Presidential candidates you've never heard of.

The Negotiator:Say what you want about Bill Richardson, but he must tell great stories at cocktail parties. The former United Nations ambassador, congressman, and energy secretary has hyped his diplomatic experience from the start, but today he finally unveiled his best photo-op—and it's with Saddam Hussein.

In his new ad, "Only One," Richardson dusts off old footage of him and Saddam negotiating the release of two American contract workers who inadvertently crossed the border into Iraq, a move that at the time earned him a glowing write-up in the Washington Post.

The ad manages to tout Richardson's record without reading from a laundry list of accomplishments like Richardson's semi-funny job interview spots. The wife of one of the rescued workers makes an indirect dig at Richardson's rivals: "He's the only one that was willing to, to leave his family, his wife behind, travel to a dangerous section of the world, for two men he didn't even know." Richardson has been touting a similar message with his Iraq withdrawal policy—that he's the only one willing to take the political risk of making the case for an immediate withdrawal (if you ignore Kucinich and Gravel). Moreover, if Richardson can successfully get two men out of Iraq while Saddam is still in power, the spot implies, then he can get 130,000 troops out of Iraq with the dictator gone.

The ad will run in New Hampshire and Iowa, where Richardson continues to linger in fourth place.

Update:  Astute reader Kari Chisholm alerted us that this isn't the first time Richardson has told this story.  Richardson ran a very similar ad during his New Mexico gubernatorial campaign in 2002.

Posted by Chadwick Matlin, Oct. 22, 6:50 p.m. (link) ( discuss) ( tips)

The Great Blog Crisis of 2008: Last week, the campaign blogosphere birthed twins. Or at least it sounded that way. The New Republic introduced The Stump, while Newsweek revealed Stumper, both of which will chronicle the ups, downs, lefts, rights, bumps, swerves, and occasional multicar pileups of the 2008 presidential race.

Sure, their names sound similar. But given the saturation level of campaign coverage, it's a miracle they were able to find original names at all. Just look what's been taken already:

The Caucus, The Trail, The Fix, The Swamp, Swampland, The Stump, Stumper, The Page, The Note, The Gaggle, Campaign Spot, Campaign Standard, Campaign Desk, The Primary Source, Primary Monitor, The Politicker, Political Ticker, Political Radar, Political Insider, Politalker, Politics West, Playbook, On Call, Hot Off the Trail, Horse Race (here and here), Campaign Journal, Campaign Desk, Top of the Ticket, Trailhead, Trail Mix (here and here), First Read, Decision08Blog, Indecision 2008 Blog,  2008 Central, Election Central, Off the Bus, Ballot Box. And our favorite: Examining Presidential Politics.

The fact is, naming your blog is a painful process, mostly because there aren't many good names left. (Just ask Slate's Michael Weiss.) So for anyone out there still planning to join the fracas, we compiled a comprehensive list of leftover blog names. Some are rejects from our own pile, others we heard tossed around elsewhere. Feel free to use any and all. Just don't expect to avoid ridicule:

'08 Ball, '08 Track, El Ocho, The Runner, On the Run, Election Watch, Election Trail, Trail Watch, Trail Stalker, The Trailer, The Decider, The Countdown, The Bus Stop, The Race, The Stage, The Podium, The Lectern, The Platform, The Swinger, The Gaffe, The Chad, The Smear, The Campaigner, On the Trail, Off the Trail, On the Road, Off the Road, On the Bus, Trailblazer, Trailbreaker, Trailbuster, Trail Junkie, Trail Fiend, Trail Addict, Trail Hound, Poliwog, Poliwag (also a Pokemon), Party Time, Pary Line, Finish Line, Ballot Stuffer, Race Space, Racebook, The Political Theater, The Washington Read, Blogger of Campaigns, Blog or Die, Stumpy, Stump'd.