Barack Obama will reportedly name former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack -- who had previously said he didn't think he was at all in the running for a cabinet post -- as his Secretary of Agriculture.

The fact that Obama is appointing an Iowan to manage ag policy could signal that he isn't eager to take up the fight that some food-policy activists have urged, to have a secretary who isn't so tight with agribusiness and the existing regime of crop subsidies.

In a move that could provide Hillary Clinton with major organizational support in the key caucus state of Iowa, Former Iowa Governor and brief Presidential candidate Tom Vilsack will be endorsing her at an event in Des Moines this Monday, the Associated Press reports, quoting unnamed officials.

"Vilsack and his wife, Christie, planned to make the endorsement on Monday when the New York senator will be in the state, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of the planned formal statement next week," the AP says.

Tom Vilsack's backing comes with an added bonus: His wife, Christie Vilsack, who has a proven track record as a king-maker in the state. In 2004, her support of John Kerry's trailing primary campaign helped propel him to a come-from-behind victory in the Iowa caucus.

And here's Barack Obama's statement on Tom Vilsack's decision to bail:

"Tom Vilsack is an outstanding public servant whose initiatives in Iowa on education reform, health care and alternative energy are models from which our entire nation can learn. More than that, Tom brings a badly needed sense of honor and decency to our politics, and a passionate advocacy for an end to the war in Iraq. I hope he will continue to speak out in the months and years to come, as his is an important and valued voice."

Whereas Hillary emphasized Vilsack's achievements in Iowa, note that Obama is keeping his "high-minded politics" theme going here.

The Des Moines Register is reporting that Tom Vilsack is dropping out of the Presidential race because of money:

However, sources said the deciding factor was that Vilsack's challenge to raise the estimated $20 million to compete through the early nominating contests, including the Iowa caucuses, was becoming too difficult.

He reported raising $1 million from Nov. 9 to Jan. 31. However, his rivals were expected to have raised far more in the early part of 2007.

We have to think that the Vilsack camp also realized that there was simply no breaking the stranglehold that Hillary, Obama and Edwards have on the national media -- which of course was one of the causes of the fundraising travails in the first place.

Here are some quick updates on the movements of the Presidential candidates:

* Rev. Jerry Falwell will host a "meet and greet" for Sen. John McCain a week from today at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Orlando, Florida. As you may recall, McCain famously descibed Falwell as an "agent of intolerance" when he was running against President Bush as a maverick outsider in 2000. Now, however, McCain is working hard to win over this agent of intolerance, even speaking at the 2006 spring commencement ceremony of Falwell's Liberty University. Video clips of McCain's evolving relationship with Falwell can be seen here.

* Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack issued a debate challenge to Sen. Barack Obama today, citing Obama's decision to skip a Feb. 21 candidate forum hosted by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees in Carson City, Nevada. "As you know, AFSCME represents workers throughout Iowa and they would be willing to organize a forum for us in any town on Feb. 21,'' Vilsack wrote in a letter to Obama's campaign.

* Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani announced today that he has picked up the endorsement of Rep. Pete Sessions and former Rep. Susan Molinari. Sessions will work to build support in the House while Molinari will act as a Senior Adviser and Chairwoman of Washington outreach.

* During his trip to Iowa this weekend, Sen. Barack Obama obtained some key endorsements in the state: both Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller and Iowa State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald have officially thrown their weight behind Obama while freshman House member David Loebsack appeared on the official program of Obama's Iowa rally, though he did not officially endorse the candidate.

* Meanwhile, in an interview with AP yesterday, Obama laughed off comments by Australian Prime Minister John Howard that suggested terrorists would be "encouraged" if Obama was elected, saying “it's flattering that one of George W. Bush's allies feels obliged to attack me.” Howard told reporters that he doesn't "retreat in any way from that criticism."

* Rep. Duncan Hunter gave support to Howard's comments yesterday, saying that the Australian Prime Minister had "earned a right to comment" and was "basically stating the truth."

* Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney was the keynote speaker at the Missouri GOP's Lincoln Day dinner over the weekend. Romney is expected to officially announce is candidacy in Michigan tomorrow.

* Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee picked up two solid endorsements in South Carolina today: Former first lady Iris Campbell, whose late husband Caroll Campbell II was Governor '87 to '94, and her son Mike Campbell. Her other son, Caroll Campbell III, has endorsed Sen. John McCain.

