Media coverage of '08 race isn't 'too early' after all
In a new segment, "Hardball" host Chris Matthews gives his take on the day's top headlines.
A Christmas primary?
The South Carolina Republican Party wants to move its primary to January 19th. In Iowa, the state law requires its Caucuses be held at least eight days before any other voting. And New Hampshire is compelled to set the date of its primary at least a week before any other primary.
So do the math. If South Carolina gets what they want and forces the other states to follow, you could see the first votes cast in December, making this campaign the earliest in history. So for all the folks complaining about the early coverage of the 2008 race, the coverage is following the facts: The states are moving on up.
Going for the gay vote
Tonight, most Democratic presidential candidates will talk about gay rights at a forum sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign and Logo, a gay and lesbian cable channel. Republican contenders were invited but declined to attend. This, the first televised appeal to gay voters in a presidential race, is the third time in six days the Democrats have appeared in a forum or debate. The gay community has a lot of clout, it's a politically active community with big bucks and polls show that up to 9 percent of the voters in our big cities are gay.
Marion Barry is back!
And Washington's Mayor-for-Life Marion Barry, once busted for smoking crack cocaine, says he will be "among the greats of the world" when he stands with former Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Abe Lincoln. He's being immortalized in Madame Tussaud's new Wax Museum. The museum picked Barry after he came out on top in a poll of 600 people.
