Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:<\/p>\n
* Sen. [tag]Chuck Hagel[\/tag] (R-Neb.) announced this morning that he had nothing new to announce<\/a>. He told reporters that he will decide “later this year” on a potential presidential run. “In making this announcement, I believe there will still be political options open to me at a later date,” the two-term senator said in press conference in Omaha, Nebraska. “But that will depend on the people of Nebraska and this country. I cannot control that and I do not worry about it.” Hagel, who had vowed to serve no more than two terms, also said he’d continue raising money for a Senate re-election campaign.<\/p>\n * New to YouTube: a 1989 video in which [tag]Rudy Giuliani[\/tag] says, “There must be public funding for abortion for poor women<\/a>…. I have also stated that I disagree with President Bush’s veto last week of public funding for abortion.” That might raise a few eyebrows.<\/p>\n * Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told Roll Call<\/a> the GOP is unlikely to take back the Senate majority in 2008. “Could we get it back?” McConnell asked. “It would have to be a good day…. What I think is that it’s clearly possible that we stay roughly where we are.”<\/p>\n * Former Gov. [tag]Mitt Romney[\/tag] has been working overtime to curry favor from the far-right wing, and that includes apparent attempts to buy their support<\/a>. The NYT noted that a foundation controlled by Romney has made contributions of $10,000 to $15,000 to each of three Massachusetts organizations associated with major national conservative groups: the antiabortion Massachusetts Citizens for Life, Massachusetts Citizens for Limited Taxation and the Christian conservative Massachusetts Family Institute. Romney has also generously backed the Heritage Foundation, the Federalist Society, and a nonprofit group affiliated with National Review.<\/p>\n * Ted Sorensen, the speechwriter and special counsel to President John F. Kennedy endorsed [tag]Barack Obama[\/tag]<\/a> late last week and compared Obama’s campaign to Kennedy’s run almost half a century earlier. <\/p>\n