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Making News Today…

Clinton on debate: 'I wasn't my best'

NEWTON, Iowa (CNN) - Democratic presidential front-runner Sen. Hillary Clinton said Tuesday her performance may have been lacking at last week's presidential debate, but brushed aside criticisms she has not been clear on where she stands on the issues.  Full Story

Watch the interview

– CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney

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Americans have economy on the brain

WASHINGTON (CNN) - The state of the economy is the number-one issue on the minds of Americans as the presidential election approaches, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Wednesday morning.

Eighty-two percent of Americans said the economy will be extremely or very important to their vote for president. Economic conditions edged out Iraq by two points, with 80 percent of those surveyed saying that the war is 'extremely or very important' to their vote.

Also, among the top five issues on the public's mind when contemplating their next vote for president are health care (76 percent), terrorism (76 percent), and Iran (73 percent).

The state of the overall economy weighed more heavily on the minds of voters than specific economic issues such as gas prices (67 percent), poverty (65 percent), taxes (63 percent) and immigration (61 percent).

The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation telephone poll of 1,024 American adults was conducted over the weekend and had a sampling error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points.

– CNN Political Assignment Editor Katy Byron

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Ky. governor loses bid for 2nd term

(CNN) - Republican Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher lost his bid for a second term Tuesday.   Full Story

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The Best Political Team wants you

CNN is looking for an associate political editor with strong editing and reporting skills to help the network cover the historic 2008 elections. Primary responsibilities will be to edit and write for the CNN Political Ticker, as well as serve as an off-air reporter. Previous television experience is not required, but strong newswriting ability and experience covering politics are a must.   More Information

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Political Hot Topics
(Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country)

Compiled by Lindsey Pope
CNN Washington Bureau

Washington Post: Democrats Capture Control of Virginia Senate
Democrats wrested control of the states' Senate from the Republicans in yesterday's legislative elections, picking up the four seats they needed to give them a majority of at least 21 to 19 and end a decade of GOP dominance in the chamber.

Wall Street Journal: Democrats Gain in State Elections
Two red states turned slightly blue in off-year elections as Kentucky's Republican governor lost, and Democrats picked up at least three seats in Virginia's state Senate.

New York Times: Bill Clinton and 2 Democrats Spar Over Comment on Debate
Bill Clinton’s suggestion that his wife faced a Republican-style “Swift boat” attack during and after the last Democratic debate drew a rebuke yesterday from Senator Barack Obama, who said, “I was pretty stunned by that statement.”

Washington Post: The Rules for a Fair Fight
Okay, folks, we've been here before. Not in this exact spot, but the trees sure look familiar. Is a woman candidate primarily a woman or a candidate? (Can't separate the two? Right! Advance to the next question.) We're going to tell you what The Rules are. (And why are there always more rules for the women?)

USA Today: Giuliani, Clinton Maintain Leads In Double Digits
Eight weeks before the opening Iowa caucuses, Rudy Giuliani is holding on to significant support among social conservatives and a double-digit lead in the Republican presidential field, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds.

Wall Street Journal: Qatar Contract Offers Glimpse Into Giuliani Firm
But since he became a candidate for president, the Republican front-runner has rebuffed all calls to disclose details about the clients and dealings of Giuliani Partners, the consulting firm he founded in 2002.

Des Moines Register: Obama: Clinton Flip-Flops On Energy
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Tuesday that rival Hillary Clinton's record shows she's weak on clean energy policy, despite what she asserts.

Des Moines Register: Mccain Would Do More About Global Warming
Republican presidential candidate John McCain said Tuesday in Ames that the Bush administration has not done enough to address the reality of climate change and if elected president, he would do more to address the issue.

Quad City Times: Analysis: How Do Foes Stop Romney Money?
Riddle me this: How do you stop an ultra-wealthy presidential candidate who leads in early voting states, already has dumped $17.5 million of his own money into his bid and could spend boatloads more to rack up wins in a squeezed primary schedule?

New Hampshire Union-Leader: Michigan: Votes There For Jan. 15 Primary
Michigan Democrats who support a Jan. 15 presidential primary say they've got the votes on the party's executive committee to defeat any efforts to switch the date or hold a caucus instead.

LA Times: Electoral Vote Initiative Backers Revealed
Backers of a proposed initiative that would change the way California's electoral votes are awarded disclosed Tuesday that they had received $538,000 from a list of donors who have contributed to a variety of presidential candidates.

Washington Post: Thompson Campaign May Be Shifting Gears
After a series of leisurely weeks, Thompson's campaign announced yesterday that it plans to air its first television commercial since the former senator from Tennessee launched his White House bid just after Labor Day.

