President Obama’s re-election campaign is out with its first TV spot of the cycle, and it tries to portray him as a chief executive who’s done a good job despite being smeared. It’s a two-pronged argument that Obama’s done well on ethics reform and on clean energy

This while most swing voters disapprove of how President Obama has dealt with the economy and are not clear on his aims for a second term, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll.

On the republican side for Mitt Romney, the South Carolina primary probably can’t come soon enough, as he is facing days of nonstop negative ads, questions about his religion and his taxes, and new poll numbers that showed his comfortable lead narrowing with only a 10 point lead over Newt Gingrich. The Republican candidates debate tonight.