Like most political junkies, those of us in the HEO family are HUGE fans of National Journal's Hotline. It is consistently on the cutting-edge of providing us with political information and resources.

One such resource is the Blogometer. It's a quick and easy way to find out what's going on in the political blogosphere. But like any endeavor, there's only so much they can cover -- and so many bloggers they can feature. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. With that in mind, we bring you (drum roll, please) ... Rightometer!

Every day at 11 am (we hope), we will be posting a synopsis of the best blogs coming out of the conservative movement.

We won't cover every topic, but we will strive to be a quick and easy way for you to keep up with the conservative blogosphere.

Here goes ...

THE TALENTED MR. FOX

The Corner's Ramesh Ponnuru sets the record straight on the Michael J. Fox stem cell ads in MO: "(Senator Jim) Talent favors expanding research on stem cells taken from adults' cells and from umbilical-cord blood ... It is true that Talent opposes expanding federal funding for some types of stem-cell research that Fox favors, but as stated Fox's claim is, as I said, flatly untrue."

Leaning Straight Up points out that (in the past) Fox has deliberately enhancing his symptoms. He quotes from Michael J. Fox's own site: "I had made a deliberate choice to appear before the subcommittee without medication."

GAY MARRIAGE TO THE RESCUE?

Bull Dog Pundit poses that question this morning at Ankle Biting Pundits. A ruling is expected today from the New Jersey Supreme Court. Will it "turn the tide" for the GOP? "If the court, like its brethren on the MA Supreme Court, forces the state to allow gay marriage by judicial fiat it could energize the social conservative base across the country that the GOP needs in order to hold on to Congress. And what will be ironic is that many social conservatives feel the GOP only listens to them at election time, but they may again pull the GOP’s chestnuts from the fire on Election Day if the court imposes gay marriage."

Lorie Byrd at Wizbang says most Democrats don't deliver on their gay marriage promises: "Glenn Reynolds notes that in spite of Andrew Sullivan's siding with the Democrats over the issue of gay marriage, he has not gotten much for it. Glenn's quotes from John Kerry on the subject are startling when you consider how much support the Democratic party gets from those in support of gay marriage."

GOT MORE HOOKS THAN MADONNA'S GOT LOOKS?

At Hillary Watch, Amanda Carpenter weighs in on NY senate candidate John Spencer's accusation that Hillary Clinton had plastic surgery. According to Carpenter, Hillary's appearance has changed over the years. She's "morphed from mousy brunette to heavily-coiffed bleach blonde, traded in her coke-bottle glasses for fake blue lenses and hired the best stylists money could buy to make herself presentable to the American people."

Right Angle's Rob Bluey says Spencer's comments were politically smart: "Frankly, I agree completely with Spencer's strategy -- if this is, in fact, his strategy ... he's finally getting national exposure," and "attacking Hillary is popular with conservatives. What better way to raise a few bucks and fire up the base than this?"

IF WE LOSE THE MAJORITY THIS IS WHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH

Daniel McKivergan of the Weekly Standard comments on speculation that Nancy Pelosi would not allow Jane Harmon to become chairman of the House Intelligence Committee: "It isn’t because Harmon isn’t qualified. She’s one of the most articulate and thoughtful Democrats on national security. No, Pelosi won’t appoint Harmon because she isn’t partisan enough.

'I LIKE FOOTBALL AND I LIKE GIRLS'

Erick over at Red State has posted video of Harold Ford (D-TN) admitting he attended a Playboy Party. Erick also brings up Harold Ford's (D-TN) interesting family: "Harold's father was booted from Congress because of ethics issues ..."

WE'RE WATCHING

Red State also takes note of which safe Republican leaders haven't been donating to the party committees. He warns: "We should remember them and, should we lose the House or Senate, we should really remember them."

John Hawkins at Right Wing News asks, "Why aren't more Republican politicians contributing money to campaigns in need?" He says if liberal bloggers can make waves, so should conservatives: "It only makes sense, right? But, if we're going to do it, the first thing we need is a list of candidates. Never fear, because I'm about to provide a list for you."

ARE WE DEAD OR NOT?

That's the question Mary Katharine Ham is asking this morning on Townhall: "We're rebounding. There's a tide a-turning!"

... And Red State's Leon H. Wolf sees good news in the LA Times/Bloomberg poll: "This most recent batch of polls confirms my general sense that when the dust clears on election night, we'll have 52 Republican Senators (losing PA, RI and OH, keeping TN, MO, VA, and MT)."

... ON THE OTHER HAND

Over at AmSpec Blog, Philip Klein thinks "the media narrative of an impending Republican defeat can cut both ways." He writes that it could lead "conservatives to be dispirited, thus hampering turnout," or it could "instead annoy conservatives and motivate them to hit the polls ..."

THE AD GAME

John Hawkins picks his Top 10 favorite GOP ads of the 2006 election cycle at Right Wing News. You might be surprised who tops the list. But then again, if you know John Hawkins, you might not be the least bit surprised.

ARMEY SORRY?

Tim Chapman of TimChapmanBlog writes that former Majority Leader Dick Armey regrets some recent remarks: "Today Dick Armey told a group of conservative bloggers (myself included) ... that he was sorry for the remarks he made in which he called James Dobson 'a thug'.”

OUTLOOK ON '08

Sen. John McCain's new media guru, Patrick Hynes at Ankle Biting Pundits, wonders if Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney would have been able to win re-election in his own state this year given Republican Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey's struggles: "It is important to note that Healy has been running on the “Romney-Healy record” and that Mitt Romney himself has starred in almost $1,000,000 worth of ads paid for by the Republican Governors Association, which Romney chairs. For her part, Healy is now trying to distance herself from Romney to salvage her campaign. Here’s to hoping she pulls off a miracle."

INCUMBENTS AND MONEY ...

Over at Brainwash, Tim Carney says the practice of blindly defending incumbents has led the GOP astray: "The Mark Foley scandal is a symptom of the Republican Party’s standard operating procedure." He blames the practice of blindly defending incumbents for the "sorry episodes of Arlen Specter and Lincoln Chafee."

And over at Flynn Files, Dan Flynn comments on The Center for Responsive Politics recent study: "There is no national legislation that proposes to limit the amount of money Americans spend on football, beer, or porn. Why do busybodies constrain, and seek to more tightly constrain, the amount of money Americans can spend on the candidate or cause of their choice?"

BEING HONEST ABOUT IRAQ

Captain Ed offers an excellent analysis on Captain's Quarters of Rep. Mark Kennedy's new ad about not abandoning Iraq. Kennedy is locked in a close race against Democrat Amy Klobuchar in Minnesota: "Is this smart? Probably not. Minnesota may be a battleground state, but the war isn't very popular here. Kennedy gives a good explanation of his position, but it won't convince many here who don't already support the effort in Iraq, and those people already support Kennedy's bid for the Senate. It may motivate more Republicans to turn out, but it won't carry the center, at least not on its own."

DON'T BE EVIL!

Little Green Footballs has noticed that Google has registered a Federal PAC: "apparently we’re now going to see the bizarre leftist philosophy so evident at Google News extended into the political meat world ..."

EDITOR'S NOTES

Well, there it is. Our first edition. As you can imagine, we can't cover everything -- but we can be a quick and easy way for you to keep up with the conservative blogosphere. Contact me at MLewis@CampaignLeadership.com.