* Speaking of McCain, the Arizona Senator will campaign in Iowa on Feb. 17.

* Though director Steven Spielberg seemed to be in camp Obama due to his co-hosting of a February fundraiser for the Senator in Los Angeles, Spielberg will also host a future fundraiser for Sen. Hillary Clinton. Spielberg agreed to host the Clinton fundraiser after an appeal from former President Bill Clinton, according to Robert Novak.

* Rep. Tom Tancredo is backing a Colorado state legislature bill that would pull state pension funds out of companies with major investments in Sudan. The bill is meant to punish Sudan for the genocide in Darfur.

* California is THE big fundraising destination for candidates in the upcoming weeks: Rudy Giuliani is speaking to a non-partisan business group in Santa Clara, California today; Tom Vilsack will be in San Francisco tomorrow to speak to the Commonwealth club; former Sen. John Edwards will be at a $500- to $2,300-a-head dinner in Woodside on Thursday; Barack Obama is speaking at a a pair of big ticket fundraisers for Sen. Barbara Boxer on Feb. 19 then heading to Los Angeles the next day for a fundraiser hosted by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen; Also on Feb. 20, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson will attend a fundraising lunch at the San Francisco law office of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein; and finally, on Feb. 23, Hillary Clinton will be in San Francisco for a $250 to $25,000 VIP luncheon and reception hosted by building mogul Walter Shorenstein, Esprit clothing co-founder Susie Tompkins Buell and investment banker Thomas Steyer.

* New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson will travel to New Hampshire this week and Iowa next week.

Here are some updates on the movements of the Presidential candidates (plus one House '08 item):

* Speaking to activists in Iowa yesterday, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney conceded that the Iraq war has been poorly managed, but refused to go against President Bush's current plan for the war.

* Speaking of Romney, he has been named the keynote speaker at a Lincoln Day dinner jointly sponsored by two Republican county committees in New Hampshire.

* Republican Minnesota state Sen. Dick Day has filed papers to challenge freshman Rep. Tim Walz (D-01) in 2008. Walz, an Afghanistan vet, beat incumbent Gil Gutknecht this past November in what many considered an upset.

* Sen. Barack Obama's fundraising practices -- and how they mesh with his call for higher fundraising standards -- come under scrutiny in the Chicago Sun Times.

* Did someone say "rock star"? Obama's Monday event at the University of New Hampshire is sold out despite being held in a gymnasium with a 3,500 person capacity.

* A bill being considered by the New Hampshire state Legislature is is meant to solidify the secretary of state's ability to schedule New Hampshire's primary -- traditionally the first in the nation -- before the Nevada caucuses.

* Sen. Hillary Clinton has hired New Hampshire Democratic Party executive director Nick Clemons as her state director. Clemons supervised the political and field operations that successfully gained two House seats for the Dems in 2006 and was the state director in New Hampshire for the Kerry-Edwards campaign in 2004.

* In other Clinton hiring news, former Iowa Democratic Party communications director Mark Daley will serve as her communications director in New Hampshire.

* On the campaign trail today, Hillary Clinton is speaking in New York City, Sen. Christopher Dodd is in Florida to address the National Association of Home Builders' Board of Directors, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich is the keynote speaker at the TD Ameritrade Partnership 2007 National Conference in San Diego, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is speaking to business leaders in New Hampshire and Mitt Romney is speaking at the Republican Party executive committee meeting in Alabama.

* Former Sen. John Edwards recieved a positive reaction at a crowded International Longshoremen's Association Hall in Charleston, South Carolina where he spoke yesterday about his health care plan and the need to withdraw from Iraq. Also in South Carolina, Mitt Romney fielded questions about abortion this morning when he spoke to a crowd of 100 in Anderson.

* Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is on course to have 14 New York City fundraisers in the bag by March 14, according to Ben Smith.

* The 2008 Presidential ad blitz is about to begin and far earlier than in previous elections due to the lack of a White House incumbent running and the gobs of cash in the race.

* New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said in a foreign policy address yesterday that the United States must reduce its stock of nuclear weapons, close Guantanamo Bay, and dramatically cut energy use in order to take the lead on many global issues. Richardson is both a former Secretary of Energy and ambassador to the United Nations.

* Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee announced today that that New Hampshire State School Board member Fred Bramante and former City Chair of the Manchester Republican Committee Cliff Hurst will serve as the New Hampshire Co-Chairs of his 2008 presidential exploratory committee.

* Rep. Duncan Hunter will next be in New Hampshire from Feb. 19-21.

* Speaking in Connecticut yesterday, former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack said he "can bring a degree of leadership" to the Presidential race while discussing his plans for Iraq, health care, education, and the environment.

* A fundraiser for Rep. Tom Tancredo in Greenwood Village, Colorado on Feb. 25 will be hosted by conservative talk radio hosts Peter Boyles and Robert "Gunny Bob" Newman.

Here are a few updates on the movements of the Presidential candidates:

* Sen. Barack Obama is set to forgo public financing for both the primaries and the general election. Obama follows Sen. Hillary Clinton, former Sen. John Edwards, Sen. John McCain, and former MA Gov. Mitt Romney in opting out of federal matching funds.

* Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani will deliver the commencement speech at the Citadel military academy in South Carolina on May 5th.

* Despite his placement in the second-tier of Dem presidential candidates, CT Sen. Christopher Dodd led the pack in fundraising -- yes, including Hillary -- during the 4th quarter by raising $3 million over the last three months of 2006. Dodd's position as chairman of the Senate Banking Committee is thought to have brought increased donations from the financial-services industry.

* Two bloggers, Amanda Marcotte of Pandagon and Melissa McEwan of Shakespeare's Sister, recently hired by the campaign of former Sen. John Edwards are drawing fire from a conservative religious group, The Catholic League, over comments they made on their non-Edwards-related blogs before joining his campaign. Media Matters has a look at the inconsistent history of outrage by The Catholic League's president, William Donahue.

* Sen. John McCain has gained the endorsements of Ohio Rep. Stephen C. LaTourette and former Alabama state GOP chairman Winton Blount.

* Former MA Gov. Mitt Romney, Sen. Barack Obama, and former WI Gov. Tommy Thompson will each be traveling to Iowa this week. Romney will be in the state tomorrow, Thompson on Saturday, and Obama on Saturday and Sunday. Obama's visit will come on the heels of his official announcement of candidacy on Feb. 10.

* One of the biggest free agents left in New Hampshire, Bill Shaheen, the chairman of John Kerry's 2004 New Hampshire primary campaign and husband of former NH Gov. Jeanne Shaheen, was offered an unspecified campaign job when he met with Sen. Hillary Clinton in Washington, DC last week. Shaheen did not except immediately, but said he'd "make a decision in the near future." He will meet with Obama on Monday and has already fielded calls from Dodd, Edwards, and Sen. Joe Biden.

* Romney and Sen. Sam Brownback will address the Michigan Republican convention on Saturday while MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty will speak as a surrogate for John McCain. Pawlenty is the co-chairman of McCain's national campaign.

* Former IA Gov. Tom Vilsack blasted Senate Republicans yesterday for blocking a resolution critical of the Bush administration's Iraq policy and also criticized the non-binding resolution itself as "inaction."

* GOP Rep. Nathan Deal made it clear in an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he's not jumping on the Mitt Romney endorsement train, but that he has warm feelings towards both former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Rep. Duncan Hunter.

* Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, speaking at a press breakfast in DC yesterday, said he was optimistic that he had no where to go but up in the Republican primary. "When you’re in first place right now, there’s only one direction you can go, and it’s not a good one," he told reporters.

* Meanwhile, Huckabee will visit New Hampshire this Friday while NM Gov. Bill Richardson is scheduled to attend a Feb. 17 fundraiser for Concord City Democrats and Sen. Christopher Dodd is set to attend the Merrimack County Democrat's St. Patrick's Day dinner on March 17.

* Rep. Dennis Kucinich re-introduced the Department of Peace and Non-Violence Bill yesterday with 52 co-sponsors.

* Rep. Tom Tancredo is stepping down as the chair of the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus, which Tancredo has led since his first Congressional term in 1999.

Here are a few updates on the movements of the Presidential candidates:

• Mitt Romney will officially officially kick off his candidacy on Tuesday, February 13, in his original home state of Michigan, and will then hold a major fundraiser in Boston two days later.

• With his wife concerned about his health — and he himself perhaps concerned about political appearances — Barack Obama has resolved to quit smoking.

