CNN

For the latest, breaking political news, check for updates throughout the day on the CNN Political Ticker http://www.cnn.com/ticker. All politics, all the time.Making News Today…

Poll: Clinton's lead shrinks in New Hampshire

(CNN) - Hillary Clinton's lead in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is shrinking in New Hampshire.

The senator from New York saw a 23-point lead over her closest rival in September decrease to 14 points in a new CNN/WMUR New Hampshire presidential primary poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire.   Full Story

***

Obama and Edwards debut new TV ads in South Carolina

COLUMBIA, South Carolina (CNN) - Sen. Barack Obama will make his South Carolina television ad debut Wednesday with a spot that promotes his experience as a community organizer and civil rights attorney.

The 30-second ad, "Hope and Change," features Obama sitting in front of a bay window in mock television interview style offering a similar message to ads already running in Iowa and New Hampshire.   Full Story

– CNN South Carolina Producer Peter Hamby

***

Huckabee gains ground with Iowa evangelicals

DES MOINES, Iowa (CNN) - Every Sunday, Pastor Darran Whiting talks to his small yet devout flock in Coggon, Iowa, about faith and family values.

He's careful not to talk politics in his sermons, but as soon as he steps off the pulpit, Whiting is eager talk about the presidential candidate he thinks is practicing what he's preaching: Mike Huckabee.   Full Story

– CNN Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash

***

Edwards: I pay no attention to Clinton/Obama 'sniping'

DES MOINES, Iowa (CNN) The same day Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama engaged in a war of words over foreign policy credentials and the same day fellow Democrat John Edwards' own campaign criticized Clinton for "slinging mud" on the issue Edwards himself said he's paid no attention to the "sniping."

Asked if Clinton was warranted in criticizing Obama's comments that his strongest foreign relations experience comes from spending four years as a child in Indonesia, Edwards said, "Can I honestly tell you I spend not a nanosecond listening to what each of them are saying sniping toward each other, so I have no idea what you're talking about."  Full Story

–CNN Iowa Producer Chris Welch

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

Compiled by Lindsey Pope
CNN Washington Bureau

New York Times: For Edwards, a Relationship That Never Quite Fit
John Edwards, accepting his party’s nomination for vice president, roused a cheering crowd at the 2004 Democratic convention with the kind of buoyant refrain that had become his trademark: “Hope is on the way.”

Washington Post: Huckabee Gaining Ground in Iowa
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, buoyed by strong support from Christian conservatives, has surged past three of his better-known presidential rivals and is now challenging former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney for the lead in the Iowa Republican caucuses, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

NY Sun: GOP Candidates Voice Wariness Over Annapolis
Republican candidates for the presidency are distancing themselves from President Bush's effort to broker a Middle East peace at an ambitious Arab–Israeli summit that will begin next week.

New York Times: G.O.P. Rivals Trade Charges on Illegal Immigration
The back and forth between Mitt Romney’s and Rudolph W. Giuliani’s presidential campaigns over illegal immigration continued Tuesday, with each side impugning the other’s record on the issue.

Washington Post: Rivals Not Able to Confront Key Challenges, McCain Says
Sen. John McCain said his rivals for the White House are unprepared to serve as president during a period of enormous challenge for America, casting himself as the only candidate from either party capable of confronting both national security crises abroad and political stalemates at home.

USA Today: Obama Unveils $18B Education Plan
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama laid out a plan Tuesday to spend $18 billion on early childhood education, dropout prevention and teacher incentives. His plan also touches on a hot-button pay issue on which he differs with education unions.

Quad City Times: Anti-Drug Crowd Says Barack Obama's Talk Was Bad Medicine
Anti-drug crusaders bashed Barack Obama's candid chat with New Hampshire high schoolers Tuesday, saying his casual manner sent a dangerous message: You can get high and still be President.

Washington Times: Stem-Cell Findings May Affect '08 Vote
The reported breakthrough in adult stem-cell research could affect the presidential nomination campaigns in both parties.

Boston Globe: Romney Camp Is Buoyed By Skin Cell News
Mitt Romney was accused of a sop to social conservatives when, in his last months as Massachusetts governor, he imposed a controversial limit on stem cell research that said scientists could not use stem cell lines from embryos created for the sole purpose of scientific exploration.

Washington Post: Republican Faithful Await a Savior in Iowa
Conservatives and evangelicals were largely at peace in the knowledge that their president shared their Christian values. But this year, they aren't at all sure anymore where to put their trust for 2008 - or whether they should even bother trying.

New Hampshire Union-Leader: Salem Holiday Parade To Host Rudolph
Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor and current Republican candidate for President, has accepted an invitation to march Sunday, parade organizer Patrick Hargreaves said.

