The reach of the GOP establishment  —  I remain pretty skeptical about Newt Gingrich's chances of winning the Republican presidential nomination, but on the “Why Newt Will Lose” list of arguments, some points are more compelling than others.  —  Ezra Klein makes the case today …

If you're a conservative Mitt Romney apparently doesn't want you / Update Romney Camp cries false  —  Matt Lewis in the daily caller reports that in an attempt to make the case that Newt Gingrich as unacceptable to conservatives proceeded to insult conservatives by taking no questions from conservatives outlets.

Europe's great divorce  —  WE JOURNALISTS are probably too bleary-eyed after a sleepless night to understand the full significance of what has just happened in Brussels.  What is clear is that after a long, hard and rancorous negotiation, at about 5am this morning the European Union split in a fundamental way.

Oops: Perry Forgets Justice Sotomayor's Name  —  Echoing his devastating “oops” moment in an earlier GOP debate, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) forgot the name of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor in an interview today with the Des Moines Register editorial board.  He had to be assisted by a reporter who offered the jurist's name.

Ron Paul: 9/11 prompted “glee” in Bush administration  —  Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul said Thursday evening that Bush administration officials were gleeful after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks because it gave them a pretext to invade Iraq.  —  “Just think of what happened after 9/11.

NLRB Acting General Counsel announces close of Boeing case  —  NLRB Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon made the following announcement today:  —  I am very happy to announce that my office has approved the withdrawal of a charge by the Machinists union against the Boeing Co., which brings our case in this matter to an end.

Gingrich: Palestinians ‘invented,’ promises Netanyahu-style foreign policy  —  Former Speaker Newt Gingrich dismissed the Palestinian bid for statehood as the effort of an “invented Palestinian people, who are in fact Arabs, and were historically part of the Arab community.”

N.J. man dies from penis enhancing injection, authorities say; woman charged with manslaughter  —  EAST ORANGE — Authorities have filed homicide charges against a woman after she allegedly administered a silicone injection into the penis of a 22-year-old man, who suffered a fatal blood clot.

Repeal of sodomy, bestiality ban sparks fight on Defense bill  —  One surprising issue is riling both social conservatives and animal rights activists: the repeal of a ban on sodomy and bestiality.  —  As the final Defense authorization bill gets hammered out in conference committee …

GOP Objects To ‘Millionaires Surtax’; Millionaires We Found?  Not So Much  —  For the second week in a row, the Senate on Thursday voted down proposals to extend the payroll tax holiday through next year.  In the case of the Democrats' proposal, Republicans objected to the “millionaires surtax” that would be used to pay for it.

House GOP releases payroll-tax package under Obama veto threat  —  House Republicans on Friday released their legislation to extend the payroll-tax cut, reform and extend unemployment insurance and delay changes to the Medicare reimbursement rate for doctors.

Next Stop for Cain?  Fox's Door Is Open  —  Fox News is publicly signaling an interest in hiring Herman Cain, the former Republican presidential candidate whose loose-lipped conservative talk always seemed perfectly suited for a cable television round table.

Army slashing 8,700 jobs as budget cuts begin  —  Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta has warned that the federal budget cuts could be “devastating” for the Pentagon.  (Jonathan Ernst - Reuters)  —  With deeper budget cuts looming, the Pentagon is starting to cut back by trimming the Defense Department's civilian workforce.