MICHELLE BACHMANN FOR PRESIDENT?

Michelle Bachmann went to New Hampshire to honor the state’s citizens because it was in Concord, New Hampshire, where the “shot heard round the world” was fired. Okay, so it was another Concord, the one in Massachusetts where that happened. The media jumped right on it. That should be no surprise because, as Bachmann said, "...as we know all 3,400 members of the mainstream media are part of the Obama press contingent." Whenever a Republican politician says something stupid, it must be blamed on what Sarah Palin calls the “lame stream media.”

The Congresswoman from Minnesota has also informed us that the founders of this country, "worked tirelessly until slavery was no more in the United States." Evidently that doesn’t include men like Washington and Jefferson, who were slave owners. It also misses that fact that it was about four score and seven years later before slavery actually ended.

And what was Ms Bachmann doing in New Hampshire? What does any politician do in the Granite State the year before a presidential election? Yes, she is considering a run for the presidency. Perhaps Michelle and Sarah could run together. They would be a great pair, both darlings of the Tea Party. At least Michelle doesn’t claim she can see Russia from her front porch in Minnesota. Maybe she even knows the difference between North and South Korea, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

IS PERRIN OUT OF THE RACE?

Democratic candidate Carl Perrin has not won a single delegate, even in New Hampshire, the state where he grew up. The candidate admits he should have been more active in the Granite State. Not too many people there remember him after 50 years. He also had high hopes for South Carolina because he served in the Dixie Division at Fort Jackson during the Korean War. Unfortunately, whispering campaigns have painted him as a New England Yankee despite service in the Dixie Division. Even so, that was over 50 years ago also.

So, is Perrin ready to throw in the towel? “No way,” says the smiling candidate. The Florida primary is coming up next, and he lived in the Sunshine State for a while, and that was more recent, just a little over a year ago. "The guys and gals in the West Palm Beach Writers’ Group will remember me,” he says, “and so will the people in the Century Village Computer Club. I expect to have a lot of support in south Florida.”

Soon the fight will go on to Ohio, Missouri, Maine, and New Jersey. Perrin has taught in all those states and has thousands of former students who will remember him. Perrin quoted a famous philosopher: “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over, and it ain’t over ‘til the fat lady sings.” Perrin is a man who believes in looking at the bright side of things.

DOWN BUT NOT OUT

Obama and Huckabee came out ahead in the Iowa caucuses. Huckabee was a blip on the radar just a couple of months ago. But Tuesday night he came from behind to whup Romney but good. Even though Romney has been campaigning actively in Iowa for months and had spent a pile of money there, Huckabee, strongly supported by Evangelical Christians, beat his rival from Massachusetts by 9 percentage points.

Mrs. Clinton took third place in the Democratic primaries, behind Obama and Edwards. Obama picked up a lot of Independents. That will help him when he goes to New Hampshire next week. Senators Joe Biden and Chris Dodd both did so poorly that they decided to drop out of the race.

A poor showing didn’t put a stopper on Dennis Kucinich’s campaign. He is sticking in there until the bitter end, as he did in 2004.

Dr Carl Perrin didn’t do very well in Iowa either. In fact he came in behind Kucinich. Finishing dead last will not stop Perrin either. “Frankly, I didn’t expect to do well in Iowa,” the former English professor said. “I didn’t have the kind of money that the big guys did. What little I have, I’m saving for the general election in the fall.”

Despite the lack of support for Perrin in Iowa, he is going on to New Hampshire. He doesn’t feel a need to spend a lot of money in the Granite State. He knows that people who graduated from Amherst High School will remember him and vote for him. He also depends on support from classmates at Keene Teachers College (Now Keene State), especially his fraternity brothers from Sigma Tau Gamma. UNH alum are sure to vote for him, as are people who graduated from Rivier College, where Perrin got his master’s degree in 1959. He will have the votes of New Hampshire farmers, who will recall Perrin’s father saying, “I’m just a cow shit kicker.”

Perrin is a cowshit kicker from way back. He smiles knowingly. “This is not the end for me. It is a new beginning.”

CANDIDATES ARE GETTING DESPERATE

The whole campaign field is changing. Senator Brownback has dropped out of the race, citing fundraising shortfalls. He has only $94,000 cash on hand. Former governor Mike Huckabee and Congressman Ron Paul are moving up through the pack. While Rudy Guiliani, John McCain, and Mitt Romney are still the front runners, many Republicans consider Guiliani too liberal. Not only that, but he’s from New York. McCain is too old, and Romney is too Mormon.

Underneath the surface on the Democratic side, things are not what they appear to be. Although Hillary Clinton is widening the gap between herself and her nearest rivals, there still remains a strong anti-Hillary movement. If you google “Stop Hillary,” you’ll get over 3 million hits. Are they all Republicans? As the Democrats select the person to head their ticket, they are going to ask, do they want to nominate a candidate with as many negatives as Mrs. Clinton?

A lot of things could change by the time of the New Hampshire primary vote. Do we have to remind you that Democratic candidate Dr. Carl Perrin grew up in New Hampshire? He has degrees from UNH and Rivier College in Nashua, NH. He began his teaching career in Hollis, NH.

Perrin wishes he had Senator Brownback’s problem with “only” $94,000 in his campaign treasury. But funding is not a problem for Perrin. He is not throwing his money around like those other candidates. He is holding onto his money, waiting for the strategic moment to come on strong and blow the competition away.