Exactly what's in the payroll tax cut deal
Washington (CNN) – What exactly is in this $150 billion Valentine's Day compromise on the table in Congress? Among the details: some significant changes to unemployment benefits. It's not out in public yet, but Republican and Democratic sources have given the CNN Hill team a look at some key specifics.
Keep reading for our quick and clear 101 of the deal.
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American Sauce: How a non-Romney could win
Washington (CNN) - Cast aside the drama (exciting as it is) of the GOP nomination and you get to the truth: it still comes down to cold, hard delegate numbers. By CNN's estimates, Mitt Romney has a commanding early lead, despite wins and second places by all three of his opponents.
So, let's be realistic. Is there a feasible path for a non-Romney to win? "There is," said Sean Trende, senior analyst for Real Clear Politics. "It's a very narrow path but it's starting to shape up that way."
What is that path? Listen to our American Sauce podcast here. Or keep reading.
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American Sauce: The strategy of campaign music
Atlanta (CNN) - Camp Gingrich plays the theme song from "The Karate Kid." Mitt Romney? He's wrapping himself in the long-haired high octaves of Kid Rock. Really.
Why? Strategy. Music, in fact, may be the least-criticized and least-analyzed piece of subliminal campaign strategy. So, this week American Sauce looks the melodic and political reasons politicians pick their rally songs.
Listen to the podcast here or keep reading.
Foreign media bewildered by length, repetition of U.S. campaign
Washington (CNN) – Jun Takao fully understands the Iowa caucuses, the New Hampshire primary and the complicated fight for convention delegates. But the veteran Japanese journalist and Washington bureau chief does not comprehend one thing about American presidential elections.
"What's interesting for the audience (about) listening to the debate dozens of times?" he asked. "Sometimes it's total repetition."
Listen to Takao's other thoughts and the latest from the campaign trail in our podcast here. Or keep reading for more.
Best GOP predictor? Try the commodity market
Iowa City, Iowa (CNN) - As polls and pundits try to handicap the Republican nomination race, the smart money may be on a little-known commodity market which has proven to be a leading indicator of trends in campaigns.
"Traders have incentive not to tell us what they want to happen... but what they think will happen," said Joyce Berg, who directs the Iowa Electronic Markets, or IEM, at the University of Iowa.
To listen to our podcast on the campaign, including what market trends sound like for different candidates, click here. Or keep reading for more.
Last-day Ron Paul ad is his sharpest anti-Romney attack yet
Des Moines (CNN) – Hours before Iowa caucuses, the Ron Paul campaign has launched its sharpest anti-Romney attack ad yet, a one-minute radio spot calling the former Massachusetts governor a "liberal" who has supported government bailouts, healthcare mandates and big government.
The ad was running in Iowa Tuesday morning and afternoon.
CNN Live: Tune in tonight at 7 p.m. ET for CNN's live special coverage of the Iowa Caucuses and follow real-time results on CNNPolitics.com and on Twitter at #cnnelections. Stay up to date with CNN apps for iPhone, iPad, Android or other phones.
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American Sauce: The art of the caucus
Des Moines (CNN) – Think the Iowa caucuses are about who wins? Think of this as a hard, cold numbers game? Try again. There is an art to the caucuses, an art of strategy and sweat that many outside the Hawkeye State never understand.
"This state has never, in my opinion, been about the win," said Jim Conklin, who trains the caucus volunteers for the Linn County Republican Party, in Cedar Rapids. "It's about the people who get weeded out."
In this week's American Sauce podcast, we lay out the true art of the caucuses: the Republican recruiting bonanza, the show leather game, as well as the sharp battle within the Iowa GOP over religion and what, ultimately, the caucuses mean. Listen here or keep reading.
Campaign 2012: Embrace the cynicism
Capitol Hill (CNN) – One month before the Iowa caucuses, a seminal event in American democracy, excitement does not seem to be the dominant feeling among voters. Try cynicism.
Trust in government is at an all-time low. A whopping 72% of Republicans have not made up their minds on a definite candidate yet (an increase in that figure from October). And among a core group of Democrats – whites with no college education – half say they don't want President Obama on the ballot in 2012.
But voters on all sides may be more pessimistic than the situation warrants, or so says an award-winning economist. Listen here for our "Campaign Cynical" podcast or click to keep reading.
Congressional gridlock: the new normal?
Capitol Hill (CNN) – Is gridlock the new normal in Congress?
Julie Hassett, whose livelihood is impacted by the answer, says yes.
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