According to a report from the Washington Post:

The U.S. Secret Service expects to borrow more than 2,000 immigration officers and federal airport screeners next year to help guard an ever-expanding field of presidential candidates, while shifting 250 of its own agents from investigations to security details.

Burdened by the White House’s wartime security needs, the persistent threat of terrorism and a field of at least 20 presidential contenders, the Secret Service was showing signs of strain even before the Department of Homeland Security ordered protection for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as of May 3, the earliest a candidate has ever been assigned protection in an election season.

Its $110 million-plus budget for campaign protection — two-thirds more than the record $65 million it spent for the 2004 election — was prepared when the service did not expect to be guarding Obama or anyone else until January. The agency has already been forced to scale back its efforts to battle counterfeiting and cybercrime.

Today the continued furor over radio personality Don Imus’ racial slur on air grew with MSNBC & CBS Radio announcing a two week suspensions that, oddly, doesn’t start for another week. Do they not understand the idea behind suspension?

Anyway I only mention it because it has ‘08 implications. Many people including Sen. Joe Biden & Sen. John McCain regularly call into the show and praise the radio host. Sen. Chris Dodd actually announced his candidacy for the presidency on Imus’ show.

As more details about Imus’ past racialy insensitive material comes out, the calls for his ouster and for ‘08 candidates to disavow him will only grow. One very disturbing recount came from former Secretary of Defense William Cohen who is married to a black woman and was on the receiving end of some wretchedly insensitive and very racist jokes and comments by Imus awhile ago.

Howard Stern, no stranger to controversy, today recounted stories about Imus referring to black people outright by the N Word in the halls of the radio station they both worked in at one time. Sen. John McCain & former Gov. Mike Huckabee both affirmed that they accepted his apology and would be back on the show.

I do have one pretty big thought on this subject and I will try to keep it less about my opinion and more an open question.

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- Tech Digest says that Edward’s camp isn’t getting the whole micro-blogging/twitter deal.

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- Ramesh Ponnuru at National Review Online takes a look at Giuliani’s abortion philosophy. Meanwhile Giuliani continues to explain his belief that 1) Abortion is wrong and he is against it 2) Woman have the right to chose 3) states should decide if they want to fund abortions. This is while he campaigns to try and bring conservatives into his camp.