America’s favorite old coot Ralph Nader’s exploratory committee released the following e-mail:

As you know, we’ve been exploring the possibilities in recent weeks.

And here’s one question that keeps coming up:

What’s been pulled off the table by the corporatized political machines in this momentous election year?

Answer:

Cutting the huge, bloated and wasteful military budget, adopting a single payer Canadian-style national health insurance system, impeaching Bush/Cheney, opposing nuclear power - among many others.

Who will pick up these issues and put them back on the table?

Hope you get a chance to tune in to watch Ralph Nader this Sunday on Meet the Press.

During an appearance yesterday on Meet the Press Senator Hillary Clinton cited media reports to suggest Senator Obama’s campaign has been distorting statements by herself and her husband to give the impression that they were fueled by racial insensitivity. Clinton demanded that these statements be put into context so they could be shown as attacks against Obama’s comparison between himself, John Kennedy and Martin Luther King as well as his record on the Iraq War and not an attack on his race as some have seen them. Clinton again charged that Senator Obama has not maintained a consistent position on the Iraq war and maintained that it will take a record of achievement in creating and moving forward legislation and not just speeches to create societal and governmental change.

Yesterday Senator Obama responded to these charges. On the charge that his campaign was distorting her comments he said, “I am baffled by that statement by the senator.” He also added:

She made an ill advised statement about Dr. King suggesting that Lyndon Johnson had more to do with the Civil Right Acts. I did not make the statement. I haven’t commented on the statement. For them to suggest that we’re injecting race as a consequence of a statement she made that we haven’t commented on is pretty hard to figure out. Maybe you can tell me and explain to me how we distorted her statement.”

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As noted before Huckabee was on Meet the Press this morning. On the topic of Mitt Romney Huckabee says he believes the former Mass governor is running a “desperate and frankly dishonest campaign”.

What I find interesting is that Huckabee once again has come to the defense of John McCain saying the Senator is an “honest man” and “John McCain is a hero in this country and a hero to me”. Do I hear the potential for a McCain/Huckabee matchup or maybe even a Huckabee/McCain match-up for the Vice Presidency? The two both have what the other needs, McCain has the experience and national security cred, Huckabee has the evangelical and overall religious cred.

After an onslaught against him by Mitt Romney and others former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee used todays appearance on Meet the Press to defend his record. Part of that defense was raising tax revenue in order to make “improvements” in the state. Which is a valid argument that will undoubtedly get completely lost to voters.

As I see it Republicans have backed themselves into a corner on the issue of economics and tax cutting. When running there is never a tax increase they don’t like or a tax cut they do. Same on spending, when running there is never an area of spending they wouldn’t like to decrease. When actually governing though life isn’t an across the board black or white thing.

What you see with the race today is a major problem for Republican candidates everywhere. Those who have lead and governed have had to make decisions that were right for people but wrong to a narrow philosophy. What you see in those who haven’t had to govern or really lead is a narrow philosophy that does not take into account what might be right for ALL the people later on.

So we get these back and forth “you raised taxes, no you raised taxes, I lowered taxes, no I lowered taxes” arguments that don’t speak to either philosophy or what is good for the country.

Just my humble opinion.