Although the US presidential election is still nine months away, the white noise surrounding this Herculean political contest is already loud and getting rowdier by the day.
Unlike the Australian political system, the US constitution sets a limit on the number of terms that a person can be elected to the office of President.
This tradition goes all the way back to revolutionary war "father" of the US and first President, George Washington, who in his great distaste for the perils of a monarchy declined to seek a third term despite widespread calls for him to do so.
With Barack Obama soon to end his second consecutive term in the White House, the 44th President is therefore not a contender.
On his Democratic Party side, the word on the street is that winning the Democratic nomination is "Hillary Clinton's to lose", with Bernie Sanders being her only real contender.
While Clinton's lead over Sanders seemed unassailable in 2015, in more recent weeks the gap has closed to only a few points.
In the Republican camp it's a complex story with enough personalities to fill a cricket team, plus a 12th man.
Leading the charge, in terms of support and media attention, is billionaire Donald Trump, followed closely by the outspoken Texan Senator, Ted Cruz.
While this foray into politics is somewhat new to Donald Trump, this shot at the White House is seemingly a natural progression for Cruz.
A graduate of both Princeton and Harvard Law School and a former Solicitor General of Texas, 45-year-old Cruz has clearly had his eye on this prize for much of his career.
However, the decisions ahead for the GOP (the Grand Old Party, or The Republican Party) will not be easy as neither Trump nor Cruz are seen as ideally placed to take on the Democratic nominee.
Both of these leading GOP hopefuls are seen as divisive, right wing and extreme in their views, therefore potentially marginalising undecided voters as well as alienating those whose views are more moderate.
So, if ultimately the Republicans decide both Trump and Cruz are too unpalatable to the lead their party to a November 8 poll, then who can?
The big names of Jeb Bush and Chris Christie are still fighting on, but Florida Senator Marco Rubio might be the one to watch.
Rubio's presidential run has accelerated in recent weeks helped by fundraising efforts which raked in more than $14 million from October to December 2015, more than double the previous quarter.
The results of last week's Iowa Caucus provide some interesting signposts to the nine months ahead. Hillary Clinton marginally edged out Bernie Sanders, with 49.9 per cent to 49.6pc of the vote.
While Clinton would be pleased with the win, it was not as decisive as she hoped.
However, it also shows Clinton can pull in half of the vote of a highly liberal Democrat caucus like Iowa's.
That does not bode well for Sanders in other primary states.
On the Republican side, the Trump juggernaut was slowed by Cruz (27.6pc), with Trump squeezing into second place (24.3pc and Rubio the biggest mover in third (23.1pc).
Cruz winning the corn belt state of Iowa is fascinating given his opposition to the Renewable Fuel Standard, a law that requires gasoline to contain a minimum level of ethanol.
Rubio's strong claim to the GOP middle ground implies a far greater impact than his 23pc in Iowa.
If all of the Iowa votes cast for the more moderate GOP candidates like Bush and Christie were given to Rubio, he would pull far ahead of Trump and Cruz.
Subsequently he's is now the target of direct and pointed criticism in the next battleground, New Hampshire.
The moderate republican vote looks like it could ultimately prove decisive in the Republican primaries, and it's up for grabs.
*David Inall is senior vice president of United Egg Producers in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Prior to 2013 he spent seven years in Canberra as Cattle Council of Australia chief executive officer, having previously worked with Meat and Livestock Australia, Livecorp and the NSW dairy industry.