Rudy Giuliani apparently was feeling the heat of the southern sun today. In South Carolina, home to many abortion opponents, he backed off yesterday's comments to CNN about his support for publicly funded abortions. Yesterday, he said:

"I would have to re-examine all of those issues and exactly what was at stake then -- that was a long time ago," he said. "When I was mayor, adoptions went up, abortions went down. But ultimately, it's a constitutional right, and therefore if it's a constitutional right ... you have to make sure that people are protected."

Pressed if he would support public funding for abortions, Giuliani said, "If it would deprive someone of a constitutional right, yes, if that's the status of the law, then I would, yes."

Rudy today: It should be a state's right issue, with individual states making the call.

"The Legislature of South Carolina should make its decision about that." He also said states should make the decision whether to use public money for abortions.

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I have preached against getting obsessed with the 2008 Presidential election to no avail. So I am going to try quoting Atrios:

As impressive as Obama's polling and fundraising has been, the dominant narrative of this as a battle between Clinton and Obama has been a bit silly. . . . And, yes, it's early and national polls are silly and when I find myself talking about this stuff too much I want to shoot myself in the face.

Let's talk about this instead:

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Arianna Huffington has a good post up today asking why the Democratic contenders for President aren't discussing the second war, the war on drugs?

...a quick search of the top Democratic hopefuls' websites reveals that not one of them -- not Hillary Clinton, not Barack Obama, not John Edwards, not Joe Biden, not Chris Dodd, not Bill Richardson -- even mentions the drug war, let alone offers any solutions.

The silence coming from Clinton and Obama is particularly deafening.

So, let's look to the past. John Edwards put forth this position in 2004.

He also would have us shrink our bloated prison population and return its present members more successfully to society by better distinguishing non-violent drug crimes from other offenses; restoring abandoned treatment and training options; and re-enfranchising those who have done their time.

Yet, he also said:

.... he would not change marijuana laws, and he favors the Justice Department's arresting patients and caregivers who defy federal law.

Hillary addressed the war on drugs in her 2000 Senate campaign:

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For issuing this apology

He murdered my first language.

A lot of money collected by Obama:

Sen. Barack Obama raised at least $25 million dollars during the first quarter for his presidential campaign, a total surprisingly close to the $26 million collected by his chief rival for the Democratic nomination, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. . . . Obama raised $6.9 million—more than a quarter of his total—over the Internet from more than 50,000 online donors, the Illinois Democrat's campaign said from Chicago this morning. Overall, Obama received contributions from more than 100,000 individuals, his campaign said.

The question is this for me - Obama, the political rock star, raised alot of money. Obama the wishy washy pol, the one we have seen on Iraq, will he remain as popular? Will he raise as much money? We'll see.

Some people I know say that if Rudy Giuliani self-destructs or bows out as a GOP presidential candidate, Newt Gingrich will step in. He has said he's open to stepping at some later point in the cycle.

Here's Newt's latest, on bi-lingual education, which he equates with ghetto-living:

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich equated bilingual education Saturday with "the language of living in a ghetto" and mocked requirements that ballots be printed in multiple languages.

"The government should quit mandating that various documents be printed in any one of 700 languages depending on who randomly shows up" to vote, said Gingrich, who is considering seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2008. He made the comments in a speech to the National Federation of Republican Women.

"The American people believe English should be the official language of the government. ... We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto," Gingrich said to cheers from the crowd of more than 100.

He sounds like Tom Tancredo. Now, that's an idea for a frightening ticket combination.

Rep. Tom Tancredo will make it official Monday. He's running for President.

Like other presidential candidates using alternative forums to break the news that they are seeking the Oval Office, Tancredo, the anti-illegal immigration stalwart, is choosing the medium that has given him a home for almost a decade. "We're looking at a day of announcements on talk radio," a source close to the campaign said. "That's where the conservative movement has made its mark. That's where our people get their news."

So, Tancredo supporters get their news from right-wing talk radio, not the Denver Post, the Rocky Mountain News, the New York Times or even conservative blogs. How myopic. Then again, so is his vision for America. Does he even have a position on issues other than immigration?

Bay Buchanan has agreed to serve as Tom Tancredo's chief advisor in his quest for the Republican 2008 nomination.

Tancredo, R-Colo., will announce within two weeks whether he's joining the Republican primary race. He said last week that his exploratory committee had raised $1 million, which he considered an important barometer of his viability.

"He is a hero to conservatives across this country, and I am honored to have the opportunity to be part of what promises to be an exciting campaign," Buchanan said about Tancredo in a statement.

It's hard to pay too much attention to this. Tancredo is, as the article suggests, the ultimate fringe candidate. He's a one trick pony, all about xenophobia.

But we can hope his candidacy will negatively impact the other Republican nomination seekers.

Don't forget to watch "60 Minutes" tonight. John and Elizabeth Edwards will be on.

Update: My thoughts (also expressed in the comments below): I was surprised at how negative Katie Couric was. Everything from her repeatedly asking the same thing to her stern expression seemed off to me. I am wondering whether she was trying to prove she can be a tough interviewer.

The Edwards were great. Composed and very articulate. I don't know how anyone could argue with their decision ... either that it's theirs to make or that it's right for them. Very impressive.

Update: Transcript and video are here.

John and Elizabeth Edwards' decision to continue John's quest for the presidential nomination in light of medical tests returned this week showing she has a second cancer battle to face has brought out a range of reactions.

• The Worst: Rush Limbuagh
• Second Worst: Time Magazine's Jay Carney
• Best: Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake.

  Tune into 60 Minutes Sunday Night to hear more from the Edwards.

The Chicago Tribune has a five page article on Barack Obama's life growing up. Using his book as a guide, the reporters interviewed his schoolmates, friends, teachers and others, both in Hawaii and Indonesia.

I think it's worth the read, particularly for people like me who aren't as familiar with him as the other candidates.

Rudy Giuliani once again re-invents himself to cater to the Republican conservative base. Now he's flip-flopping on gun rights.

As Mayor of New York:

He spoke in favor of a licensing system for gun owners that would require trigger locks and firearms training, and he lobbied Congress to outlaw most military-style assault weapons. He was the only Republican mayor to join a lawsuit by dozens of cities against the gun industry, and he complained that Southern states had lax gun laws that fed the illegal weapons trade in the Northeast.

In his current attempt at recarnation as a presidential contender, he's reversed course:

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