primary decisions are clouded by a monsoon of campaign tactics

The Iraq War. Health care. Global warming. Needless to say, a number of life-and-death issues hang in the balance of the 2008 presidential race. With less than a week remaining before New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary, thousands of registered voters are still undecided. It is difficult to sift through the campaign rhetoric, the bombardments of television ads and junk mail, the inordinate media attention to where candidates stand in the polls ... all to extract some morsel of truth. But ignoring peripheral distractions and taking a close and objective look at each candidate’s real policies is the duty of every Granite State voter.

The issues have varied between the two major parties, with Republicans and Democrats free to focus on their loyal bases until the general election rolls around. It will be interesting to observe how much the nominees change their tunes when they are forced to expand their appeal to the general public, grappling for support from moderate voters on both sides of the party aisle. But, for now, a few precious days remain for candidates within each party to distinguish themselves from their opponents in the field.

Much of the debate on the Democratic side has revolved around health care and climate change, with movies from Michael Moore and Al Gore, respectively, fueling public outcry on each topic. With every Democrat weighing in heavily on both issues, along with their plans to get troops out of Iraq, the major players have resorted to seemingly less significant differentiations. Hillary Clinton has emphasized her experience over foes like Barack Obama. Although both are U.S. Senators, Obama has never been first lady. Of course, by that logic, Laura Bush could also claim to be qualified to run for president. And, if experience is the key to presidential qualification, shouldn’t the frontrunner be Joe Biden—a member of the U.S. Senate since 1973?

Republicans have spent most of their campaigns arguing over who will be the toughest on illegal immigration and terror, who is the most experienced hunter and who most closely embodies the exalted ideologies of Ronald Reagan—the late president who has suddenly become the patron saint of right-wing conservatism. As frontrunner Mitt Romney fends off attacks from John McCain on his immigration record and from Mike Huckabee on his hunting record, Rudy Guiliani struggles to maintain any sort of presence. Huckabee, a former Baptist minister, is a veritable Cinderella story, rising through the ranks in Iowa despite his steadfast belief that Earth was created 6,000 years ago and evolution never happened. Fred Thompson, on the other hand, has foregone New Hampshire to focus his campaign almost exclusively on Iowa.

Then there are the highly coveted celebrity endorsements. Obama’s got Oprah, John Edwards has Bonnie Raitt and Jackson Browne, McCain has Curt Schilling, and Huckabee has perhaps the most valuable weapon of all—Chuck Norris. Giuliani and Thompson, both of whom established celebrity status outside federal government, have themselves. And Ron Paul has won over dozens of college students with his promise to end the Iraq War and legalize marijuana.

Republican Congressman Tom Tancredo, known throughout the primary cycle as a long-shot anti-immigration zealot, recently announced that he was dropping out of the presidential race in the hopes that his withdrawal would pave the way for someone else dedicated to locking up the nation’s borders. He did not indicate who that someone would be, however, but Duncan Hunter’s plans for a great big fence between Texas and Mexico should make him a top contender.

Many local media outlets have also offered their opinions. John McCain has received endorsements from local publications like the New Hampshire Union Leader and Seacoast Media Group (publisher of the Portsmouth Herald, Exeter News-Letter, Hampton Union, York Weekly and several other papers), and Hillary Clinton has garnered support from dailies like Foster’s Daily Democrat and the Keene Sentinel. Foster’s endorsed Giuliani on the Republican side, while Seacoast Media picked Obama on the Democratic side.

Ad wars have escalated in recent weeks, with frontrunners taking aim at their closest opponents and the others putting Clinton and Romney in the crosshairs. Campaign literature floods the doorsteps of undeclared voters, with candidates studying voter demographics as they decide where to strategically distribute their promotional junk. Even candidates who have touted their own environmental records seem to have no qualms with tossing around thousands of campaign flyers, most of which will inevitably wind up in landfills.

With so many conflicting endorsements, advertisements and campaign promises, how do you know what’s real? Despite the best efforts of increasingly desperate presidential hopefuls, a majority of voters in Iowa and New Hampshire are still suffering from chronic indecision, according to recent polls.

According to a Boston Globe survey published on Dec. 23, only 28 percent of Democrats and 35 percent of Republicans had made up their minds in New Hampshire. The survey showed that Obama had surged ahead of Clinton in the Democratic polls, while McCain was nipping at Romney’s heels on the Republican side. Just over a month earlier, Clinton and Romney had been way ahead in their respective fields. The sudden swing demonstrates how fickle—and how essentially meaningless—such polls usually prove to be. Remember that early polling in the 2004 primary indicated that Howard Dean was surging and John Kerry was lagging, and we all know how that turned out.

A recent analysis of state demographic trends conducted by the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire indicates that 232,000 new residents will be eligible to vote in the primary. That number represents 23.5 percent of potential voters in the state, meaning a whopping number of new voters could be casting their first ballots in the primary. How many of them will actually vote and who they will vote for is another question. 

The only way to make an informed decision about who to support in the primary is to carefully research each candidate on your own. Every candidate’s Web site includes details about individual plans and policies, along with biographical information and government experience. The Wire is not endorsing any candidate. We think you’re perfectly capable of deciding for yourselves.

A detailed health care comparison of all presidential candidates can be viewed at www.newhampshireforhealthcare.org, and an abridged version is available at The Wire’s Web site, www.wirenh.com. For updates on which candidates will be in your neighborhood this week, visit www.prioritiesnh.org/birddog_calendar. The Iowa caucus is on Thursday, Jan. 3, and the New Hampshire primary takes place less than a week later, on Tuesday, Jan. 8. A list of all the major presidential candidates and their Web sites follows, as well as that of Project Vote Smart, The Wire’s recommended source for nonpartisan information on cadidate biographies, campaign financing, issue positions, interest group ratings, voting records and public statements.

Study up, and cast your ballot on Tuesday.

Project Vote Smart: www.vote_smart.org

Republican candidates:
Rudy Giuliani—www.joinrudy2008.com
Mike Huckabee—www.mikehuckabee.com
Duncan Hunter—www.gohunter08.com
John McCain—www.johnmccain.com
Ron Paul—www.ronpaul2008.com
Mitt Romney—www.mittromney.com
Fred Thompson—www.fred08.com

Democratic candidates:
Joe Biden—www.joebiden.com
Hillary Clinton—www.hillaryclinton.com
Chris Dodd—www.chrisdodd.com
John Edwards—www.johnedwards.com
Mike Gravel—www.gravel2008.us
Dennis Kucinich—www.dennis4president.com
Barack Obama—www.barackobama.com
Bill Richardson—www.richardsonforpresident.com