Obama in New Hampshire, Potential Challengers in D.C.

As the Republican presidential prospects arrive in Washington, D.C. for
tonight’s CNN debate focused on national security, President Obama will
travel to New Hampshire to push Congress to extend the payroll tax cut,
according to The Hill.

“The
White House brushed off suggestions the president’s trip to the Granite
State, which holds the nation’s first presidential primary in seven
weeks, was being made with an eye toward 2012… New Hampshire will be
an important swing state next year. Obama won it by nine points in 2008,
but Romney is practically a favorite son. He was governor of
neighboring Massachusetts, owns a summer home in the Granite State and
is campaigning heavily to win its primary… As it stands, the payroll
tax cut and other provisions, like a patch for the Alternative Minimum
Tax and benefits for the unemployed, are set to expire at year’s end.”