The Prime Minister of Britain has launched a "statement of values" program, one task of which is to come up with a sort of slogan that encapsulates British identity. This has not really caught fire among British citizens. The Times of London sponsored a motto writing contest. Some of the entries were:

Once Mighty Empire, Slightly Used

We Apologize for the Inconvenience

The readers voted and the winner was:

No Motto Please, We're British.

My own personal favorite was:

At Least We're Not French

JFK's daughter Caroline Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy endorsed Barak Obama. By doing so they've added even more charisma to Sen. Obama's campaign for the Democratic nomination. That must've been a blow to the Clintons, who're personally and politically close to the Kennedys.

Robert F. Kennedy's kids in a passionate L.A. Times op-ed have endorsed Sen. Clinton, so even if somewhat unevenly, the Kennedy influence is nominally distributed between the two frontrunners. Sen. Ted (Edward) Kennedy said this morning on one of the A.M. talk shows that he would wholeheartedly support Clinton in the presidential campaign if she wins the nomination.

I hope they both stay in the race for as long as possible, keeping each other responsive. (Edwards as well.) While difficult and at times contentious, this does make for the broadest demands on both. For whomsoever cometh away with the Democratic nomination will have an even tougher fight on her or his hands during the run for the White House. I'm still behind the tougher fighter, because, among other things, that's what'll be needed. Other considerations nonwithstanding, Sen. Clinton has for decades stood staunchly in the face of whatever the right has slung her way.

I'm all for the politics of hope, but "hope is not a plan." And now that this monumental endorsement is in place I don't want to hear any dismissive "politics of yesterday" remarks out of the Obama camp regarding other candidates.

I plan to participate in the Maine caucus on February 10th. It's probably inconsequential; I am all but certain that the candidate will have already been selected on super Tuesday (next week!), but I've never caucused before and want to learn what it is like. I'll report here.

Today the NY Times endorsed N.Y. Senator Hillary Clinton as their choice for the Democratic nomination for president. Amen! She's a well tested leader and the NY Times endorses her today with first hand experience of that. However, the home team advantage didn't have any outsized influence in that stand. In their endorsement for Sen. John McCain as the Repbublican candidate they went out of their way to diss former NYC Mayor Giuliani, the 9/11 mayor at that, "whom many New Yorkers came to know and mistrust, is a narrow, obsessively secretive, vindictive man.."

I applaud the Times' choice. Hoopla aside, Sen. Clinton has always seemed the most intelligent choice; on record, on experience, on tensile strength and most importantly on balance. I wince at the intended and unintended mysogyny that she has had to face. But I have to admire her dignity in facing it. At the end of the day, it has done little but to rally support around her.

Like the Times, I am "not denying Mr. Obama’s appeal or his gifts." I noted in these pages months before he even entered the race, his appeal, his magnetism, his eminently inspiring voice. But it's not enough for this race. As former President Bill Clinton himself said recently, I look forward to voting for him someday. I just don't think this November 4 is the right day. However, if it turns out that he is the candidate, well then it will be. He'd likely make a good president, I just don't think he'd make as good a president as Hillary Clinton.

But more importantly, there is a sushi crisis in NY -- mercury in the tuna -- and the NY Metro report used the opportunity to pull a side-splitting sendup of the campaigns. Samples:

"We need a president who can get past the tired, old partisan divisions that pit one kind of fish against another," Mr. Obama said. "It’s fine to get the mercury out of tuna. But all fish are in this together. We can’t rest until we have safe sushi of all types, all across this great land. To those who say we aim too high, we say, ‘Yes, we can.’ "

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton warned against "false hopes" that the sushi menace would soon be over. She declined to pledge that, if elected, she would have all mercury out of tuna within four years. "But I can promise," Mrs. Clinton said, "that on Day One, I will be ready for action..."

On the Republican side, Senator John McCain repeated a line from just before the New Hampshire primary. "I’m too old to be scared," he said. "My friends, we’ve been through hard times before, but we can overcome this transcendent challenge."

Well worth the read.

I was going to forward this email to my long list of expat friends but since most of you check in here and this might also be useful to perfect (and not so perfect) strangers, I thought I'd pass it along this way.

