The New York Times: on Principles & Values

James Mattis: Dislikes nickname Mad Dog Mattis

Bill Weld: Hillary's "public and private view" makes her vulnerable

Hillary Clinton: "You have to figure out how to balance the public and the private efforts that are necessary to be successful, politically. Politics is like sausage being made. It is unsavory, and it always has been that way, but we usually end up where we need to be. But if everybody's watching, you know, all of the back room discussions and the deals, you know, then people get a little nervous, to say the least. So, you need both a public and a private position.

Bill Weld: Hillary is vulnerable on both the "public and private position" and the "people in the industry know what regulation is best" quotes. She skated on this, by quoting Honest Abe [Lincoln, who applied that concept as president].

Gary Johnson: I offer choices beyond the same old red vs. blue

Scott Walker: My relationship with God drives every major decision

During his political rise in Wisconsin, Walker did not often emphasize his faith. But evangelicals make up nearly 60% of Republican caucusgoers in Iowa. They are an important factor in Southern primaries. And they continue to have an outsize influence on the Republican nominating process.

Scott Walker: Raised as a "P.K.", Pastor's Kid, by his father Pastor Llew

Before the elder Walker retired in 1995, at the age of 56, he struggled with depression. His wife, Pat, and the teenage Scott Walker shouldered some of his pastoral duties. "There were Sundays when Scott would preach the sermon," the current pastor said.

Martin O`Malley: History celebrates courage, not triangulation

In words that echoed those of Senator Barack Obama when he battled Clinton in 2007 for the Democratic nomination, O'Malley added: "Triangulation is not a strategy that will move America forward. History celebrates profiles in courage, not profiles in convenience."

The politics of triangulation is a phrase often used to describe former President Bill Clinton's brand of centrism. It has also been used to criticize Hillary Clinton as overly poll driven, and liberals have long used it as a cudgel. In a pivotal Democratic primary speech in November 2007 in Iowa, Obama deployed "triangulation" as an attack line against Mrs. Clinton.

Jason Carter: Grandfather Jimmy Carter participates in grandson's campaign

Senator Carter is the son of Jack Carter, the eldest of Jimmy and Rosalynn's four children. Like his grandfather, he is seeking the governorship after just four years in the State Senate.

"He wants it both ways," said one supporter of Gov. Deal. "He wants his granddaddy's help with contributors, but when it comes to the issues, he distances himself. My guess is if his last name were Jones, you and I might not be having this conversation."

John Walsh: OpEd: 2007 Master's thesis plagiarized from online sources

Walsh completed the paper, what the War College calls a "strategy research project," to earn his degree in 2007, when he was 46. The sources of the material he presents as his own include academic papers and books that are almost all available online.

A line-by-line analysis of Walsh's thesis shows that he took much of it from other sources without giving them credit. Most strikingly, the six recommendations Walsh laid out at the conclusion of his 14-page paper, titled "The Case for Democracy as a Long Term National Strategy," are taken nearly word-for-word without attribution from a Carnegie Endowment for International Peace document on the same topic.

Tom Cotton: Served in military, academia, and as management consultant

The resumes of Sasse (R, NE) and Cotton (D, AR) do not exactly fit the profile of populists. That is especially true for the lines dedicated to the Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Company, firms that advise corporations on strategy, efficiency and ways to increase profitability.

Most of Cotton's adult life has been in academia and the military, and he has spent a year in Congress. His time at McKinsey was also barely more than a year, during which time his group leader immersed him in the intricacies--and the value--of the Affordable Care Act.

Milton Wolf: Career politicians are changed by Washington

"I think career politicians are changed by Washington," said Milton Wolf, Roberts's opponent, who is a radiologist and a second cousin of President Obama on the president's maternal side.

Given the changing political climate, Gov. Brownback, [a conservative who served alongside Roberts in the Senate], says that Roberts is doing precisely what he needs to do to win another term. "Being active, being aggressive, being conservative," the governor said. "He's got to get through a Republican primary, and people are pretty fired up about what's going on at the federal level."

Pat Roberts: Resides in Virginia but votes in Kansas

Roberts acknowledged that he did not have a home of his own in Kansas. The house on a Dodge City country club golf course that he lists as his voting address belongs to two longtime supporters and donors--C. Duane and Phyllis Ross--and he says he stays with them when he is in the area. He established his voting address there the day before his challenger, Milton Wolf, announced his candidacy, arguing that Roberts was out of touch with his High Plains roots.

"I have full access to the recliner," the senator joked. Turning serious, he added, "Nobody knows the state better than I do." That assertion is disputed by Tea Party activists.