It’s a week before the Iowa caucus and the campaign news and nonsense is running thicker than the snow banks in Queens.

Monday’s biggest head-scratcher is the fuss over a newly-posted YouTube video of a teenaged Ted Cruz playfully talking about his aspirations. Seems 18-year-old Cruz wanted to star in a teen film like Malibu Bikini Shop. “Other than that,” Cruz said, “take over the world, world domination, you know, rule everything. Rich, powerful, that sort of stuff.” (WARNING: The video contains inappropriate language.)

The Cruz campaign is making light of the clip. “Good to see that young Ted also had a great sense of humor,” campaign adviser Rick Tyler told CNN.  However, Politico, The Hill, CNN and Huffington Post are among the media outlets jumping on the video, as if a :48 clip from a randy teen boy provides great insight into the man today. For example, the NY Daily News headline reads, “Video Shows Young Cruz Musing on Wanting Power, Wealth.” Michelle Malkin is not impressed.

So media's going gaga over 1988 video of teen Ted Cruz being a teen. But media's STILL suppressing 2003 Obama/Rashid Khalidi party video.

— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 25, 2016

Malkin is referencing a video that the Los Angeles Times has, but refused to release during the 2008 campaign showing Barack Obama heaping heavy praise on a man who the National Review called the “former mouthpiece for master terrorist Yasser Arafat.”

Ironically, it’s Barack Obama himself today who is questioning the failure of the media to vet a candidate. In his first extensive comments about the 2016 election, President Obama tells Politico that Sen. Bernie Sanders has gotten an easy ride so far. If Sanders wins Iowa or New Hampshire, “then you guys are going to do your jobs and … dig into his proposals and how much they cost and what does it mean.” While Obama says he won’t endorse a candidate, he praises Hillary Clinton’s readiness for the job day one. “What Hillary presents is a recognition that translating values into governance and delivering the goods is ultimately the job of politics.”

Of course, it helps if you can stay out of jail. Hillary’s legal clouds grew even darker over the weekend: The NY Post reported that the FBI is investigating whether Hillary and her staff “cut and pasted” material from classified servers so it could be emailed to her private email address.

The Donald Being the Donald

You know how Donald Trump likes to say he attacks opponents … or media figures … or supporters of opponents … or anybody … only after they attack him? The Wall Street Journal put that claim to rest this morning with a story called “Behind Donald Trump’s Attack Strategy.” There, it is made clear, Trump’s decision to attack Ted Cruz was based on his rising poll numbers. “Ted is hanging around the top too long,” Trump is quoted as saying, “Time to take him down.”

Trump does more two-stepping in an ad released Monday called “The Establishment.” Trump blasts “the establishment,” special interests and lobbyists he insists are trying to stop him.

However, as RedState.com points out, just last Thursday Trump was saying that when he’s President “there’s a point at which, let’s get to be a little bit establishment, because we gotta get things done, folks, okay?” Also, The Washington Post has been spelling out why the Republican establishment is siding with Trump over Ted Cruz. That includes Bob Dole, who calls Trump a “deal maker.”

The thought of Trump in the White House has TheBlaze founder Glenn Beck worried. “We need a constitutional restraint on the executive branch,” Beck told CNN, “And Donald Trump I really believe is a very dangerous man — if you listen to the things he said this weekend.”

Trump’s latest boast: “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters.” That was Saturday. On Sunday, Trump attended a sermon on humility.

Tina Fey Being Palin

Sarah Palin’s decision to back Donald Trump continues to unleash a torrent of comment and woe from assorted conservative writers. The Stream‘s John Zmirak summarizes conservative reaction as only he can, while Stream contributor Joshua Charles calls the endorsement an “exercise in projection and fear.”

Meanwhile, Tina Fey returned to Saturday Night Live proving once again she’s gone beyond a mere impersonation of Palin to frightening doppelgänger. If she were any more spot on Bristol Palin would be calling her up to babysit.

The CNN Democratic Townhall Debate

Then there’s tonight’s hastily-scheduled CNN Democratic town hall debate. There were only supposed to be three debates before Iowa and New Hampshire, much to the frustration of Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley, who claim the DNC has been protecting Hillary Clinton. Perhaps it’s only coincidence this new debate popped up as soon as polling began showing Hillary losing to Sanders in Iowa. CNN offers five things to look for in the debate.

Compared to the earlier debates, which were as polite as high tea at Downton Abbey, this time out candidates might be throwing enough heat to melt all the new snow. Already today Martin O’Malley said that Hillary Clinton’s climate plan “would literally burn up” the earth.

Get the popcorn ready.