Pawlenty is considered a posiible Republican presidential candidate in 2012.

Ensign had visited Iowa just a few weeks ago, home of the quadrennially important presidential Iowa Caucus.

http://tinyurl.com/n7hnx4

Ensign has been a vocal social conservative and has repeatedly extolled the "sanctity of marriage." He was a harsh critic of former president Bill Clinton and called for Clinton's resignation during the Monica Lewinsky affair.

Ensign visited Iowa just a few weeks ago, a clear indication that he was a rising star in the Republican Party who had presidential aspirations. Those presidential plans are likely gone now.

Political junkies know that presidential electioneering will start in earnest right after the 2010 mid-term elections next year and potential candidates need to start planning now. The perpetual U.S. presidential election is indeed alive and well.

Signs:

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has not stepped away from the political limelight and recently delivered a speech at the conservative Heritage Foundation.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty will not seek reelection next year. Note that Pawlenty was second in line to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin for becoming Sen. John McCain's 2008 vice presidential pick.

Mississippi's Haley Barbour, has scheduled appearances in New Hampshire and Iowa for later this month.

Former House speaker Newt Gingrich is all over the airwaves, most recently calling potential Supreme Court judge Sotomayor a racist (and then backing down).

A recent CNN poll showed Palin, Romney and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee to be leaders of the Republican presidential pack at this time.

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush is also in the mix.

Other possible 2012 presidential candidates:

South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal
Sen. John Thune of South Dakota
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist

This all means, among other things, that new candidate categories need to be created on electapres.com for all the Republican contenders. It appears we will have another wide-open Republican donnybrook for 2012, with none positioned to be the 'anointed one' - at least not yet.

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PHILADELPHIA — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton celebrated another must-win victory Tuesday night in Pennsylvania, with a convincing win over Sen. Barack Obama that she sought to frame not just as a sign of her strength but of Obama’s abiding weakness.

“Maybe the question ought to be, ‘Why can’t he close the deal?’” Clinton said Tuesday morning outside a polling place in Conshohocken, Pa.

In her victory speech, Clinton cast her 10-point margin — larger than late polls suggested — as a pivot.

PHILADELPHIA — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton celebrated another must-win victory Tuesday night in Pennsylvania, with a convincing win over Sen. Barack Obama that she sought to frame not just as a sign of her strength but of Obama’s abiding weakness.

“Maybe the question ought to be, ‘Why can’t he close the deal?’” Clinton said Tuesday morning outside a polling place in Conshohocken, Pa.

In her victory speech, Clinton cast her 10-point margin — larger than late polls suggested — as a pivot.

A new government report predicts when each will go into the red, but the candidates appear reluctant to touch the subject matter.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton pushed back hard yesterday against calls for her to withdraw from the presidential race, with aides saying she remains more determined than ever to remain in the contest until the end of the primary season.

Allies of Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) have sought to increase pressure on Clinton (N.Y.) to drop out of the race in recent days, arguing that, because of his lead in pledged delegates, her only path to the Democratic nomination lies in a divisive campaign that drags to the party's convention Aug. 25-28 in Denver. Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) yesterday offered what may have been the starkest challenge to Clinton from a prominent Obama supporter, saying in an interview with Vermont Public Radio that she should avert a potentially bloody and ultimately futile battle by stepping aside.

Last Tuesday, millions of viewers were riveted by the wrestling match in Ohio and gunfight in Texas between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, not to mention by the unlikely coronation of the conservative bugbear John McCain as the Republican nominee.

Among those watching? Brian Williams, Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric.

Instead of election coverage, NBC ran two hours of “The Biggest Loser” while CBS showed an episode of “Big Brother” and ABC did an hour of “Just for Laughs” along with some other can-miss TV.

It was an “Idol” night on Fox — at least people were voting — so you have to wonder why the other networks didn’t turn their news divisions loose on a huge primary night in the name of civic interest and perhaps a little brand building.