New Hampshire Union Leader: SEA Board May Back Huckabee In GOP Primary
The State Employees Association executive board plans to meet with Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee Friday, with an eye toward endorsing him in the GOP primary.

Quad City Times: Obama Opens Iowa Campaign Swing
Democrat Barack Obama portrayed himself as an impatient problem-solver Tuesday as he launched a five-day campaign swing through vote-rich areas of Iowa.

New York Times: Your Ad Here: Web Surprise Hits ’08 Race
At least 32,000 times over those two days, users clicking on [Gay.com] got a Romney ad like one saying “Mitt Romney for President — Join Team Mitt!” and a link to the candidate’s Web site… Gay.com was not exactly what Mr. Romney’s campaign had in mind when it set out this summer to blanket the Web with messages about the candidate.

Washington Post: Dodd on Trail, Committee on Hold
Christopher J. Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, spent yesterday afternoon in Iowa running for president. His counterpart in the House, Barney Frank of the Financial Services Committee, spent yesterday running a meeting on bills to help those hurt by the subprime mortgage crisis.

New York Times: Mrs. Giuliani, in Rare Solo Appearance, Campaigns Again
Judith Giuliani returned to the campaign spotlight Tuesday to make a speech, one of the few without her husband at her side. At a breast cancer forum here, she pledged that a Giuliani administration would provide resources and support for people with cancer.

Boston Globe: Cate Edwards Makes Her Case
She juggles her classes, court appearances for the Legal Aid Bureau, and work on a website start-up. It is a full schedule for any Harvard Law student, but Cate Edwards is also trying to help her father get elected president.

NY Daily News: John Mccain Unamused With Rudy Giuliani's 'Deprivation'
Memo to Rudy Giuliani: Jokes about torture are not funny or wise, especially when one of your presidential rivals was a victim of torture himself.

AP via USA Today: LA Official Proposes Ban On 'N-Word'
A [LA] city councilman and former police chief on Tuesday introduced a symbolic resolution calling on residents of the nation's second-largest city not to use a common racial slur.

DC Examiner: A Republican Speaks About The GOP’s ‘Low Morale’
These are tough days for the GOP, and we got an insight into the unvarnished state of Republican morale Tuesday when a leading conservative member of the House of Representatives, speaking on the condition of anonymity, opened up about the current political climate.

Roll Call: Gingrich Briefs Top Democrats
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) came to Capitol Hill last week armed with recent polling data on a laundry list of pressing issues and showed them to an unlikely audience — two high-ranking Democrats.

The Hill: Door Is Left Open For N.Y. ‘Hippie Museum’ Cash
Funding for a controversial “Hippie museum,” co-sponsored by presidential front-runner Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), may still find a lifeline even though its earmark was stricken from a Senate appropriations bill earlier this year.

DC Examiner: Moore: GOP Bears Number Of The Beast
The GOP isn’t just misguided, according to controversial liberal filmmaker Michael Moore — it’s downright satanic.
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On the Trail:

Compiled by Lauren Kornreich
CNN Washington Bureau

* Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York, holds a campaign event in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Later, she attends an "Organizing for Change" event in Nashua.

* Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani makes an endorsement announcement at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Then, Giuliani heads to South Carolina to visit his campaign headquarters in West Columbia.

* Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards speaks at the “Politics and Eggs” breakfast in Bedford, New Hampshire. After that, Edwards holds a town hall meeting in Amherst.

* Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, holds a town hall meeting at the American Legion in Livonia, Michigan and meets up with the press at Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids.

* Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson stops by Tommy's Ham House in Greenville, South Carolina. Later, he attends the Country Music Awards in Nashville, Tennessee.

* Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney delivers remarks at EdVenture Children's Museum in Columbia, South Carolina. Later, Romney stops by Stack's Restaurant on Hilton Head Island.

* Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, delivers major policy speech at Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency in Bettendorf, Iowa. Later, Obama holds town hall meetings in Muscatine and Burlington and meets with local residents in Ft. Madison.

* Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tours Iowa Metal Spinners in Cedar Falls, Iowa and meets with local residents at Doughy Joey's Peetza Joynt in Waterloo. Later, Huckabee delivers a speech at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls and attends an event in Vinton.

* Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Connecticut, holds "Results Matter for Veterans" events in Des Moines, Knoxville, Burlington and Bettendorf, Iowa.

* The Senate Radio-Television Correspondents' Gallery Daybook

* The House Radio-Television Correspondents' Gallery Daybook