• John Edwards has announced that he will opt out of public financing for his campaign in both the primary and general election campaigns.

• Hillary Clinton has confirmed that she will appear at the Nevada Democrats candidate forum scheduled for February 21.

• Mike Huckabee is setting the Iowa Straw Poll in August as a crucial test for his underdog candidacy. Meanwhile, Huckabee's Democratic successor as Governor, Mike Beebe, is considering eliminating or weakening Huckabee's obesity report card program.

• Big-name donors to Tom Vilsack include Vernon Jordan, Warren Buffett and Rutt Bridges.

• Mitt Romney will travel to Michigan tomorrow, where he will deliver a speech on economic policy to the Detroit Economic Club.

• Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty will speak on behalf of John McCain at this Saturday's Michigan state GOP convention.

• While touring Pennsylvania late last month, John Edwards decided to not just talk about energy efficiency — but helped to renovate a retiree supporter's home.

• Barbra Streisand is apparently unable to decide between Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Barack Obama — so she's decided to donate campaign money to all three.

Here are the latest updates on the movements of the Presidential candidates:

• John McCain scored the support of a top religious right figure, picking up former Christian Coalition field director Guy Rodgers, who will serve on the McCain campaign as the Deputy Director of the Americans of Faith coalition.

• Barack Obama may have a controversy on his hands, Ben Smith reports. In a meeting of the Democratic National Committee's Black Caucus on Friday, Illinois Senate President Emil Jones Jr., who is black, told African-American political leaders who were uncertain of whom to support, "How long are you going to owe politicians for past favors?" — and that race alone should guide them to support Obama's candidacy.

• Hillary Clinton will be touring New Hampshire this Friday and Saturday, her first visit to the state in over ten years. Clinton had previously been scheduled to visit last weekend, but cancelled due to the death of her father-in-law.

• Mitt Romney's campaign announced that they are reaching out to modern cyber-campaigning, launching an official campaign Facebook group.

• John McCain has also announced the support of high-ranking state legislators in Romney's original home state of Michigan: Assistant House Minority Leader Kevin Elsenheimer, House Minority Floor Leader Chris Ward, and House Minority Whip Kevin Green, who will serve on McCain's Michigan steering committee.

• Sam Brownback told a crowd of about 240 people in Columbia, South Carolina — including a minister who regularly protests abortions — "I will commit to helping end abortion in America."

• Dennis Kucinich spoke on Sunday to a standing-room only crowd in Dover, New Hampshire, quoting a a line from English Romantic poem, "Where is it now, the glory and the dream?"

• Duncan Hunter travelled to Florida on Saturday, meeting with Sen. Mel Martinez and attending a cookout in the town of Lamont, near Tallahassee

• During his speech before the DNC on Saturday, Tom Vilsack called upon Congress to immediately stop funding the Iraq War.

• Tom Tancredo declared during a visit to Iowa on Saturday that multiculturalism has become "a cultural, political, linguistic tower of Babel," diluting patriotism and national identity in America.

Update: Mitt Romney's campaign announced on Friday the endorsements of three GOP House members from Kentucky: Hal Rogers, Ed Whitfield, and Ron Lewis.

Hillary, Obama and Edwards might have sucked up all the media attention when they spoke before the DNC winter meeting on Friday, but there were four other candidates who got to speak on Saturday, too: Biden, Richardson, Vilsack, and Gravel. To watch Election Central's highlight videos from their speeches, click here.

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Here are a few quick updates on the Presidential candidates and their movements:

* Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney traded barbs yesterday over Hillary's slam of the President over the weekend. Hillary demanded that the President extricate the troops from Iraq rather than passing the war on to his successor. Romney hammered her yesterday while speaking in South Carolina, and Hillary's rapid response team yesterday struck back. Expect much more of this.

* Hillary, meanwhile, has enlisted a new senior spokesperson, Mo Elleithee, who is a veteran of many national campaigns including Bill Bradley's in '00 and Wesley Clark's in '04.

* Draft Newt! A former aide to Newt Gingrich has launched a new effort to draft him for a Presidential run. Gingrich has said that he won't make an '08 decision until Labor Day.

* The Romney campaign is trumpeting the news that it's hired former Iowa House Speaker Brent Siegrist and former First Congressional District candidate Brian Kennedy as advisers to his exploratory committee.

