Blue Radar

As I post each morning, here are some of the political stories thatmight not be worthy of their own posts, but are nonetheless newsworthy:

• GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney now leads in Iowa and New Hampshire.  But Romney is struggling to gain ground in South Carolina.  According to Politico, the unease in South Carolina mostly stems from a "concern among the state's social conservatives because Romney is from liberal Massachusetts."
• An unidentified Republican Senator has secretly placed a hold on a bipartisan bill designed to strengthen the Freedom of Information Act by increasing the public's access to government information.  Here is the bill itself.
• The Alabama Department of Homeland Security has taken down a web page that had listed anti-war protesters, environmental activists and gay rights demonstrators as terrorists.
• CBS News correspondent Gloria Borger is predicting a massive wave of resignations in the House of Representatives because of a new bill that penalizes lawmakers that receive favors from special interests -- and all of this would be disclosed to the public.  "Watch for mass resignations from House members, who are now saying theycan’t afford to live here unless they’re bought and paid for bylobbyists," said Borger.
• The problem that Barack Obama will run into between now and January is the perception that he lacks experience.  In New Hampshire, Barack's wife Michelle fired back: "I know experience is important, right? But experience without the sort of moral compass is not enough."
• Barack Obama announced on Sunday a proposal that would increase the amount of mental health services for veterans.  The plan was unveiled during a speech at a middle school gym in New Hampshire.  "We cannot expect our young men and women to serve in our armed forces,if we are not making sure they get the treatment they deserve," said Obama.  "That should be part of the sacred pact we make with our veterans."  The plan would include a massive increase in the amount of health screening and the quality of treatment, and a rule that no veteran can be denied benefits due to previous conditions.
• This weekend, former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card received an honorary degree during the commencement ceremony at the University of Massachusetts.  Hundreds of protesters, including both students and faculty, held up signs and booed him.

If we left anything out, feel free to add any stories in the commentbox.