Romney Raises the Bar (Scene)

After finishing Saturday night's Republican debate on ABC, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney made his way to Varick's Sports Bar in downtown Manchester to meet with an energetic group of supporters.

More than 100 people packed into the small establishment just west of Elm Street to watch the 90-minute debate and cheer on their candidate during a post-debate rally. Romney and his wife Ann joined the group for about five minutes, thanking them for their support and predicting a victory on Tuesday, before leaving.

Working for the Votes: Richardson

Bill Richardson’s Manchester field office is located in a strip mall about seven minutes from downtown Manchester. When we arrived about 50 volunteers, staffers and supporters had crowded into the largest of his three rooms to watch the New Mexico governor debate. Their ages were split, old supporters and young volunteers.

(Governor Bill Richardson, Jacob Aronson '11)

Jacob Aronson ’11, a Daily Princetonian copy staffer, was among the volunteers. He’s the one Princeton volunteer from the Pace program and has mostly spent his first few days calling voters around the state. However, at 2 a.m. Friday he joined other members of the Richardson team at the airport, greeting the governor as he arrived from Iowa.

Similarly, the entire group moved toward the door when Richardson arrived for a post-debate event. He made his way around the room, shaking everyone’s hand and thanking them for their support. A tired-looking Richardson then left without making a speech.

Huckabee: Two Slices To-Go

Between the Edwards rally this morning and visiting Princeton students volunteering at campaign offices in Manchester, we decided to grab a quick bite to eat at Caesario's Pizza Parlor on Elm Street.




Less than five minutes after we arrived, two buses pulled up outside and the Huckabee for President contingent made its way inside. Though the former Arkansas governor and winner of the Iowa Caucus did not take any press questions (and we tried...), he enjoyed finding another Southerner here in the Granite State when he learned I was from Georgia.

"They don't have any grits up here," he lamented. "Let me know if you find a place that has any."

Working for the Votes: Obama

The Obama for America headquarters seemed large and busy as easily 100 people worked on assembling groups to go out canvassing or to provide visibility, which means to stand on the side of the road and hold a sign supporting the candidate. The colors inside were bright and the volunteers were young.




There we met Toni De Mello GS and Melody Chan GS, who we followed as they canvassed to see the typical work of campaign volunteers. They drove out to Bedford, N.H., which looked typically New England from its white First Congregational Church to the snow on the ground. The snow is what causes the most problems for the canvassers. It’s difficult to walk from house to house. It was later in the afternoon and the pair had a Princeton car, so they drove instead.

They stopped at a home and rang the doorbell. While we were with them we saw them arrive at homes where no one was home, while another time they disappeared into the house to speak with a man for a good 20 minutes and try to answer any questions he had about Obama’s policies, and finally, another person announced that he had decided to vote for Obama. That was their favorite.

Edwards Takes Political Shots in Concord

We entered an empty Bektash Temple Hall this morning when we arrived for a John Edwards rally in the Concord auditorium. But when the Edwards family arrived shortly before 11 a.m., more than 400 people had crammed into a town-hall space designed to hold only half that. Volunteers lined the room's walls with gray folding chairs as the crowd waited patiently for the tardy candidate. The crowd was an even mixture of all ages and both genders, contrasting it with the young and mainly female crowd at the Obama rally, and the much older and predominantely male group at McCain's town-hall meeting.

The former North Carolina senator was introduced by his wife Elizabeth Edwards, and his three children Cate '04, Jack (above) and Emma Claire were on hand, as were the 2004 vice-presidential nominee's parents.

Each event we've attended in New Hampshire has been markedly different, and Edwards' was no exception. Obama had his 2,000 supporters crowded around a full stage. McCain stood on large black riser against one wall of VFW 5791. Edwards, in contrast, had nothing. Surrounded entirely by voters, Edwards stood on the floor for more than hour throughout his 30-minute speech and the Q&A session that followeed.

Edwards' remarks focused mainly on domestic policy, including his plan to bring about universal health care and his strong beliefs on ending what he called corporate America's grip on the people's government. Edwards also urged a quick end to the war in Iraq and stressed his experience in foreign policy to show his readiness to deal with issues like Iran, Pakistan, Russia and nuclear proliferation.

Gibson '65 Moderates First Post-Iowa Debates

ABC anchor Charlie Gibson moderated debates between the leading Democratic and Republican presidential candidates Saturday night just two days before New Hampshire voters go to the polls.

The Republican forum included Iowa Caucus winner and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Arizona Sen. John McCain, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Texas Rep. Ron Paul.

Shortly after their 90-minute exchange, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson took part in the Democratic debate. Both were held at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H.

