Glen Johnson of AP is covering the Mitt Romney campaign. His analysis of mitt Romney’s campaign includes this take:

This past week, Romney did it again over questions about whether he was planning to air negative ads — in particular on the subject of illegal immigration — against John McCain. The Arizona senator has been surging in New Hampshire, where Romney is angling for back-to-back victories after a hoped-for win in this week’s Iowa caucuses.

“I haven’t made any decisions on what issue ads might come forward, down the road, but those aren’t what we shot today,” Romney told reporters on Wednesday. “What we shot today was just me to camera.”

On Friday, his campaign went on TV with a new commercial, a so-called contrast ad that did not feature Romney speaking, but a narrator comparing his record to McCain’s on immigration and tax matters. On Saturday, the campaign announced a second spot, focused entirely on McCain’s immigration record. In between Romney also released a third commercial, criticizing Huckabee for increasing spending and pardoning criminals while he was governor of Arkansas.

The ads Romney mentioned to reporters — the “closing arguments” in which he speaks directly to Iowa and New Hampshire voters — have yet to air. LINK

McCain and Huckabee aren’t taking the attacks laying down. Whether or not McCain decides to use the devastating ad that is waiting in the can, just the fact that it is out, and likely to go viral on the net is enough to cause team Romney some worry. In addition, team Huckabee is reportedly in the studio this afternoon preparing another salvo to answer the attacks from Willard and the Club for Growth. I doubt any TV ad will be as effective as Huck’s own words…

“If a person is dishonest in his approach to get the job, do you believe he will be honest in telling you the truth when he does get the job?”

Heading into the home stretch, it’s still anybody’s contest.