Amid all the hand-wringing among Republican presidential candidates over whether to compete in the Ames, Iowa straw poll on Aug. 11, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas said today that he was in, and in to win. Brownback also challenged Mitt Romney's contention earlier this week that he had effectively won the straw poll two months early.

"I am excited and honored by the opportunity to participate in the Ames Straw Poll and I reaffirm my intention to compete in Ames," Brownback said in a statement. "I look forward to going head-to-head against Mitt Romney. Iowa voters have a great responsibility and have always been influential in choosing the Republican nominee. People deserve to know where a candidate stands, and you don't declare yourself the winner before the game is played."

Brownback, seeking to boost his own social conservative credentials by criticizing Romney's shifts rightward on social issues, also challenged Romney and his other competitors to a series of Iowa debates.

While we're on the subject of fan sites, check out Amigos de Obama, a website (make sure your speakers are on) devoted to promoting the candidacy of Barack Obama to Hispanics.

The site, run by a self-described Mexican-American who was born in East Los Angeles, raised in Utah, and lived in Washington and Chicago, offers its own Obama theme song whose chorus goes "Como Se Dice / Como Se llama? OBAMA! OBAMA!" (How do you say it / What's his name / Obama! Obama!) You can even download it as a cell phone ring tone.

"Barack Obama represents a defining moment for our generation," the site says. "We have an opportunity to be agents of change and bring awareness to the Latino community.

If Mitt Romney's Iowa organization doesn't win the Ames straw poll in August, maybe this will. (Hat tip to Ann Marie and the rest of the gang at the Elect Romney in 2008 blog.)

It's official: Rudy Giuliani will not compete in the influential Republican straw poll in Ames, Iowa in August. Today's Des Moines Register has the story.

The news is not entirely surprising, as Giuliani's campaign has hinted that it may bypass Ames and focus its energy in Iowa on doing well in the caucuses. But it is a gamble. Will Iowa Republicans forgive him, or will they consider it a snub?

As the Globe reported recently, Giuliani's leading competitors -- especially Mitt Romney -- are making a concerted effort to win Ames and perform well in the caucuses.

UPDATE: Arizona Senator John McCain announced this afternoon that he, too, would skip the Ames poll in light of Giuliani's announcement. McCain's campaign sent out a statement from campaign manager Terry Nelson saying: "In light of today's news, it is clear that the Ames Straw Poll will not be a meaningful test of the leading candidates' organizational abilities, so we have decided to forego our participation in the event."

The relevance of the Ames event -- indisputed in past Republican primary cycles -- now looks very much in question, with some pundits and aides to other candidates saying the poll is quickly losing its meaning.

John McCain has already gotten it from all sides on his new Senate immigration bill. Now he's getting it from Rudy Giuliani, too.

The former New York mayor, whose criticism of the bill had been muted, had harsh words for the plan in tonight's debate. Giuliani said the bill contained too many compromises and that "it is quite possible that it will make things worse." Giuliani said that he was concerned about, among other things, the lack of a uniform database of non-citizens in the United States.

McCain responded as he usually does -- by challenging his opponents to craft something better, and by arguing that leadership sometimes involves making sacrifices and compromises.

"It's our job to do the hard things," McCain said.

Mitt Romney, a persistent critic of McCain's immigration bill, reiterated his opposition to an aspect of the legislation that would establish a special visa for the estimated 12 million immigrants living the country illegally.

Just a thunderstorm or a sign from above?

Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, a Catholic, was just answering a question about his support for abortion rights, and the harsh criticism that position has drawn from a Rhode Island bishop. Then lightning struck right as he began, cutting off his mike. Moderator Wolf Blitzer of CNN reassured the candidates that it was merely lightning, but those next to Giuliani on stage moved away from him anyway.

"As someone who went to parochial schools all his life, this is a very frightening thing," Giuliani joked, before reiterating his position that he believes abortion is wrong but that the government shouldn't impose that view on women.

The lightning continues, but so far Rudy is still standing.

Much like the Democratic debate Sunday night, the opening minutes of the GOP debate in New Hampshire tonight have been dominated by Iraq.

Arizona Senator John McCain said that, like Senator Hillary Clinton, he did not read a comprehensive National Intelligence Estimate briefing on Iraq before authorizing the war. Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas said he didn't remember reading it. US Representative Duncan Hunter of California, however, said he did read it. The question is significant because the NIE contained many caveats about the threat posed by Iraq and then-president Saddam Hussein.

Brownback also said that tomorrow he would introduce a political plan for Iraq that mirrors what Senator Joe Biden of Delaware, a Democratic presidential candidate, has proposed: dividing the country intro three distinct regions -- one Sunni, one Shia, and one Kurdish.

"Iraq is more three groups held together by exterior forces," he said.

Senator Hillary Clinton should be enjoying her New England spring.

A new New Hampshire poll released today shows her leaping well above the rest of the field after what was widely interpreted as a strong performance in the Democratic candidates' debate in Manchester on Sunday. The Franklin Pierce College/WBZ poll of 424 likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire found that 38 percent said they would vote for Clinton if the ballot were today, to 16% for Barack Obama and 13% for John Edwards.

That's a lead of 22 percentage points for Clinton, far higher than the seven-point lead she held in the last poll by the same outfit in March. The latest survey was conducted on Monday, the day after the debate. And the results suggest that Clinton's performance in the debate was a factor in her surge -- 45 percent of those surveyed said they felt Clinton won the debate, to just eight percent for Obama and four percent for Edwards.

Clinton also has done well with New England endorsements this week. On Monday, she won the endorsement of Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino. And today she earned another round of endorsements in Massachusetts, securing the support of Suffolk Sheriff Andrea Cabral and 11 state legislators.

On Wednesday night, Menino will join Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, at a fundraising event in Boston's Back Bay area.

Of course, the New York senator might not want to emphasize that the Yankees took two out of three from the Red Sox over the weekend.

By Peter S. Canellos, Globe Staff

GILFORD, New Hampshire - John McCain's town meeting at the Gilford fire station this morning offered more proof, if any is needed, that the onetime maverick is now suffering the fate of other senators who've run for president.

The lion's share of his remarks were devoted to explaining intricate details of the immigration bill and the Iraq troop surge, punctuated by several testy defenses of the legislative process.

"Do I think it's perfect? No," McCain said of the immigration bill, the air whistling through his clenched teeth. "May I remind you that the Democrats are in the majority in both houses and so we have to work with them?"

But during the question-and-answer period, some of the old spontaneous McCain re-emerged. The biggest surprise was a suddenly passionate denunciation of the practice of presidents filling their cabinets with members of their own party.

"In my opinion, the last president of the United States who went out and got the best and brightest was John F. Kennedy," McCain thundered, seemingly unaware that author David Halberstam had used the term "best and brightest" to ridicule the Kennedy team. "I will go out and get the best people regardless of party affiliation."

The place most in need of such a meritocratic appointee? The Pentagon, McCain declared, bemoaning the billions of dollars wasted on poorly functioning or obsolete weapons systems.

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino is endorsing Senator Hillary Clinton for president in 2008, saying he believes she will represent best the interests of "America's cities."

The Globe's Donovan Slack quotes Dot Joyce, Menino's spokeswoman, as saying that Clinton has "long been a supporter of America's cities and will bring the urban agenda back to the table."

See Slack's full account.