Chicago Tribune's The Swamp: Edgar On Giuliani: Iowa, NH, Not Keys To Victory
Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar is subscribing to the theory that his candidate for president, Rudy Giuliani, doesn’t need to win in Iowa and New Hampshire next year since big states such as his own have an earlier say on the nominating process.

AP: Election Commission Eases Limits on Some Political Ads
Unions, businesses and interest groups may run television and radio “issue ads” that name candidates in the days before elections, federal regulators said Tuesday, easing previous restrictions.

Reuters: Thompson Wants Corporate Tax Cut
The Republican presidential candidate Fred D. Thompson said the top federal tax rate for corporations should be cut, to 28 percent from 35 percent to help keep companies competitive with those in other nations.

Chicago Tribune: Biden: Timing Is Everything
Joe Biden's story starts and ends, and starts again here: The Polk County Fairgrounds, home of the Iowa State Fair. Twenty years ago it all went wrong in a few poorly chosen words. Now it is the place to exorcise the ghosts.

Des Moines Register: Pro-Clinton Group Focuses On Women
Presidential candidate John Edwards declared Tuesday night that he would not back down in his quest to defeat the powers that he says have corrupted Washington, D.C.

LA Times: Early Caucuses Put Student Pro-Obama Vote In Play
In the days leading up to the 2004 Iowa caucuses, Iowa State University's sprawling campus crackled with excitement.

Quad City Times: AP-Yahoo Poll: Obama, Giuliani Likable
Democrats and Republicans alike have strong opinions about who has the best chance of capturing the presidency in 2008 _ Hillary Rodham Clinton and Rudy Giuliani, that is _ but that's not necessarily the candidate they'd rather go bowling with, take along on a family vacation or even vote for.

Des Moines Register: Clinton Emerges As Leading Guest For Turkey In Poll
Who's the top turkey? Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, according to a national poll out Tuesday.

Washington Post: Well, That's One Man Out of the Picture for Hillary
Censorship! That's what some art lovers whispered during the Hillary Clinton fundraiser Nov. 5 at the Woodley Park home of Tony and Heather Podesta. The huge photograph of the nude man was missing from its usual spot on the living room wall, and some guests concluded that politically correct Clintonites had demanded that the naked guy disappear.

LA Times: Citizenship Backlog To Affect Voting In '08
Millions of people who applied for naturalization and other immigration benefits to beat a midsummer fee increase are caught in a paperwork pileup that threatens the chance for some to become U.S. citizens in time to vote in next year's presidential election.

New York Times: Opponents of California Ballot Initiative Seek Inquiry
The chairman of a committee formed to fight a ballot initiative to change how California’s electoral college votes are apportioned has asked the city attorney here to investigate a report that a group collecting signatures for the initiative has offered food to homeless people in exchange for signing the petitions.

Boston Globe: Swift Boat Issue Becomes Crucial To Kerry Anew
Senator John F. Kerry, in aggressively pursuing a forum in which to disprove allegations about his Vietnam military service, is drawing new attention to an issue that he was slow to address during his 2004 presidential campaign but that he now contends is vital to his political future.

The Hill: Nebraska Attorney General Yields To Johanns
Former Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns (R) has a clear path to the Senate, at least for the time being, after Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning (R) dropped out of the race for retiring Sen. Chuck Hagel’s (R-Neb.) seat on Tuesday.

The Hill: Top GOP Recruit Drops House Bid In New York
One of House Republicans’ top recruits has decided not to seek the seat of freshman Rep. John Hall (D-N.Y.), citing “personal reasons.”

New York Times: Democrats Move to Block Bush Appointments
Who says the Senate cannot act quickly? It conducted a full day’s business in less than 30 seconds on Tuesday.

===============================================================
On the Trail:

Compiled by Lauren Kornreich and Katy Byron
CNN Washington Bureau

* Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will meet with Washington County residents at the Coffee Corner in Washington, Iowa. The GOP candidate will then hold a "Stronger America: Expanding Access to Affordable Health Care" Ask Mitt Anything town hall event as well as a media availability at the Carver College of Medicine in Iowa City. Towards the end the day, Romney will volunteer for the Hawkeye Area Community Action Program, Inc. in Hiawatha.

* Sen. Joe Biden, D-Delaware, participates in canned food drives in Altoona and Des Moines, Iowa. Biden also receives an endorsement from an Iowa state legislator in Des Moines.

*Former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tennessee, will meet with voters at Café Diem in Ames, Iowa.

* Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Connecticut, distributes boxed lunches with his family at Iowa Homeless Youth Center in Des Moines, Iowa. Later, Dodd packs boxes of food as part of the Hawkeye Area Community Action Program in Hiawatha.

* Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, holds a town hall meeting in Durham, New Hampshire and signs copies of his book in Portsmouth.

* The Senate Radio-Television Correspondents' Gallery Daybook

* The House Radio-Television Correspondents' Gallery Daybook