In Illinois, Super Tuesday Will Be Even Bigger

¿ 18th District: Youthful state Rep. Aaron Schock -- he's 26! -- is the favorite to win the three-way Republican primary to replace retiring Rep. Ray LaHood (R) in this downstate district. Democrats have struggled to find a top-tier recruit, so if Schock wins the primary nod, he will be favored to claim the seat in November.

An Insider's View of Florida

Polling in advance of Florida's Republican presidential primary on Tuesday suggests a two-way race between former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and Sen. John McCain (Ariz.).

Jim Greer thinks the polls are wrong.

"The race is still very fluid," said Greer, the chairman of the Florida Republican Party, in an interview with The Fix late last week. "Florida voters have embraced the idea of being independent. This is still a three- or four-man race."

Greer's words are music to the ears of former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, who has cast Florida as a do-or-die contest for his presidential bid, even as polling shows him running a relatively distant third.

"Whereas polls may show he is no longer a player in the race, events and rallies don't support those polls," Greer said of Giuliani. He added that the former mayor has been "more focused on Florida than other candidates."

Asked to handicap the rest of the Republican field, Greer offered these nuggets:

¿ McCain is "reenergized and focused" in the state after his campaign's near-death experience over the summer. "The people with McCain never left him," even in those dark days, Greer added.

¿ Romney boasts a "well-organized ground game" and is concentrating his efforts in the final days of the race on courting the conservative base of the GOP.

¿ Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee has a "segment of the party that is very committed to his candidacy," Greer said. He added, however, that the question for Huckabee is: "Does he have the money to play in Florida?"

Greer, a close confidant of Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R), has a lot riding on an orderly primary come Tuesday. He is a leading candidate to be the next chairman of the Republican National Committee, and in a recent interview, he suggested that the possibility intrigues him.

"You never say never," he said. "The party does need a lot of new energy and a lot of new ideas."

11 DAYS: The annual gathering of the Conservative Political Action Committee opens in Washington. Will conservatives have a nominee to praise or bad-mouth by the time the curtain rises?

33 DAYS: Sen. James Webb of Virginia will serve as the keynote speaker of the Colorado Democratic Party's 75th annual Jefferson-Jackson dinner. Assuming the Democratic nominee is chosen by then, Webb's speech could serve as an audition for vice president.