Iran Opinion: Thoughts on the US De-Listing of the "Terrorist" Mujahideen-e Khalq

Al Jazeera English examines the support of leading US politicians for the Mujahedin-e Khalq, March 2012

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Looking again at President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton, I think that as they fell for the straight-forward lobbying, they had to find a reason to convince themselves that they were doing this for the "greater good".

But what could that be?

Just like I needed to find enough money for my cigarettes, the US is desperate. Washington has repeatedly tried to find ways to somehow find a peaceful solution to Iran's implicit and explicit threats to Israel's security. The thinking in the White House could be, "Maybe if we get the MEK off the list. They can work with the other Iranian opposition groups abroad and maybe…just maybe…there would be some sort of a solution that does not involve Israel bombing Iran's nuclear installations! So let's try something else one more time --- however small the chances."

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US Politics Feature: Why Romney's Tax Returns Could Decide an Election

Vice President Joe Biden, in a speech on Tuesday, calls on Republican Presidential candidate to release his tax returns

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What Democrats are looking for is an issue for Obama to embarrass Romney in October debates.

The Obama team will have watched over and over again Romney's performance in the Republican primary encounters, and they must have noticed his discomfort and indecision when Gingrich went after him over the tax returns. Romney was visibly on the defensive when Gingrich goaded him, and his response of publishing only one year's accounts has allowed Democrats to picture a similar scene in October.

Some commentators might regard this interest in Romney's tax returns as irrelevant or misguided, compared to important matters like the economy. But what both campaigns need is a surprise wedge issue. The longer Mitt Romney allows the perception to fester that he is hiding something about his wealth, the greater the chance that he will hand the Democrats the "buzz" they need to prevail on Election Day.

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US Politics: Santorum Wins Republican Primary in Louisiana (Farnan and Blake)

Rick Santorum's speech in Wisconsin after winning the Louisiana primary

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Rick Santorum won the Louisiana primary on Saturday, boosting his claim as the leader of the conservative wing of the Republican Party even as his odds of beating Mitt Romney in the overall delegate race appear slim.

With nearly 95 percent of precincts reporting, Santorum led Romney 49 percent to 27 percent. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was third with 16 percent and Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) was taking 6 percent.

Santorum said in remarks from Wisconsin, which is one of the next states in the GOP nomination contest, that his victory shows his campaign should keep going.

“This race is long and far from over,” Santorum said.

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US Politics: Romney Wins Big in Illinois (Smith)

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With a decisive win in the Illinois presidential primary, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney sets his sights on the bayou where Louisiana holds the next Republican primary.

"We thank the people of Illinois for this extraordinary victory," Romney told supporters in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg. "Elections are about choices. Today, hundreds of thousands of people in Illinois joined millions of people in this country in this cause."

With 99% of precincts reporting, Romney led former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum by a 47%-to-35% margin. Texas Rep. Ron Paul was running third at 9%, while former House Speaker Newt Gingrich had 8%.

With the victory, Romney was poised to win at least 41 of the 54 delegates up for grabs in the state, giving him a total of 562, according to CNN's estimate. Santorum is second with 249, Gingrich third with 137 and Paul last with 69.

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US Politics Feature: Can Mitt Romney "Seal the Deal" in Illinois for the Nomination?

Today, voters in Illinois get their chance to determine who will win the Republican nomination for the US Presidency.

For the last week, following Rick Santorum's victories in Alabama and Mississippi, a close race has been predicted between him and Mitt Romney, a verdict with which several polls agreed, as the former Pennsylvania Senator began to eat in Romney's large lead in Illinois. That narrative has been called into question, however, by a poll on Monday which gave the front-runner a commanding edge of 45-30 over Santorum. That poll could be wrong, of course, but it does raise the possibility that Romney at last might finally seal the deal for his nomination.