* Sen. John McCain's campaign announced that Dax Swatek is joining the team as a senior advisor to the exploratory committee in Alabama. Swatek recently served as general consultant and campaign manager for Gov. Bob Riley's reelection campaign.

* Speaking at Wake Forest University yesterday, former Sen. John Edwards acknowledged that he may have been too inexperienced when he ran for President in 2004.

* Tom Vilsack's aides announced that he met his 2006 fundraising goal by raising $1.1 million between Nov. 6 and Dec. 31.

* Sen. Chuck Hagel,a rumored '08 candidate, has the least cash-on-hand of the 33 Senators up for reelection in 2008, according to his most recent campaign finance filings.

* Rep. Duncan Hunter spoke in New Hampshire yesterday, focusing on national security, border control, and trade.

Here are some updates on the movements of the Presidential candidates:

* Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani has just hired a consulting firm with ties to Karl Rove, Olsen & Shuvalov, to assist with his exploratory committee.

* Sen. Sam Brownback is set to make his bid for President official in a formal announcement from Topeka, KS on Saturday.

* Former Sen. John Edwards will speak in Iowa City on Saturday about Iraq and other public concerns.

* While both Sen. John McCain and former MA Gov. Mitt Romney held cocktail receptions for fellow Republicans at the RNC's winter meeting on Thursday, former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani was no where to be seen at the annual gathering of GOP movers and shakers.

* Rev. Jesse Jackson, who ran for President in 1988, told CNN that he is all, but certain to endorse Barack Obama in the 2008 Democratic primaries.

* Former WI Gov. Tommy Thompson will be attending events and fundraisers in Nebraska today before heading to Iowa tomorrow to eat pizza with some College Republicans.

* Former IA Gov. Tom Vilsack is attending events in New Hampshire today while Sen. Christopher Dodd will campaign throughout the state's Southern Tier tomorrow.

* Former MA Gov. Mitt Romney will head to Israel next week to speak at a conference on Israel's national security while former Speaker Newt Gingrich and Sen. John McCain will both address the conference via satellite.

Here are a few updates on the movements of the candidates:

* Hillary Clinton will be off to Iraq this weekend, accompanied by Sen. Evan Bayh and GOP Rep. John McHugh.

* John McCain has picked up a key endorsement in South Carolina: Secretary of State Mark Hammond. McCain is also heading to Alabama on Monday, Martin Luther King Day, to attend the inauguration of Republican Governor Bob Riley to a second term. Alabama will holds its primary on Feb. 5, 2008.

* Rudy Giuliani is dismissing the issues raised in his leaked campaign playbook — relating to his liberal social stances and past divorces — saying, "I sure have strengths and weaknesses ... I think that sort of puts me in the same category as just about everybody else that's running."

* Mitt Romney is hard at work burnishing his conservative image today with a vist to the firearms industry's national trade show.

* Tom Vilsack will formally hand over the Governorship to fellow Democrat Chet Culver at Culver's inauguration today, officially becoming the ex-Governor of Iowa. Vilsack will also be resigning as head of the Democratic Leadership Council, to be succeeded by Harold Ford.

* Chris Dodd will be traveling to Iowa today, where he'll campaign and attend Governor Chet Culver's inauguration.

* Rep. Ron Paul, R-TX, has filed papers to run for the GOP nomination for President. Paul was previously the Libertarian nominee for President in 1988.

Update: In down-ticket news in New Hampshire, Democratic Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand announced that he will run against GOP Senator John Sununu. He said his decision was clinched by the DSCC's announced targeting of the race and the decision by former Governor Jeanne Shaheen, who narrowly lost to Sununu in 2002, not to run.

Tom Vilsack has just become the first Democratic Presidential hopeful to call for a block on funding for additional troops going to Iraq. The Sioux City Journal reports that Vilsack called on Congress to withhold funding for escalation, though he stopped short of saying that Congress should defund the current troop presence in Iraq.

Vilsack's move is an interesting one in the context of Presidential politics, since no other candidate has called for a funding block. But it has ramifications in another way, too: It reveals divisions over Iraq among leading "moderate" Dem thinkers.

Vilsack is chair of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council. But, as Atrios notes, Vilsack's call for a funding block puts him directly at odds with another leading light of "moderation," Will Marshall, the head of the Progressive Policy Institute. Marshall has complained that the "activist left" -- which wants a block on funding -- is "out of step with America." As Atrios writes, that would seem to suggest that Marshall believes that DLC chair Vilsack is "out of step with America," too.