U.S. citizens living abroad may vote in the U.S. Democratic Party's February 5-12, 2008 Global Presidential Primary, the first ever online, worldwide U.S. election.

Nevada, South Carolina, Florida, Super Tuesday; ­soon it will be your turn to vote in the Global Primary, from anywhere in the world. For the first time in history, you can vote online, but only if you register to vote and join Democrats Abroad by January 31 at www.votefromabroad.org. When you register you will receive a ballot, a secure ID and instructions for voting.

The Democratic Global Primary is open to any U.S. citizen living overseas who will be 18 years of age by November 4, 2008 (some 17-year olds are therefore eligible to vote) and who is a registered member of Democrats Abroad. There are no membership fees. The global primary vote will be represented by 22 delegates at the Democratic National Convention in Denver which will nominate the party's presidential candidate.

And what about your home state primary? You may vote for a presidential candidate in either the Democratic Global Primary or your state primary, but not both. (If you choose to vote for President through the Global Primary and you also receive your absentee state primary ballot, you can use the state ballot to vote for all state offices, but you must not vote for President on the state ballot.)

For practical purposes, if your state primary is scheduled for January or for Super Tuesday (February 5), deadlines may make it difficult for your absentee ballot to arrive in time to be counted. So register at www.VoteFromAbroad.org and make your vote count!

Sign up today!

courtesy American Democrats in China (AmDems) Note: this is an email link.

Juashaunna Kelly, a senior at the District of Columbia's Theodore Roosevelt High School has the fastest mile and 2-mile times of any girl runner in that city this winter. RISE Magazine chose her as its 2007-08 Washington D.C. Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year. But she was disqualified from an indoor track and field meet this weekend because officials said the hood and the unitard she wears under her team uniform to conform to her Muslim faith violates competition rules. The unitard to cover her arms and legs is the same color as her team uniform. She has competed in that same outfit for 3 seasons. There are no other meets scheduled that would allow her to qualify for for the New Balance Collegiate Invitational in New York on Feb. 8-9, which attracts dozens of college recruiters.

So much for our free and open society being the reason Muslim extremists despise us. This is a canard and the Muslim media is citing it as an example of Islamaphobia. Personally, I'm not so sure it isn't.

I hope for and expect a reconsideration of this stupid ruling in time for this remarkable young American athlete to compete this weekend in our great nation's capital.

that predicted Barak Obama to win the New Hampshire Democratic primary by double digits. From the time I started watching results come in mid-evening, Sen. Clinton was ahead, by at least 2%, and I never saw her numbers fall behind. I like all the media coverage, but media predictions are irresponsibly flawed and from all appearances, created or skewed to promote headlines, not information.

Glad it's still a horserace. We deserve no less. It's suspicious that the media was so ready to write Clinton off on the basis of Iowa, after all her fierce campaigning.

And as for McCain, he deserved this moment as well. Huckabee is a great show, but McCain has more substance, whether you agree with his positions or not.

It'll be a great campaign and a monumental election. I'm hoping the shuck factor, on all fronts, is duly diminished. You can read what you want into that.

The NY times skewers the Republickans over presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee. It's hilarious and the comments are also a howl!

Two Buck Huck

...pillars of Old School Republicanism have signaled that Huckabee is Not One of Ours. But they’re careful to say it’s not about class, because, of course – it is!

Class war is forbidden in the Republican playbook. But Huckabee, despite an inept last week of campaigning, has forced the Republican party to face the Wal-Mart shoppers that they have long taken advantage of. He’s here. He’s Gomer. And he’s not going away.

Huck was not bad on Leno last night, who was good as ever, even without the striking writers.

I am glued to news reports about the Iowa Caucus. What an exciting campaign! It is good to be home.

UPDATE: Early reports from entry polls say it looks like Huck the hick is going to win in Iowa.

And I forgive him that swipe at boomers in a previous post.

Great Caucus! Mind-blowing reversals! Onward to New Hampshire!

I earned it and I'm going to milk it for all I can get!

I'll start the year tomorrow.