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US Politics Opinion: PACs, SuperPACs, and the Best Elections Money Can Buy

Years ago, an American friend told me that the US had the best police forces that money could buy. He did not appreciate the irony in his statement. I wonder if he would do so, if the statement was applied to politicians and "freedom of speech".

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US Politics Developing: "Desperate End"? Santorum Wins Two Southern Primaries (Hanna/Helton)

Rick Santorum's speech after Tuesday night victories in the Alabama and Mississippi primaries

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Rick Santorum marches forward to the next GOP primary battle with wins in Alabama and Mississippi, throwing cold water on rival Mitt Romney's prediction that his campaign was reaching a "desperate end."

Romney, rejected again by Southern conservatives in the Tuesday primaries, was battling for second place with Newt Gingrich.

The latter had staked his campaign on a Southern strategy after winning South Carolina and Georgia.

In Alabama, Santorum won 35% of the vote. Gingrich and Romney both had 29% --- although Gingrich was about 2,000 votes ahead with 99% of the vote counted -- and Ron Paul had 5%.

With 99% of the vote counted in Mississippi, Santorum had 33%. Gingrich was at 31%, Romney at 30% and Paul at 4%. Romney claimed victory in the caucuses of American Samoa, local officials said, while caucus results in Hawaii had yet to come in.

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US Politics Analysis: How Rick Santorum Can Defeat Mitt Romney

Rick Santorum's campaign ad attacking Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich for supporting "Obamacare"

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Rick Santorum's biggest advantage over Mitt Romney in these next months will be his concentrated attack on the "Big Government" philosophy behind President Obama's economic policies, exemplified in the health care proposals. Santorum can rally Republicans behind the banner of individual freedom in a way that Romney cannot. If this election year is all about the economy, Santorum is beginning to articulate a positive vision of personal economic liberty that transcends the numbers of high unemployment and low growth.

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US Super Tuesday Summary: Romney "Wins", But It's Not Decisive

Mitt Romney addresses supporters in Ohio on Super Tuesday

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I have just spoken with the BBC about last night's contests for the Republican nomination for President --- audio to be posted later this morning --- with the take-away points: 1) Romney may have narrowly won the biggest state, Ohio, but the race goes on; 2) Romney is especially vulnerable, if the supporters of Newt Gingrich move towards Rick Santorum; 3) it's "money" v. "motivation" --- Romney has the bankroll, but Santorum's voters are far more committed in their support.

And 4) The biggest winner on Super Tuesday? Barack Obama.

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Romney wins 5 states, including Ohio; Santorum takes 3; Gingrich nabs Georgia
Paul Steinhauser and Tim Cohen, CNN 

Mitt Romney won five Super Tuesday states including the big prize of Ohio, while Rick Santorum took three states and Newt Gingrich grabbed a vital triumph in Georgia, CNN projected.

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US Politics Snap Analysis: Romney Wins Michigan & Arizona, But the Battle Continues

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Note the significant difference in the stories below about Mitt Romney's narrow victory in the Republican primary in Michigan, his home state, and his more comfortable win in Arizona --- The Washington Post portrays the night as "an important boost" for the former Massachusetts governor, while Al Jazeera English assesses they "will do little to dispel the doubts" about Romney's campaign. Nate Silver of the website 538.com summarises, "Tonight in awkward middle ground between 'huge night for Romney!'narratives and "'boy that was close!' narratives."

The easy conclusion is that Romney did enough to prevent being stuck with a Loser label that cannot be removed but did not do enough to put away his main challenger, Rick Santorum, before the showpiece of "Super Tuesday" next week, in which voters in 10 states will make decisions.

Beyond that, the "safe" analysis might that by Chris Cilizza, published below: "Romney is — as he has been since the day he entered this race — the best funded and best organized candidate in the race. That means that Romney has the operation in place to capi­tal­ize on the boost of momentum that he should get — in terms of media coverage and donor dollars — in the wake of these two victories."

But then again, no analysis has proven "safe" in this Republican campaign....

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