What effect will Bhuttos assassination have on the presidential primaries?
Benazir Bhutto’s tragic death is dominating the news in the United States and could change the mood of the presidential primaries. The improvements on the ground in Iraq and the conclusion of the recent National Intelligence Estimate that Iran has suspended its nuclear weapon programme had made the world seem a much less dangerous place, and the focus of the primaries had shifted to domestic issues. This shift undoubtedly played a role in the rise of Mike Huckabee, the Republican former governor of Arkansas who has no foreign policy experience, and harmed Hillary Clinton, the Democrat with the toughest national security bona fides. The question now is whether Bhutto’s assassination will transform the mood of the electorate in Iowa, who caucus on January third, and push them back towards the candidates they perceive as being strongest on national security issues. If it does, this might be enough to allow Hillary to pull off a come from behind win in Iowa. On the Republican side, the con