Three candidates were kept out of the debate: Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich and former Alaska Gov. Mike Gravel, both Democrats, and California Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Republican. ABC narrowed the field by requiring that participants meet at least one of three criteria: place first through fourth in Iowa, poll 5 percent or higher in one of the last four major New Hampshire surveys, or poll 5 percent or higher in one of the last four major national surveys.

Tomorrow evening, Fox News will hold a debate for Huckabee, Giuliani, Romney, Thompson and McCain. Paul and Hunter were not invited.

Working for the Votes: Kucinich

Campaign signs blanket Elm Street, Manchester’s Main Street, often accompanied by volunteers shouting slogans. Most of the campaigns' state headquarters are located on or nearby Elm, making it the locus of campaign activity. Even just going about normal business doesn’t insulate you from the events. Matt and I had just ordered our lunch when former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and his campaign chose our restaurant as the site for a meet and greet.

The building at 786 Elm is the headquarters of Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich, where Michael Collins ’11, a Daily Princetonian staff photographer, is working through the Pace Civic Engagement Program. His job has kept him out of the cold; he's compiling maps for the volunteers who will be canvassing. He’s one of about 20 volunteers who work out of a two-room second-floor apartment. The restaurant below, which is known for hosting candidates who want to look just like regular people, is more of a draw than their small workplace.

It looks a bit like a sparse dorm room after another roommate has moved away. There are bits of trash on the floor and empty wall space where the staff hasn’t taped up campaign signs. One room has two mattresses sitting flush with the ground and a bunk bed. Guests sit on a bench seat that looks like it was taken from a car.

A large group of volunteers stood at the corner of Elm, chanting and waving their “Kucinich for President” signs. On the other side of the crossroad a smattering of Ron Paul and Hillary Clinton supporters gathered, while a McCain group marched back and forth on the other side of Elm Street. Cars drive through this election gauntlet and occasionally honk, drawing excited cheers.

Breaking News: Bradley '65 to endorse Obama

ABC News reported late Saturday night that former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley '65 will endorse Illinois Sen. Barack Obama on Monday in his quest for the Democratic nomination.

An Obama campaign staffer confirmed the endorsement on the condition of anonymity.

A source close to the former Princeton basketball star told ABC the NBA hall of famer waited to endorse Obama until after the Iowa Caucus because he wanted to see how former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards finished. Edwards' 30 percent in last Thursday's contest was second to Obama's 38 percent. The 2004 vice presidential candidate narrowly beat out New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, who finished third with 29 percent.

Bradley ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2000, losing to former Vice President Al Gore. Bradley lost to Gore 50 percent-46 percent in that year's New Hampshire Democratic Primary.

Our Tentative Schedule

Friday, Jan. 4:
- Barack Obama rally at Concord High School, Concord (12:30 p.m.)
- John McCain town hall meeting at VFW Post 5791, Hudson (6 p.m.)

Saturday, Jan. 5:
- John Edwards rally at Bektash Temple Hall, Concord (10:15 a.m.)
- Mitt Romney post-debate rally at Varick's Sports Bar, Manchester (9:15 a.m.)

Sunday, Jan. 6:
- Hillary Clinton rally at Nashua North High School, Nashua (Noon)

Monday, Jan. 7:
- Mike Huckabee rally at Barley House, Concord (Noon)
- Bill Richardson rally at Franco-American Centre, Manchester (6 p.m.)

Tuesday, Jan. 8:
- The New Hampshire Primary

Covering New Hampshire: An Introduction

It’s a five-day firestorm, a political junkie’s paradise. A dozen candidates from both major political parties descended on New Hampshire today as the state prepares for the nation’s first presidential primary on Tuesday, Jan. 8. And we decided to tag along. Over the next several days we will traverse the Granite State ’s snow-covered roads to cover candidates from both sides of the aisle, as well as the student volunteers and alumni who support them.

Following a disappointing second-place finish in Iowa, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney was the first candidate on the ground, holding a 2 a.m. arrival rally in Portsmouth. After Romney lost to former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, 34 percent-25 percent, in Iowa, New Hampshire is seen as a must-win for a Romney campaign that must now contend with surging Arizona Sen. John McCain. On the Democratic front, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama’s first-place finish in the Caucus positioned the first-term member of Congress as the frontrunner in the upcoming battle with former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton. The two finished second and third, respectively, in the Caucus, and each must work to stop Obama’s momentum before Tuesday’s voting.

Luckily they don’t have to do it alone, and a handful of Tigers have offered to lend a hand. In addition to students that came up on their own, more than 20 Princeton students, spread across six campaigns (five Democratic, one Republican), arrived in New Hampshire yesterday in a trip organized by the Pace Center program for Civic Engagement Learning. Between now and Tuesday, some of them will log 20-hour days as they give all they’ve got to the candidate of their choice. The race is on, and it’s a sprint to the finish.