Pure Horserace: The Return Of Joe Trippi

Democrat presidential hopeful John Edwards announced Thursday that Joe Trippi, known for helping Howard Dean go from little-known Vermont governor to Democratic front-runner in 2004, had joined his campaign as an adviser on media strategy and the Internet. In a posting on Edwards' campaign site, Trippi said he was motivated to sign on with Edwards after he and his wife, Elizabeth, said they would continue campaigning despite her cancer diagnosis.

"John Edwards is leading the way and making a difference on all of these issues," Trippi wrote. "He's offering big ideas backed by real plans to change our country. And so his campaign is the place where I will work to make whatever difference I can."

While Trippi is known for managing Dean's campaign when it became an online sensation and a fundraising juggernaut, he is also known for presiding over Dean's fall in the polls that ultimately led to losses in Iowa and New Hampshire. But it's important to note that Trippi won't be Edwards' campaign manager — that post is held by former Michigan Rep. David Bonior. Instead, Trippi will be in a role that is centered on his proven strengths (online strategy) instead of his weaknesses (on-the-ground strategy). As long as Trippi's role remains clearly defined, he should be an asset to the Edwards team.

But how much of a benefit? Trippi is talented, but it's not as though the Edwards campaign has been slouching lately. The news of Elizabeth's cancer diagnosis was handled about as well as it could have been, and the campaign seems to be running strongly, with Edwards gaining in some national polls and still leading in Iowa. Edwards' Web site is one of the most polished among all the candidates — in fact, PC Magazine said this week that it's the best of the bunch.

Edwards probably won't be hurt by having Trippi on board. But it will be interesting to see if there's any room for him to have much impact on a campaign that was already on the upswing without him. — David Miller

Joking Like It's 1999: If you thought John McCain's "Bomb Iran" song parody was going to be a one-day story, try again. One day after the clip of McCain parodying the Beach Boys' hit "Barbara Ann" in response to a question about Iran blew up on YouTube, liberal activist group MoveOn.org announced plans to air an ad criticizing McCain's remarks, saying "we can't afford another reckless president."

The Arizona senator's response? "Lighten up and get a life," according to an Associated Press report.

For the second time in a week, McCain is reminding us of the candidate who was a sensation when seeking the Republican nomination in 1999 and 2000. Remember, not everything said about McCain back then was positive: One popular talking point about him was that he had a short temper and people often joked about how quick McCain would be to get his finger on the nuclear button. With McCain joking about that very idea, we can't help but reminisce.

The incident, especially McCain's response, also brings to mind another Campaign 2000 memory: Discussing his time as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, he used a racial slur to describe his captors. After some initial criticism, McCain responded by saying the slur was "the kindest description I can give them."

McCain eventually did apologize for his remarks, but don't look for him to recant this time around. MoveOn.org is a lightning rod among conservatives, especially when it comes to national security issues. Telling them off can only help McCain among the Republican primary voters who still overwhelmingly support continued U.S. operations in Iraq. Besides, unlike his comments about Vietnam, it looks like McCain really was just joking in this instance. — David Miller

Where's The Beef? Why, It's Right Here: The most frequent criticisms lobbed at Democrat Barack Obama are that he's inexperienced and that he hasn't offered any policy specifics. While he can't instantly make his resume longer, Obama can offer well-formed policies, and it looks like he's starting to do so.

Today, Obama unveiled his plan for dealing with greenhouse gases and energy. Among the highlights: a nationwide reduction in carbon content in fuels, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions from cars by 10 percent in 13 years.

Obama was also scheduled to give a foreign policy speech earlier this week, but that was delayed until next Monday due to the Virginia Tech shootings. But both speeches appear geared toward ending the perception that Obama's campaign has a lot of hope and style, but little substance.

Still, while a foreign policy and a plan for the environment are essential things for a Democratic candidate, they don't compare in importance to economic policy and health care, particularly among the party's base. Obama's said he's trying to craft a health care plan that would actually have a fighting chance of becoming law, but that's all a moot point if he never becomes the Democratic nominee, much less president, in the first place.

Don't think the Obama campaign isn't aware of this. Health care and jobs will be huge issues in the race for the Democratic nomination, surpassed only by Iraq. But if Obama wants to prevent the "no substance" talking point from becoming too entrenched, he'll want to get his major policies on the record sooner rather than later — and definitely before debates, when his opponents will be able to confront him directly. — David Miller

Does The FBI Have A Liberal Bias? The FBI has done congressional Democrats two favors this week: First they raided the house of Republican Rep. John Doolittle last Friday as part of the continuing Jack Abramoff investigation, prompting the Californian to give up his seat on the House Appropriations Committee. Then, on Thursday, the bureau raided a business connected to Arizona Rep. Rick Renzi who, the Arizona Republic reports, has resigned his seat on the House Intelligence Committee.

Two FBI raids connected to two congressmen in the same week is pretty unlikely, but it's even more improbable that both Doolittle and Renzi represent districts Democrats have a decent shot at winning in 2008. In 2006, Doolittle was held to a 6 percent victory, and Renzi won re-election with 52 percent of the vote in one of the few districts that was designed to be competitive.

The question in 2008 will be whether Democrats have the resources to go after many incumbents, even ones in trouble with the law. They'll have a lot of freshmen in competitive districts to protect, and the presidential race is guaranteed to suck up a lot of cash. But if they have the money, they'll have at least two targets to go after. — David Miller

Keene Of The Conservatives: In the latest installment of Political Players, CBS News' Brian Goldsmith interviews American Conservative Union leader David Keene. Read the full interview to see what Keene has to say about the split in the conservative ranks, the 2008 Republican field and Hillary Clinton.

Editor's Note: Pure Horserace is a daily update of political news as interpreted by the political observers at CBSNews.com. Click here to sign up for the e-mail version.

By David Miller