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
* In a surprise turn-around, Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama announced yesterday that they will attend<\/a> a CNN\/Union Leader debate in New Hampshire in June. Despite early statements that they would work within a debate sanctioning process instituted by the Democratic National Committee, the two announced within hours of each other their intentions to take part in the June debate.<\/p>\n * The WaPo reported<\/a> today that John Edwards “is launching the first television ads for his presidential campaign to coincide with President Bush’s veto of the Iraq funding bill. The ad, which will run in the D.C. media market, is aimed at sending a message to Congress as it considers the next steps on the war.”<\/p>\n * Mitt Romney had a rough day yesterday after reports surfaced that his favorite novel is L. Ron Hubbard’s “Battleship Earth.” The Boston Herald noted<\/a> that the Mark Twain novel “Huckleberry Finn” tops the book list on Romney’s My Space page — and “Battlefield Earth” isn’t on the list. The paper labeled this “another flip flop.”<\/p>\n * The Hill reported Monday that Barack Obama snubbed the Congressional Black Caucus, declining to help the CBC raise money after promising he would. Yesterday, CBC member Rep. Al Wynn (D-Md.) took “strong exception<\/a>” to the article, insisting, “Obama has always expressed his willingness to host a fundraiser for the CBC PAC. We are working together to secure a date and avoid a scheduling conflict. The Senator has been very supportive of the CBC PAC’s efforts, and I am confident that he will continue to do so in the future.”<\/p>\n