Right before filing for the New Hampshire primary today, Bill Richardson called on his fellow Democrats to stop the negative campaigning:

"You see how some of the candidates in our own party are starting to get negative," Richardson said. "We're not going to do it. We're going to talk about the issues."

"To all the Democratic candidates, let's stay positive," Richardson said. "Let's get rid of all this negative stuff that I'm seeing."

Which is all very noble, but also just a set-up to ... attack his rivals:

Richardson then singled out Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, and former Sen. John Edwards, D-North Carolina, for their critical remarks of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York.

"I've become very concerned about the negative tone of the campaign," he said. "I think that Senators Obama and Edwards should concentrate on the issues and not on attacking Sen. Clinton."

"The differences on the issues should be highlighted, but personal attacks I believe should not take place," he said.

And who do you think Richardson is talking about in this ad?

NRO's Jim Geraghty is having some fun at Chris Dodd's expense.

SurveyUSA released head-to-head match ups in New York showing Hillary Clinton crushing the GOP field, including a 34-point whupping of Rudy Giuliani.

Obama and Clinton are like two dance partners - one seemingly can't make a move without the other doing the same. That's ultimately good news for John Edwards -- who has a chance to make a break between the two -- but this week, Clinton and Obama feature similar ads focusing on Social Security:

Obama's ad effort this week is better than his "America's Back" last week, in that it dispenses with platitudes and offers some specifics on his plans to fix the system. But Hillary still offers the better ad. It's geared at a specific constituency that votes -- the elderly -- while Obama seems to be talking to baby boomers, who probably aren't that worried about their benefits yet. The Obama campaign also continues its habit of making its candidate the centerpiece of every ad -- Obama talks to the voters! -- which makes it hard sometimes to ratchet up the emotion.

The bottom line is that Hillary's ad makes an emotional link to voters. Obama offers them a "hard truth:" He won't put his finger to the wind and refuse to make the hard choices on a difficult issue. The problem is that voters want you both to listen to them and make the hard choices. In these ads, Hillary is the listener; Barack is the truth-teller. If I were old and worried about the loss of my benefits, I know the candidate I'd support.

To read Steven Stark's complete "Presidential Tote Board" blog, go to www.thephoenix.com/toteboard/

Sen. Judd Gregg endorsing Mitt Romney yesterday:

More videos in the Vlog.

Here are today's top political and election stories:

"The Democratic Target in Tuesday's Debate" (Jeff Zeleny, New York Times) With the Democratic candidates set to debate tonight, yesterday's University of Iowa poll showed Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in a virtual tie. Will we see sparks fly as in the last Republican debate?

"Fred Thompson's Southern Strategy" (Amy Schatz, Wall Street Journal) He's been battered by the press in early primary states like New Hampshire and Iowa, but Fred Thompson is following his own game plan and it starts in South Carolina.

"Giuliani Still Working at Firm He Promised to Leave" (John Solomon, Washington Post) Having said he would leave his security consulting firm earlier this year, Rudy Giuliani continues to work part time, perhaps giving his rivals political ammunition.

"Hillary Backed Lab of Donor" (Jim McElhatton, Washington Times) Two days after Dr. James Watson, co-founder of the DNA helix, donated money to Hillary Clinton's campaign, a Senate committee report showed that Clinton and Sen. Chuck Schumer earmarked $900,000 to Watson's lab. Watson has since had to retire from his lab following controversial comments he made on race.

"Romney Scores Big Win With Gregg Endorsement" (Klaus Marre and Sam Youngman, The Hill) Hanging on to a 6-point lead in New Hampshire over Giuliani in the RCP Average, Romney scored a major win with the endorsement of Sen. Judd Gregg.

"Memories of Obama in New York Differ" (Janny Scott, New York Times) As a young college graduate in New York, Barack Obama wrote about how those early years helped shaped the man he would become. Some, however, say Obama took a few literary licenses in telling his story.

"Rising in Polls, Huckabee Could Be GOP's Dark Horse in 2008" (Nicholas Wapshott, New York Sun) A recent Iowa poll has put Mike Huckabee in a statistical tie with Rudy Giuliani, but success comes with criticism and the former Arkansas governor is learning what it means to be contender.

"Romney: U.S. at Critical Juncture; Experience Key" (John Distaso, New Hampshire Union-Leader) In a wide-ranging inteview, Romney worries that the United States is at an "absolutely critical time" in its history.

"Iowans Grill Obama Over His Position on Gay Marriage" (Jason Clayworth, Des Moines Register) Beset with criticism from gay rights groups for inviting Donnie McClurkin to sing at a campaign event, Obama is also contending with criticism from younger voters angry with his opposition to gay marriage.

"Libertarian Paul Wins Young Minds" (Ben Adler, The Politico) Obama isn't the only candidate with a large youth following.

Get these and today's other election stories at RCP's Politics and Election Page.

Believe it or not, tonight marks one of the final debates the Democrats will have before Iowa in only two months. And. the press is playing up tonight's MSNBC encounter as the debut of the "new Obama" -- building expectations that he will finally go after Hillary.

But the question of whether Obama and Clinton clash is only a sideshow to the real question this debate and the next one in a little over two weeks will begin to decide for the Democrats. What these contests are really about is whether it's Obama or Edwards who becomes the candidate who survives the first two tests in Iowa and New Hampshire to take Clinton on in the later primaries as the "anti-Hillary."

As such, both candidates should be aiming tonight's performances at a very small audience -- Iowa caucus voters -- because if either candidate finishes third in that caucus, his campaign is as good as over. That's true even for Obama, despite all his millions.

With that in mind, here's what each has to do tonight:

(more...)

Check out your Tuesday morning headlines over at RealClearBlogs:

Flip Flop Iraq: Will the Democrats change their tune on Iraq?

Obama's Basher: Is Sen. Obama campaigning with an anti-gay preacher?

Rudycare: Rudy Giuliani says socialized medicine would've been the death of him. Is he right?

Ron Paul launched two TV ads in New Hampshire today:

"Catching On":

"Troops and Deficit":

A suicide bomber killed at least 32 people outside a police station north of Baghdad.

The Supreme Court agreed to review some elements of the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989.

Youth vote rising: Chris Cillizza is co-moderating the MySpace/MTV presidential dialogue with Barack Obama in Cedar Rapids. (Stray thought: When was the last time MTV did anything concerning music?) The Caucus has the write-up.

More Obama: Ben Smith notices how Obama referred to the McClurkin affair as having happened a "while back." The singer-preacher sang at an Obama event yesterday.

"Senator Clinton's road to the middle class takes a major detour right through the deep canyon of corporate lobbyists and the hidden bidding of K Street in Washington ... And history tells us that when that bus stops there, it is the middle class that loses." John Edwards likes metaphors.

"I was early then, and now I'll be often." Fred Thompson reassures New Hampshire voters.

It's on. The CNN/YouTube scheduled for Nov. 28 will feature all eight GOP candidates.

Like a good libertarian, Ron Paul is good for business.

The money is beginning to flow for Mike Huckabee, despite the efforts by some (cough-ClubforGrowth-cough) to cast him as a fiscal liberal.