’t good.

Update II:

From Romney’s campaign website on Illegal Immigration:

Improve Interior Enforcement. Provide resources to enforce immigration laws throughout the nation, and crackdown on employers who continue to hire illegals with stiffer fines and penalties.

Implement An Enforceable Employer Verification System. Issue a biometrically-enabled and tamperproof card to non-citizens and create a national database for non-citizens so employers can easily verify their legal status in this country.

So, would he have caught this sooner if the verification system was in place? OR would that be up to the employer to implement fully and verify?

“And you have to say to employers that hire people illegally, ‘That’s also going to be sanctioned.’ This is the way we’re going to have to finally end it.” (Fox News, Republican Presidential Candidate Debate, Durham, NH, 9/5/07)

I think Romney should slap himself on the wrist and donate a million dollars to some Border-related organization. Whether its the minute men or the border patrol.

CNN’s Political Ticker has the latest quote from Fred Thompson in response to a question about healthcare:

“I’m telling you, I don’t think that it’s the primary responsibility of the federal government to tell you what to eat,” Thompson said to applause when asked if his health care plan included any details on preventative care, a priority for Democratic candidates.

“The fact of the matter is we got an awful lot of knowledge,” said the former Tennessee senator. “Sometimes we don’t have a whole lot of will power, and I don’t know of any government program that’s going to instill that.”

Thompson, ever a fan of small government, said healthy living should be the responsibilities of families first.

“We shouldn’t be looking at the federal government in Washington first and working our way down, it ought to be just the other way around. With that, or whether you’re talking about education, there’s some things the federal government can’t do,” said Thompson.

In a couple of hours the results in the Venezuela election should be known. Local Venezuelan websites are already reporting some exit poll results, but it is too soon to know anything for certain.

Early Exit Polling Results from Reuters show President Hugo winning the referendum:

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez appeared headed for victory on Sunday in a referendum on allowing the leftist to rule for as long as he keeps winning elections, government-linked sources said, citing exit polls.

Three exit polls showed Chavez won by between six and eight percentage points in a vote where turnout was low, the two sources said.

If confirmed, it would be by far the slimmest victory margin in the career of a man who wants to rule for life and turn the major oil exporter into a socialist state.

Opposition says their exit polls show that they won by 4% (Salon)

Update I:

Plenty of sources are saying that NO will win - but the government might still announce that the referendum passed.

Update II:

Venezuela News and Views blog is reporting that Chavez has canceled his press conference - which could be seen that the results might be to close to call.

Alexis Marrero Blog has regional results.

Update III:

Reuters still reporting a win for Chavez.

CARACAS (Reuters) - Three cabinet ministers on Sunday said Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez won a referendum on whether he can run indefinitely for reelection.

The ministers, who asked not to be named, cited preliminary polling and electoral data.

Update IV:

Venezuela News and Views blog is reporting that reporters are begging for their viewers to keep the peace while the results are coming in cause the results are going to be very close.

Update V:

Alexis Marrer Blog English Translation:

The Tendency is very clear the triumph of is not definitive, all the acts that have been entered give like result a definitive triumph of the opposition. it is certain that when I write this post I do not have the confirmation of the Zuliano state, Barquisimeto, Mérida, and Barina. But in the other states the Triumph is definitive. We could say with clarity that the triumph is by very little point but it is it.
The National press has not managed to give the tendency so that the law Jaw therefore stipulates it. But there are pro-government foreign newspapers of tendency that are using single the source that the government gives them. Cómos con is Country and other sources already known.
Venezuelan you do not lose the faith here soon will leave the truth.
The results in tendency are the one of
51% NO
49% YES

Update VI:

Sky News headline: Venezuelans ‘Back President For Life’

Update VII: Official word is that NO has won the election. Chavez’s referendums failed the election. Now I wonder if he’ll follow up on his threat to end exportation of Oil to the United States or not.

Update VIII: Isn’t amazing on Al Jazeera and Reuters both called it as a win for Chavez hours before the official word came out? No doubt there will be investigations into the results by Chavez.

AP Flash:

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - President Hugo Chavez suffered a stinging defeat in a vote on constitutional changes that would have let him run for re-election indefinitely, the chief of National Electoral Council said Monday.

Voters defeated the sweeping measures by a vote of 51 percent to 49 percent, Tibisay Lucena said.

Update IX: Freedom wins.

If I had a gun (or a lollipop for those who are anti-guns) to my head and I had to make the correct decision or the gun/lollipop would spontaneously explode… who would I choose as the winners of the 2008 Iowa Caucus?

For the Republican side I would have to go with Romney. Rudy Giuliani has been non-existent here in Iowa. I’m not sure if he has decided that Iowa just isn’t worth his time or what the deal is. From the top of my head I cannot recall any news coverage about him being in the state. Does he even know Iowa exists? I know that Giuliani is the lead in the national polls, but Romney and especially Mike Huckabee have been the stars in the state. I would really like to see Mike Huckabee win Iowa – but at this moment I believe that more of Romney’s supporters would make it out to caucus. While Mike Huckabee hasn’t been consistent with the number of supporters, Romney’s numbers have stayed consistent for the better part of the year.

As for the Democrats…. I would like to see Barrack Obama pull it out ahead for the Democrats because I believe he’s easier to beat in 2008. If someone was jabbing that lollipop at the side of my head I would say Hillary will pull through in the end because she has a lot of silent support from those who don’t participate in random phone call polls. She has the Clinton machine behind her where the consensus is that “a Clinton can do no wrong.”

…..

Meanwhile the polls say something else…

From The Des Moines Register:

Mike Huckabee has leaped ahead of Republican presidential rival Mitt Romney in Iowa, seizing first place in a new Des Moines Register poll of likely Republican caucus participants.

Huckabee wins the support of 29 percent of Iowans who say they definitely or probably will attend the Republican Party’s caucuses on Jan. 3. That’s a gain of 17 percentage points since the last Iowa Poll was taken in early October, when Huckabee trailed both Romney and Fred Thompson.

And….

Barack Obama has pulled ahead in the race for Iowa’s Democratic presidential caucuses, while the party’s national frontrunner Hillary Clinton has slipped to second in the leadoff nominating state, according to The Des Moines Register’s new Iowa Poll.

…

Obama, an Illinois senator, leads for the first time in the Register’s poll as the choice of 28 percent of likely caucusgoers, up from 22 percent in October. Clinton, a New York senator, was the preferred candidate of 25 percent, down from 29 percent in the previous poll.

But who trust polls?