The war in Iraq has begun to take center stage with the big hearings in Congress. The Democrats’ tooth and nail battle continues in Pennsylvania. And the blogosphere continues to boil with political posts galore. Here’s our linkfest taking you to some of them on weblogs of differing opinions. Links do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Moderate Voice or its writers.

BARACK OBAMA FACES A PUBLIC FINANCING QUANDARY – or does he?

WHAT’S THE BIGGEST THREAT TO POLITICAL CANDIDATES? Can it be a hand-held lie detector? Bob McCarty writes:

Imagine the practical benefit to voters if presidential candidates — Democrat and Republican alike — are monitored by hand-held lie detectors each time they speak in public. Americans would no longer have to struggle to determine whether or not a candidate is being truthful.

While experts warn that this device is not 100 percent accurate, I’m willing to risk a few “false positives” — or “false negatives,” depending upon how you look at it — when it comes to scrutinizing the endless stream of pledges and campaign promises made by presidential candidates.

McCarty believes this should be troubling news for Democratic Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. But we could expand this list and say it could ALSO mean sleepless nights for Senator John McCain as well and also Ralph Nader, President George Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, anyone involved in White House or governmental agency spin operations, members of both houses of Congress of both parties, fire-breathing talk show hosts of the left and right — and actor William Shatner if he’s asked about whether it’s his real hair.

SHOULD JOHN McCAIN PICK SECRETARY OF STATE RICE AS HIS VEEP? The Glittering Eye thinks it would a huge mistake and here’s why.

AND WHAT SOURCING WAS BEHIND THE RICE AS POSSIBLE VEEP STORY, ANYWAY? Pundit Guy has an interesting theory.

WHO SHOULD OBAMA PICK AS HIS VICE PRESIDENT? Here’s one idea.

HILLARY CLINTON WANTS THE U.S. TO BOYCOTT THE OLYMPIC CEREMONIES: Steve Clemons calls it “wrong headed.”

IS JOHN McCAIN THE NOT-READY-FOR-PRIME-TIME CANDIDATE: Obsidian Wings writes:

For one, he’s extremely undisciplined. With virtually no pressure on him at all, he’s already offered a series of troubling gaffes. He’s also prone to — as Kaus says — “reflexive righteous blunderbuss denials” that often get him in more trouble than the original accusation. Third, he’s a horrible speaker. Finally, his fundraising operation has not only been anemic, it’s based on the models of the past.

He’s been able to get away with all this largely because he has yet to come under sustained scrutiny. Yes, he won the Republican nomination, which is no small feat. But he won it in the most untested way possible. He was written off for a year and then charged at the very last minute as Rudy collapsed and Huckabee surged.

Some will dispute parts of that analysis (what ELSE in election year?). But McCain has two things going for him (1) a big reservoir of good-will built up over the years among independent voters and others who admired his 2000 “Maverick Version” campaign and (2) the fact that the TV camera adores him and he comes across well and likable on the tube. The question: in the general election will McCain try to appeal more to independents and centrists or will his campaign (informally advised by Karl Rove) be another “mobilization election” aimed at getting the GOP’s conservative base out at the expense of appealing to the country’s center?

SOME LOOK AT THE WAY THE CLINTON CAMPAIGN AND SAY IT BEGS A VOTE AGAINST HER: Here’s one example.

BUT WHAT ABOUT OBAMA? IS HE PANDERING ON GUNS? Taylor Marsh thinks he is.

ELIZABETH EDWARDS HAS COME OUT FOR HILLARY CLINTON’S HEALTH CARE PLAN: Details are HERE. This has political types now speculating if this means (a) The Edwardses will endorse Clinton, (b) Mrs. Edwards will endorse Mrs. Clinton OR (c) if this means John Edwards will endorse Obama and Elizabeth Edwards will endorse Clinton. Will a split endorsement carry as much weight as an endorsement from the couple? And if the results of the Pennsylvania vote give Clinton or Obama a greater advantage, will the Edwardses endorsement then mean that much?

WHY SUPER-DELEGATES EXIST: Read this backgrounder at Campus Progress.

IS THE MILITARY VOTE IN THE BAG FOR JOHN McCAIN? There are indications that it is not and that has sparked a big debate on ever-polarized blogs.

JEWISH-AMERICANS AND CAMPAIGN 2008: My DD’s ever-thorough Jonathan Singer (who was briefly a TMV coblogger before he joined his present site) looks at the issue, gives some numbers and concludes:

There is little evidence to support the notion that Jewish American voters are unwilling to support Obama, and in fact it appears that Jewish Americans who are Democrats are divided by about the same margin as their party as a whole when it comes to choosing between Obama and Clinton.

Read it all since his conclusion is backed up with polling data. With a name like “Gandelman” I am Jewish and in my trips to the East Coast and with talks relatives and friends I find the Jewish vote most assuredly is not monolithic on Obama OR Clinton.

DO BIG CAMPAIGN RALLIES MEAN VICTORY IN NOVEMBER? Not necessarily…

IS THERE A GAP BETWEEN OBAMA’S PUBLIC AND PRIVATE RHETORIC? New England Republican sees one.