Clinton Dominates, Romney Slips in Early-State Races, Poll Says

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Hillary Clinton is dominating the Democratic field among working-class and older voters in early primary states, while Republican Fred Thompson is making inroads among religious voters, particularly in the South and at the expense of rival Mitt Romney. From Bloomberg:

A Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll conducted this month in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina reveals strengths and weaknesses for each candidate within powerful voting groups. Polling trends in these states are closely watched because they plan to hold the nation’s first voting contests next January.

In all three states, New York Senator Clinton, 59, appeals to individuals in households earning less than $40,000 as well as those over the age of 65. Illinois Senator Barack Obama, 46, her main rival for the Democratic nomination, fares better among younger voters in Iowa.

“Clinton’s demographics are just what you want, because it is in fact older voters who actually exercise their vote more,” said Steffen Schmidt, a political science professor at Iowa State University in Ames. Her association with “universal health care probably is very important” to lower-income workers, he said.

In Iowa, where Clinton is locked in a tight race with Obama and former North Carolina Senator John Edwards, 37 percent of Democratic voters 65 and older support her, far more than her two rivals.

Giuliani: Mafia Film Buff, Mob Buster

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Rudy Giuliani clearly has a love/hate thing when it comes to the Mafia: celebrates the fictional characters, incarcerates the felonious ones, keeps mum about those in his own family tree – so says the Associated Press. More:

The former federal prosecutor is both film buff and mob buster, still breaking out his raspy Don Corleone impression and quoting lines from “The Godfather” more than two decades after busting up the New York mob’s ruling hierarchy.

But Giuliani spent a lot more time — he once estimated 4,000 hours — listening to the bugged conversations of real Mafiosi than channeling Marlon Brando’s chipmunk-cheeked boss. And long before anyone heard of Tony Soprano (yes, Rudy’s a fan), Giuliani was jailing “Fat Tony” Salerno after the 1986 “Commission” trial.

Giuliani’s mob fascination — including a reported link in his own family — has already surfaced during the presidential campaign, although few expect much political fallout from the occasional “Godfather” parody. But it provides a glimpse into his career path from prosecutor to mayor to presidential candidate.

When he arrived as U.S. attorney in 1983, the chance to take on the mob was an offer Giuliani could not refuse.

While many Italian-American public figures avoided the word “Mafia,” saying it reinforced stereotypes, Giuliani used it repeatedly at news conferences. “By using the word Mafia correctly,” he insisted, “you actually help to end the unfair stereotype.”