From Ned Lamont to Macaca, the internet is clearly gaining in importance with every new campaign season, so we here at Election Central thought it might be helpful to compile a list of blogs covering the 2008 presidential election on the local level. We've pulled together blogs ranging from professional newspapers covering the primaries in their state to lone individuals supporting their candidate of choice. Each offers a unique perspective on the dynamics of the already burgeoning race for the White House in 2008. Take a look.

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Here are some quick updates on the Presidential candidates:

* Tommy Thompson, undoubtedly toward the back of the GOP pack, launched his Presidential exploratory Web site. And to attract some attention, he has pledged to visit Iowa at least once every week.

* John McCain has cornered the market for top GOP donors in South Carolina — the site of his key defeat by George W. Bush in 2000.

* Some bad news for Tom Vilsack: he's enough of an anonymous figure even in his home state of Iowa that people mistake his successor as Governor for him.

* Bill Richardson is heading to Sudan, where he'll try to persuade officials to allow a peacekeeping force in Darfur — and have an ample opportunity to show off his credibility on foreign policy.

* Mike Huckabee's fifth book, From Hope to Higher Ground: 12 STOPS to Restoring America's Greatness, was released yesterday. It's a safe bet that it is a more campaign-related read than his previous release, Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork : A 12-Stop Program to End Bad Habits and Begin a Healthy Lifestyle.

* Potential candidate Chris Dodd's Senate campaign site has a new feature: Asking readers to submit suggestions for new downloads to his iPod.

And on another note:

* Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., told the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel that he's open to the VP nomination. On the one hand, Salazar's presence would be a plus for attracting Latino voters, but on the other hand his open endorsement of Joe Lieberman's independent re-election bid would probably rankle the Democratic base if he were nominated.

It's unfortunately a slow news day for Presidential candidates — most of them are back in Washington today, actually doing their jobs. But there's still some news popping up:

* Mitt Romney took his ceremonial "lone walk" last night, and Democrat Deval Patrick was sworn in today — making Romney officially the former Governor of Masschusetts.

* Hillary Clinton was upstaged at her swearing-in today by her husband, as Bill loudly glad-handed with reporters.

* Mike Huckabee's fifth book, From Hope to Higher Ground: 12 STOPS to Restoring America's Greatness, is being released today. It's a safe bet that it is a more campaign-related read than his previous release, Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork : A 12-Stop Program to End Bad Habits and Begin a Healthy Lifestyle.

* Tom Vilsack is still working hard to nail down his home state, appearing yesterday in Sioux City.

* Tommy Thompson, undoubtedly toward the back of the GOP pack, has pledged to visit Iowa at least once every week.

* Potential candidate Chris Dodd's Senate campaign site has a new feature: Asking readers to submit suggestions for new downloads to his iPod.

And on another note:

* Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., told the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel that he's open to the VP nomination. On the one hand, Salazar's presence would be a plus for attracting Latino voters, but on the other hand his open endorsement of Joe Lieberman's independent re-election bid would probably rankle the Democratic base if he were nominated.

Some updates on the candidates and their movements:

* John Edwards held a town meeting today in New Hampshire at a Porsmouth elementary school — and with more than 800 people showing up, about a quarter of them had to stand outside.

* Tom Vilsack's campaign has scheduled campaign appearances next week — but they're in his home state of Iowa. He'll be working hard to nail down his home state, as current polling shows him trailing.

* Hillary Clinton is on vacation with her husband in the small Caribbean country of Anguilla. She has said she'll make a decision on whether to run after New Year's Day.

* Mike Huckabee, commenting on when he might enter the race, said, "I'm not on anybody else's clock when it comes to making an announcement."

* Barack Obama is on vacation in Hawaii with his family, staying away from the press while he contemplates a final decision about his potential candidacy.

* Mitt Romney is also on vacation with his family, at a Utah ski retreat, making a final decision with his family.

* Newt Gingrich will go to Florida in February to be the keynote speaker for the annual Lincoln-Reagan Dinner for the Republican Party of Lee County (Fort Myers).

