Notes from an editor whose staff can breathe again now that presidential candidates are taking their hot air to other states. …

• My hero: Three cheers for Associated Press reporter Glenn Johnson, who challenged Republican candidate Mitt Romney 10 days ago during an informal press conference in Columbia.

Mr. Romney said he doesn’t have lobbyists running his campaign. Mr. Johnson interrupted the next sentence.

“That’s not true, governor!” Mr. Johnson said. “That is not true. Ron Kaufman is a lobbyist.”

Mr. Kaufman is well-known as a lobbyist. He advised former President George H.W. Bush and often has been seen campaigning with Mr. Romney.

The confrontation fallout has been my highlight of the race so far. Some people have applauded Mr. Johnson for calling out Mr. Romney. Other people — and to my disappointment, some journalists — have criticized Mr. Johnson for crossing a proverbial line and becoming a story himself.

True, a reporter shouldn’t become a story, but we need more aggressive reporting between now and November. Agree? Let’s hear some tough questions.

• Speaking of politics: The Kauslers seldom speak about politics at home, but we weren’t home Wednesday night. We were at a restaurant, celebrating my better half’s birthday with two of our three children. The kids initiated a conversation, and to my chagrin, I learned that one leans far to the right and another leans far to the left. The liberal shook Hillary’s hand Thursday at the Civic Center. What’s a moderate dad to do? Applaud them for caring.
• Still speaking of politics: If you only want your politics with the spin, do we have a Web site for you. It’s RedBlueAmerica.com. It’s a new enterprise from E.W. Scripps, our parent company, and you can find it on the IndependentMail.com “Opinion” page. Check it out. Some of this content might start to appear on the Anderson Independent-Mail’s editorial page.
• Pointing the Way: What did you think of the leadership award winners? We were wise to ask the community for nominations, and we’re grateful that some nominations pointed our way toward some unsung heroes.
• Pointing another way: Instead of a luncheon, we surprised the winners with visits in their environments. Did you see our videos?
• Speaking of leadership: Please vote on our annual Leadership Survey on IndependentMail.com. The difference between this and Pointing the Way is that the latter involved nominations. We made the ultimate calls. The Leadership Survey strictly will be the call of the community. Monday is the deadline to vote.
• Last word: The racist comments on MLK stories on our Web site last week were appalling. Why didn’t we delete them? It’s a free-speech issue. But I dare these cowards to sign their names.