2008 Quick Hits

• Mitt Romney is the latest 2008 hopeful to officially (almost) join the race. Undeterred by electability questions concerning his Mormon faith, Mitt is about to set up an '08 "exploratory committee", like those for Rudy and McCain. This means that Mitt's in. - While the committee filing will be labeled "exploratory," it will declare Romney as an official presidential candidate and commit him to the same fundraising and reporting rules he will have to follow when, as is expected, he transitions to a formal presidential campaign committee.
  A formal announcement is expected sometime later this year, although Romney is planning a major fundraising event in Boston on Jan. 8 to propel his candidacy - Also, the word is that Mitt will base his primary campaign in Boston, which means that he will essentially abandon the McCain/Giuliani lovefest in Iowa to focus on the real New Hampshire conservatives to gain momentum. Smart choice. Incidentally, here's a recent interview Romney gave to the right-wing online hub Human Events.

• Good move by the Edwards campaign to have JRE label the plan for a troop "surge" in Iraq the "McCain doctrine" on the Sunday shows. After all, JMac is the main backer of that pollyannish bit of strategy, and it's never too early to prepare for a possible general showdown with the good AZ Senator. Plus, it gives Dems a catchy phrase and a chance to trash JMac. Edwards is still a step ahead of his competition.

• Speaking of McCain, he's seeking revenge in South Carolina, building up a strong campaign team there. No doubt he doesn't want to lose SC twice.