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Most political watchers may be focused on Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John McCain tonight, but it was also an important evening for two candidates who fell short in their White House runs: Republican Ron Paul and Democrat Dennis Kucinich.

Both candidates faced primary challenges for their House seats on Friday – Paul in Texas and Kucinich in Ohio.

Final results have yet to come in in the contest involving Kucinich, though the Wall Street Journal reports that early votes showed him "leading his nearest rival by about 2-1."

Kucinich was facing, among others, Joe Cimperman, whom the Associated Press described as "the toughest, best-financed challenger in his 12-year congressional career." Cimperman has called Kucinich a "showman," not a Congressman.

Paul, meanwhile, easily won his primary night fight, according to the AP. The 10-term libertarian-leaning Congressman who raised large sums over the Internet for his White House run defeated local Councilman Chris Peden.

Most political watchers may be focused on Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John McCain tonight, but it was also an important evening for two candidates who fell short in their White House runs: Republican Ron Paul and Democrat Dennis Kucinich.

Both candidates faced primary challenges for their House seats on Friday – Paul in Texas and Kucinich in Ohio.

Final results have yet to come in in the contest involving Kucinich, though the Wall Street Journal reports that early votes showed him "leading his nearest rival by about 2-1."

(UPDATE, 1:30 AM: Kucinich has likely won the contest.)

Kucinich was facing, among others, Joe Cimperman, whom the Associated Press described as "the toughest, best-financed challenger in his 12-year congressional career." Cimperman has called Kucinich a "showman," not a Congressman.

Paul, meanwhile, easily won his primary night fight, according to the AP. The 10-term libertarian-leaning Congressman who raised large sums over the Internet for his White House run defeated local Councilman Chris Peden.

Long-shot Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich may have just done Barack Obama a favor, publicly telling his supporters that, if he doesn't reach the "viability threshold" at any caucus site, his supporter should regroup under Obama's banner.

CBS News political consultant Marc Ambinder passes along Kucinich's statement: "I hope Iowans will caucus for me as their first choice this Thursday, because of my singular positions on the war, on health care, and trade," Kucinich said. "This is an opportunity for people to stand up for themselves. But in those caucus locations where my support doesn't reach the necessary threshold, I strongly encourage all of my supporters to make Barack Obama their second choice. Sen. Obama and I have one thing in common: Change."

Democratic Party rules require a candidate to meet a certain support level, usually 15 percent, from those attending a caucus meeting for it to count in determining delegates. Supporters for candidates who don't meet that threshold are required to switch to a more viable contender.

This isn't the first time Kucinich has arranged for his supporters to go elsewhere -- in 2004, the Kucinich and John Edwards campaigns arranged for their supporters to join each other's groups if one of them didn't hit the viability threshold.

In the latest Des Moines Register poll, Kucinich had the support of only 1 percent of likely caucus-goers, so the impact of this announcement is hard to determine, especially since smaller, rural caucus sites -- where one Kucinich supporter could compose a large percentage of the crowd -- have a disproportionate impact on the overall results.

Dennis Kucinich has been excluded from Thursday's Democratic debate.

In a press release, the Kucinich campaign fumed: "The highest polling Democratic Presidential candidate among the Party's progressive, grassroots, activist base, Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, has been excluded from the Des Moines Register-sponsored Presidential debate here on Thursday because his Iowa field director operates from a home office rather than a rented storefront."

In a statement included in the Kucinich release, the Register said it "was our determination that a person working out of his home did not meet our criteria for a campaign office and full-time paid staff in Iowa." The person they are referring to is Kucinich Iowa Field Director and State Coordinator Marcos Rubinstein, "who coordinates campaign activities from his home office in Dubuque, bolstered by a dozen-or-so other senior campaign staff who have traveled the state over the past several months," according to the Kucinich campaign.

In the latest Register poll of likely Democratic caucus-goers in Iowa, Kucinich came in at 1 percent support, the same as Chris Dodd. In the most recent CBS News/New York Times poll of Democrats nationally, Kucinich had 2 percent support – more than Dodd and the same as Bill Richardson and Joe Biden. Dodd, Richardson and Biden were all invited to Thursday's debate.

Interestingly, the Register is including Alan Keyes in it's Republican debate today, despite the fact that he has little support and has been left out of most debates thus far.

The Kucinich campaign calls the exclusion "arbitrary and unreasonable."

"The Iowa caucuses have been portrayed as having national implications, and if the Register has decided to use hair-splitting technicalities to exclude the leading voice of the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party, then the entire process is suspect," it said in the release.

This morning, Democratic presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich and his wife, Elizabeth, appeared on the CBS "Early Show." And the Ohio Representative seemed none too happy when anchor Hannah Storm brought up his wife's age, beauty, and jewelry. Here's a portion of the transcript:

Hannah Storm: You have a core group of supporters for your political views, but a lot of people [are] talking about your wife and the fact that she's over three decades younger and she statuesque and beautiful and has a pierced tongue. What do you make of the attention on her?

Dennis Kucinich: Well, the most important thing I would tell you, Hannah, as a professional, is it's important not to trivialize a woman who has worked on international humanitarian matters, you know, helping people in Africa get access to energy and to housing and education, helping poor people and children in India, working with a group connected with Mother Teresa, working with the Mission To Seafarers in London. Here's a woman of great accomplishment with a Master's degree in international conflict resolution, and I hope that you're going to talk about more than a tongue stud.

After Storm asked Elizabeth Kucinich what she would bring to the White House, the "Early Show" anchor returned to the topic.

Hannah Storm: I know that your husband doesn't want to focus on your tongue ring, but you do have one, correct?

Elizabeth Kucinich: I do.

Hannah Storm: And would you remove it if you became first lady or leave it in?

Elizabeth Kucinich: It's part of me now. It's been there ten years, so --

Hannah Storm: Can we see it?

Elizabeth Kucinich: No, you can't. Sorry.

Dennis Kucinich: That's my privilege.


Check out the video for the full effect. It's not quite as tense as it seems when you read it – during that last exchange, it's worth noting, all three are laughing.

Still, things stayed interesting until the end. After Elizabeth Kucinich pointed out that Dennis is "polling fourth now" and Dennis added, "when I get to third place, everything changes," Storm responded: "When you get to third place, or you meet with [Iranian President Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad, we'll have you back."

To which Dennis Kucinich responded, one finger in the air: "You know, remember you said that."

The Cleveland Plain Dealer is reporting that Shirley MacLaine, "a well-known believer of UFOs and reincarnation," says in a new book that Democratic presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich has seen a UFO.

Sayeth the book:

[Kucinich] had a close sighting over my home in Graham, Washington, when I lived there. Dennis found his encounter extremely moving. The smell of roses drew him out to my balcony where, when he looked up, he saw a gigantic triangular craft, silent, and observing him. It hovered, soundless, for ten minutes or so, and sped away with a speed he couldn't comprehend. He said he felt a connection in his heart and heard directions in his mind.

Kucinich's representatives did not respond to the Plain Dealer's request for comment about the alleged encounter.

Republican hopeful Rudy Giuliani is the only candidate whom Horserace is aware of who has commented on the prospect of an intergalactic attack. Last week he told a New Hampshire child who raised the prospect that "we'll be prepared for that, yes we will."