Here's a quick rundown on the movements of the 2008 Presidential candidates:

* It's official: Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney will announce that he's running for President as soon as the week of January 8th, a Romney adviser tells the Associated Press. "The timing is somewhat dependent on when Sen. John McCain of Arizona makes an expected announcement about his own campaign for the GOP nomination," the AP says, citing the Romney aide.

* Former Dem Sen. John Edwards will head to Des Moines, Iowa on Dec. 28 to hold a "special town hall" with locals. The visit is expected to be part of a tour of early primary states coinciding with the official announcement of his '08 intentions.

* GOP Sen. Sam Brownback touted his opposition to abortion and gay marriage as proof that he's the only true conservative in the race -- and hence, that he can win -- at a campaign stop yesterday in Spartanburg, SC.

* A group in Oregon has launched its own version of the "Draft Obama" campaign.

* Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, who lost his bid for the Senate in '06, is now seeking an advisory role on a 2008 GOP campaign. Steele has been in contact with each of the GOP campaigns.

* In order to deflect questions about Dem Sen. Joe Biden's staying power in the 2008 race following Sen. Evan Bayh's exit from it, Biden's advisers made sure to leak word that he has raised $5.5 million through September, which they claim is "more new money than most would-be rivals to Clinton and Obama." Biden's aides also let it be known that he will announce an exploratory committee early in the new year.

* Dem Sen. Christopher Dodd (yes, he's thinking of running for President, too) joined other Dem hopefuls by telling reporters yesterday that "there's no need for a so-called surge of some 20,000 to 30,000 troops" in Iraq. That puts him in the company of Hillary Clinton and Tom Vilsack, both of whom have opposed an increase.

Okay, here it is: We've just compiled our massive Election Central chart of every single staff member that's been hired on every one of the 2008 Presidential campaigns. You'll probably never hear the vast majority of them quoted, and will rarely see their names in print, if at all. But they are the ones who will largely determine -- through thousands of choices large and small -- what the 2008 Presidential race will be like. They'll help set the course of the campaign's larger narratives and subplots alike. They'll get the credit if their candidate soars -- and take the blame if he or she sinks. So you should know who they are. We'll be updating the list constantly, with every new hire, so check back whenever you like. And if we've missed anyone, let us know. Meet all of them right after the jump.

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Tom Vilsack, an orphan, has long said he isn't sure of his place of birth or the identity of his parents, but a key part of the mystery has just been solved for the Iowa Governor: He now knows definitively where he was born. In a meeting with the editorial board of the The Quad-City Times, Vilsack revealed that he received a letter last weekend from an administrator at a Pittsburh orphanage informing him that the institution was his place of birth — and that he was welcome to more non-identifying information about his birth parents if he wanted it. “I’m 56 years old, I didn’t know where I was born until Sunday,” Vilsack told the paper. In a poignant postscript, Vilsack also revealed that he hadn't yet decided whether or not to pursue the identity of his parents.

Governor and Presidential hopeful Tom Vilsack is moving aggressively to grab the high-profile meat-packing plant immigration raids as a signature issue, the Des Moines Register reports today. The paper says Vilsack fired off a letter to President Bush demanding info about loved ones arrested in the raid. “To this day, the whereabouts of some of these people are still unknown,” Vilsack wrote. “Considering the hardship this has on their families, silence as to their condition is not acceptable.”

By jumping into the fray on an issue that has riveted the nation, Vilsack, who's seen as a long-shot against higher-profile Dems, is continuing with his strategy of trying to make as much news as he can before Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama eclipse him by officially entering the race. Vilsack has also sought to win attention for his candidacy by speaking out forcefully against John McCain's call for an increase in troops to Iraq.

You can read Vilsack's letter here (PDF). For chapter and verse on the immigration raids, visit TPMmuckraker, which has lots more on this ongoing story.

Tom Vilsack — the funny candidate? Though the Iowa Governor is known more for droning on about farm subsidies than cracking one-liners, Vilsack made an appearance last night on The Daily Show yesterday that proved that he does sport a brisk sense of humor, albeit a low-key, deadpan one. At one point, for example, he worked in a decent crack in his description of his trip to Iraq: "When you go over there it's a scripted trip, but every once in a while there's an unscripted moment — sort of like this show." Jon Stewart rejoined, "Did you just compare our show to Iraq? Because I will have you know there are a lot of stories about this show you don't hear about: The schools I'm building." To watch the full interview, click here.