The bad economy, Democrats’ terrible political handling of health care reform and an unusually high number of positions up for election allowed a wave of Republican governors to be swept into office across the country last year. Yet this wave of success, and the poor economy which enabled it, could become a real political headache for the GOP in 2012 as the try to take the White House.

The sorry economic conditions for the young and educated could have political implications for President Obama who depended on this age group in the 2008 election to not only come out and vote for him but also work as volunteers on the campaign.

John Thune (R-SD) has been rather publicly examining a potential 2012 presidential run for a while, but today, the Republican Senator announced he will not seek the nomination. Thune was viewed as the preferred choice among several party insiders and therefore a “legitimate candidate,” despite the fact that early polling had him trailing most other nominees.

The issue of race in this presidential campaign is one we talk around, or whisper about, or don’t discuss publicly at all. Or, as with some McCain supporters, the issue of race is used as an ugly bludgeon in the spirit of Jim Crow. But AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka is taking the issue head on.