1. Compared to the Republicans last night, this was a tea party -- sorely below expectations and hype, but not bad on substance. When Wolf responded to Clinton's answer on her Iraq vote that she might have been "naive" to trust President Bush, it was a last-ditch effort to get some sparks flying.

2. Best Hillary line: "It took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush, and it looks like it will take another Clinton to clean up after this one."

3. Best Obama line: "If you look at what [Romney's] spent, I don't think he's gotten a very good return on investment."

4. Immigration. You could tell that both are looking toward the general election, but still feel the tug of the base and Hispanic voters toward the more liberal position. So what we got from both was a commitment to some sort of vague comprehensive plan. Even with his immigration sins among conservatives, McCain could win a debate on this issue pretty easily right now.

5. Compared to the GOP debate, almost nothing about California issues. Clinton holds a good lead right now, so it might have been better for Obama to address some local matters.

6. Winner? Probably Clinton, who didn't make any noticeable gaffes. Obama didn't go on the attack as much as I thought he would, but that's not to say he should have.

It's on tonight at the Kodak. To mix politics with football, what did Terrell Owens say? "Get your popcorn ready."

Even if it's not exactly a "We Got Him" moment, any time we can bag one of these guys is good news for the world.

Senate Democrats today conceded they don't have the 60 votes to advance their own stimulus package, meaning the House's version, which was developed with the White House, will likely pass.

Romney called McCain's performance last night "reminiscent of the Nixon era," which we assume is a bad thing.

Moderates Rising?

The governors keep coming in for McCain ... and Drudge says Nancy Reagan is on board too.

"America should be designed for people like us. That's why I am running for president of the United States of America, for all people, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight all people," said Obama in Los Angeles to a largely black and Hispanic crowd.

Even subdued, Bill Clinton is still making news which could be used against his wife.

Hillary: "Times"

Obama: "Stock"

This report by Brian Ross certainly isn't going to win Hillary Clinton any friends in the progressive, Wal-Mart hating community - a group that John Edwards spent a lot of time playing to:

Get a ton more Election '08 videos on the RCP Vlog.

Actually, it's not new, but a recycled ad from about three months ago:

Romney strategist Alex Gage has released a memo to "interested parties," the gist of which is summed up by the first paragraph:

Public polling shows McCain ahead in many states, but we are now in a two-man race and a few points' movement among conservatives is all that's needed to tip the scales in favor of Gov. Romney. (emphasis in the original)

Gage goes on to argue that McCain's coalition simply can't hold up in a two person race on February 5th:

The McCain formula for success worked in a divided field when conservatives were fractured, but even a small coalescence of conservatives around Gov. Romney would reveal his support as a coalition too small to win the nomination of the Republican party. Conservatives, self-identified Republicans, and voters who approve of President Bush are likely to be majorities of the electorate in all of the February 5th states. It is therefore easy to see how we defeat McCain in a two-main race by focusing on traditional Republican primary voters.

We still have an uphill battle in front of us - the mainstream media is ready to anoint John McCain and he will have advantages in many states from running for president for the past eight years - but Gov. Romney has a clear path to victory on February 5th and beyond. (emphasis in the original)

The fly in the ointment? Mike Huckabee. The memo contains not a single mention of the former Arkansas Governor.

National Journal has ranked Sen. Barack Obama as the most liberal member of the Senate. Sen. Hillary Clinton ranked 16th.

The magazine ranks members of the Senate and House annually based on key votes in each chamber. Using 99 specific Senate votes in 2007, Obama finished with the most liberal record, after ranking 16th and 10th in his first two years in the Senate.

In 2004, National Journal ranked John Kerry as the most liberal senator, and the Bush campaign often used this as a talking point.

A new Rasmussen poll in California (Jan. 29, 652 GOP LV, 807 Dem LV) has McCain with a 4-point lead over Romney, and Clinton leading Obama by 3. The polls were conducted prior to Giuliani and Edwards officially leaving the race.

Republicans

McCain 32 (+8 vs. last poll, Jan. 14)
Romney 28 (+11)
Giuliani 14 (+3)
Huckabee 11 (-2)
Paul 5 (-1)

65% of Giuliani voters had a favorable opinion of Romney, and 61% felt he had at least a somewhat likely chance of winning the general election if nominated. Comparativley, 53% of Giuliani voters had a favorable opinion of McCain, while 68% felt he had at least a somewhat likely chance of defeating a Democrat if nominated.

McCain holds an 8.3-point lead in the RCP Average for California

Democrats

Clinton 43 (+5 vs. last poll, Jan. 14)
Obama 40 (+7)
Edwards 9 (-3)

Clinton holds an 11.7-point lead in the RCP Average for California

Some thoughts and stats from TNR's John Judis:

Who will get John Edwards's votes? The exit polls give a split verdict. Those in Iowa and South Carolina show a slight tilt to Hillary Clinton. If you look at those voters among whom Edwards enjoyed disproportionate strength, it was among voters less likely to switch to Obama. In Iowa, it was among older (60-64 years old) and conservative voters. In South Carolina, it was among older (60 years and up), white male, moderate or somewhat conservative voters who wanted to keep troops in Iraq "as long as needed."

In these states, Edwards appears to have picked up white voters who wouldn't vote for Obama. In South Carolina, 35 percent of Edwards' voters said the country is "definitely not ready" for a black president. Only 22 percent of these voters said the country was "definitely not ready" for a woman president. Edwards' voters in South Carolina were also more dissatisfied with the prospect of an Obama nomination than a Clinton one. Fifty percent of Edwards' voters in South Carolina said they would be "somewhat dissatisfied" and 44 percent "very dissatisfied" with Obama's nomination. With Edwards out of the field, some of these voters may not vote at all; but if they do, they seem more likely to back Hillary Clinton than Barack Obama.

In New Hampshire, however, the story is a little different. Edwards ran strongest in New Hampshire among white, male, unionized, religiously observant Catholic voters who saw themselves as "moderates." Twenty-nine percent of Edwards' supporters had a "strongly unfavorable" view of Hillary Clinton; only 10 percent had a "strongly unfavorable" view of Obama. The exit polls didn't ask about social issues, but my guess is that these Edwards voters were more socially conservative on issues like abortion than the Clinton or Obama voters. These kind of Democratic primary voters will be common in states like Ohio, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Some of them might switch to Obama.

So who comes out ahead? I think it's very inconclusive. Clinton will pick up votes from Obama in some Southern states like Georgia that Obama should win anyway--and Obama will pick up a few votes in middle Atlantic or Midwestern states that Clinton will probably win anyway.

Watching the Schwarzenegger endorsement just now, apparently the GOP has just become the party of global warming. Nothing much else is being discussed -- oh, except for the Governator's endorsement.

Even Rudy, who's there, used his time at the podium to talk about it.

Given that the event is being held at a solar-power plant, maybe this isn't a surprise. Maybe it's merely a play to California Republicans. But McCain's global-warming stance, although never exactly hidden, was always in the background. Not anymore.

Is the lurch-to-the-right stage of the Republican primary already over?

How bad was it for John McCain before New Hampshire? The AP reports that McCain ended 2007 with a $4.5 million debt. He raised just $6.5 million in the last quarter, with $3 million cash on hand. The good news is that McCain has raised $7 million since then. It pays to win.

On the Democratic side, Barack Obama, doing what he does best, has raised $32 million during January alone.