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a task force of agencies, including the FBI, ATF, the Orange County Sheriff's Office and the California Department of Forestry will announce shortly that the massive Santiago Canyon Fire - which has caused an estimated $10 million in damage - is being officially declared an arson, and a $50,000 reward is being offered to find the arsonist. 

“One reason why we have the fires in California is global warming,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters Tuesday, stressing the need to pass the Democrats’ comprehensive energy package.

Moments later, when asked by a reporter if he really believed global warming caused the fires, he appeared to back away from his comments, saying there are many factors that contributed to the disaster.

Monday, the House voted on HR 189, which establishes the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, in the city of Paterson, New Jersey.  Normally this wouldn’t raise many eyebrows, but the manner this legislation was forced through is just too much to overlook.

In 2006 the National Park Service (NPS) stated in a survey that “the Great Falls Historic District meets the criterion for national significance, but does not meet criteria for suitability, feasibility, or need for NPS management.”  Despite the objections of the NPS it was pushed through the Committee on Natural Resources.  Not only does it defy the NPS recommendations and place 109 acres under federal control, but it assures that millions of taxpayer funds will be funneled into this region of New Jersey.

How could something so blatantly counterproductive be forced onto the floor you ask?

… John Lawrence, Chief of Staff for Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Paterson, NJ native.  Mr. Lawrence sat in during the Committee hearings regarding H.R. 189, he also was recognized by Chairman Rahall, saying “there is another distinguished visitor present who happens to be the Chief of Staff to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. John Lawrence, who must call this his hometown, I believe, and has been back there nodding very strongly ‘yes’ to everything that the gentleman from New Jersey has been saying.” 

All the while,  the majority leaders wonder why their approval rating is so low.

M Charles Bakst:  “If the devil said you can be president if you become a Sox fan, would you do it? He laughed and declared:”  

Giuliani: “I’m a Yankee fan. My father made me a Yankee fan probably before I was born. I always believe it’s a sign of my being straight with people, about not wanting to fool them, that I was one of the first mayors to be willing to say I was a Yankee fan. Most mayors pretended they rooted for both sides. I have great respect for Mets fans, Red Sox fans. I have great respect for people who really are fans of the team they say they are fans of. But probably that’s a deal I could not make.”  (M. Charles Bakst, “Giuliani On Abortion, War, Baseball,” The Providence Journal, 7/7/07)

The 59-38 vote on confirmation was sealed after the nomination survived its main obstacle, a test tally moments earlier. Majority Democrats pressured by labor unions and other constituencies did not have the votes to filibuster, or block, Southwick's confirmation.

Every movement or media phenomenon starts with amateurs improvising. But at some point it has to be professionalized if it’s going to be sustained and grow. The new progressive movement started with guys like Atrios, who then got picked up by Media Matters. Dozens of lefty bloggers are employed by the new lefty infrastructure. As far as I know, Erick Erickson at Red State, and possibly my Townhall co-bloggers MKH and Matt Lewis, are the only ones employed full time by the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, Blog Division, who aren’t primarily journalists and as such have real freedom of action.

Like a kid who always does his homework and always raises his hand in class, Mitt Romney's ambition and organization have both an upside and a downside. 

At least that's what I gleaned from my conversation today with Ed Failor, a top Iowa Republican activist.

Failor believes that when the post-Iowa stories are written, reporters and pundits will take into consideration the massive amount of money Romney has spent in building an organization that -- for the first time ever -- goes all the way down to the county level.

“If he is the Republican nominee, I support Mitt Romney.  But I just think he is the guy most at risk to take the biggest hit on Prom night, because he has spent so much more money than everyone else," says Failor.

Failor also believes people could be surprised by Mike Huckabee -- or possibly even Rudy Giuliani.

But even if one of these men comes in second to Mitt Romney, the expectations are now set that Romney has spent so much time and energy in Iowa that the candidate who finishes in second-place should still be far behind Romney.  In short, it's not enough for Romney to win; he has to devastate his opponents.  That's setting the bar pretty high.

The theory is that by working so hard in Iowa, Romney may have inadvertently created a situation in which there is little upside to winning, and where finishing second would be devastating.

Let's suppose Mike Huckabee, for example, finishes close behind Romney, in second place, while spending a fraction of the money.  Huckabee's team might then spin the results and argue they actually won Iowa.  Of course, if this were effective, it might also diminish the bump Romney would receive coming out of the state ...

Using a sports analogy, Failor tells me:  

“Due to the amount of money Romney has spent, he’s sort of Muhammad Ali and the rest of them are Jerry Quarry -- and if Quarry lasts all 15 rounds, Ali’s not the champ.”

Is there such a thing as working too hard?  Maybe.  By raising expectations, Mitt Romney may have created an atmosphere in which a mere win may not be satisfying...

Update: I've received some emails asking about Ed Failor.  He is the Executive Vice President for a conservative group called Iowans for Tax Relief.  Previously, he served as an advisor to the McCain campaign, but left the campaign this summer.