Elex 2008: Real and Personal

As I tracked the latest GOP presidential debate, I thought, "This is getting personal." The level of heat in this and the last Democratic debate shows that people are trying to use muscle while they can before the third and fourth and fifth place candidates begin to lose all hope.

Today, we talked politics with James Taylor, an associate professor of political science at UCLA, and Mark Sawyer, an associate professor of politics at the University of San Francisco. We got into why the attacks are seeming more personal, and whether the issues of voters of color will be addressed adequately.

Coming up on Monday is the Iowa Brown and Black Presidential Forum, featuring the Democratic candidates. Dan Rather, PBS's Ray Suarez, and NPR's own Michele Norris moderate.

Considering that Iowa is 92 percent non-Hispanic white, it might not be the most representative state for American diversity. But they have dibs on the early slot in Election 2008. And finally, they're getting close: the Iowa Caucus and the state primaries, that is.

This presidential campaign has been chugging along for almost a year now ... BEFORE any voters get to indicate their choices. Now, it's crunch time. All the also-rans or almost-coulds are going to try hard to get traction before they're swept to the side. All of us in the news game are planning what we can bring to the table that keeps our listeners/readers/viewers engaged.

So: what do you need? What do you want to learn? What hasn't been covered? Who do you want to hear from?

Before you know it, we'll be well into the land of primaries and then nominees and then... the race for the winner.

Farai Chideya

Tags: Election 2008