Essential Estrogen

Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign just announced it would not be participating in the Ames Straw Poll.

Indicating the campaign did not see the event as "a meaningful test of the leading candidates' organizational abilities," Campaign Manager Terry Nelson made the national announcement.

His words were quickly followed by Dave Roederer, Iowa Chairman for John McCain 2008: "This weekend, Senator McCain will hold his 20th town hall meeting in our state. His straight talk on the challenging issues facing our country continues to resonate with Iowans and we are confident that his commitment to restraining government spending, protecting traditional values and defeating Islamic extremists will ultimately lead him to victory in the caucuses."

McCain's announcement comes just hours after a similar one by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.