Top Items:
Justin Sink / Ballot Box:
Poll: Romney slipping in South Carolina, holds just 2 point lead over Gingrich — Despite a historic sweep of the first two nominating contests in the GOP field, Mitt Romney holds just a two percentage point lead in South Carolina, his smallest lead of 2012.
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Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
‘When Mitt Romney Came to Town’ — We knew the short film from Newt Gingrich's Super PAC, targeting Mitt Romney's private-sector work, was on the way. We didn't know just how devastating it would be. — Probably the easiest-to-see version of “When Mitt Romney Came to Town” …
Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Giuliani to Newt: ‘What the hell are you doing?’ — Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, who has recently called Mitt Romney “a man without a core,” defended the GOP frontrunner's record as an executive at Bain Capital, calling the attacks against him “ignorant and dumb.”
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Riehl World View
A.Killough / CNN:
Perry donor defects to Romney, citing Bain attacks — Columbia, South Carolina (CNN) - One of Rick Perry's leading financial supporters in South Carolina is defecting to Mitt Romney - and he told CNN Thursday that Perry's sharp criticisms of Romney as a “vulture capitalist” were the main factor in his decision.
Rasmussen Reports:
Florida GOP Primary: Romney 41%, Gingrich 19%, Santorum 15% — Mitt Romney is now running away with the race in the latest Rasmussen Reports' survey of the end-of-the-month Florida Republican Primary. — Coming off his decisive win in Tuesday's New Hampshire Primary …
Discussion:
Don Surber, Outside the Beltway, Hot Air, LifeNews.com, Guardian, Saint Petersblog, The PJ Tatler, Fire Andrea Mitchell!, GOP 12, Campaign 2012, National Review and CNN
Reid J. Epstein / Reuters:
Mitt Romney readies Bain Capital counterattack — COLUMBIA, S.C. - Mitt Romney's done defending his Bain Capital record. He's going on offense. — The former Massachusetts governor arrived here Wednesday fresh off his New Hampshire primary win armed with a new plan for a multi-pronged response …
Karl Rove / Wall Street Journal:
Romney Makes History
Discussion:
The Daily, The Politico, The State, New York Times and The PJ Tatler, more at Techmeme »
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Mitt Romney's extreme defense of capitalism
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, FAIR Blog, Sky Dancing, The Politico and Riehl World View
John McCormack / Weekly Standard:
Gingrich: ‘So-Called Conservatives’ Are Attacking Me Because I Want an Accounting of Wall Street Bailouts
Discussion:
The Caucus, ABCNEWS, Hot Air and National Review
Benjy Sarlin / 2012.talkingpointsmemo.com:
TPM2012 — Dems Prepare To Hammer Romney With The REAL Bain Onslaught
Felicia Sonmez / Washington Post:
Newt Gingrich: South Carolina will be ‘Armageddon’
Discussion:
The Politico, Guardian, Booman Tribune and Daily Kos
Kristina Peterson / Washington Wire:
Rick Perry Slams Wall Street, Congress
Discussion:
The Other McCain
Dan Primack / Fortune:
Gingrich's ‘Bain bomb’ fizzles
Discussion:
Washington Post, Bangor Daily News, The Huffington Post and The Buzz Florida Politics Feed
Arthur S. Brisbane / The Public Editor's Journal:
Should The Times Be a Truth Vigilante? — I'm looking for reader input on whether and when New York Times news reporters should challenge “facts” that are asserted by newsmakers they write about. — One example mentioned recently by a reader: As cited in an Adam Liptak article on the Supreme Court …
Discussion:
JIMROMENESKO.COM, Firedoglake, The Huffington Post, Washington Monthly, Sky Dancing, FAIR Blog, The Awl, Poynter, No More Mister Nice Blog, First Draft, Boing Boing, Daily Kos, Gothamist, Shakesville, JustOneMinute, emptywheel, US Politics, Balloon Juice, Mediaite, National Review, New York Magazine, Wonkette, Discourse.net, Gawker, Lawyers, Guns & Money and New York Times, more at Mediagazer »
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Jay Rosen / Pressthink:
So whaddaya think: should we put truthtelling back up there at number one? — Somewhere along the way, telling truth from falsehood was surpassed by other priorities to which the press felt a stronger duty. Arthur Brisbane, public editor of the New York Times, was unaware of this history …
Discussion:
The Public Editor's Journal, Poynter, Brad DeLong and Balloon Juice, more at Mediagazer »
Josh Gerstein / Reuters:
Justice Department approved recess appointments — President Barack Obama's decision last week to snub Congress and make a series of recess appointments while the Senate claimed it was technically in session had the legal blessing of the Justice Department, according to a formal legal opinion released Thursday.
Discussion:
Hot Air, The Heritage Foundation, CNN and The New Republic
RELATED:
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Justice Department memo argues Obama recess appointments were legal — The Department of Justice offered a defense Thursday for President Obama's controversial decision to make several recess appointments while Congress was holding pro forma sessions. — In a memo, Justice argued …
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Weasel Zippers, Congressman Diane Black and The Huffington Post
Amie Parnes / The Hill:
White House says DOJ recess appointment memo ‘will pass muster’
Discussion:
The Politico
Kenneth P. Vogel / The Politico:
3 billionaires who'll drag out the race — Meet the three billionaires who could drag out the GOP presidential primary, bloody up front-runner Mitt Romney and weaken the odds of defeating President Barack Obama: Sheldon Adelson, Foster Friess and Jon Huntsman, Sr.
Discussion:
Hot Air, Time, Washington Wire, Christian Science Monitor, Applesauce, Big Journalism, Media Decoder, CNN, ABCNEWS and Taylor Marsh
RELATED:
Dave Levinthaland Anna Palmer / The Politico:
POLITICO Influence: ‘Clean up house’ — BREAKING ... CAMPAIGN REFORMERS AIM TO FORCE WHITE HOUSE'S HAND: A group of ethics and good government organizations are calling on President Barack Obama to “clean up house” at the Federal Election Commission at a time when the influence of super PACs …
Jeremy Wallace / HT Politics:
Laura Bush wanted Jeb to run for president in 2012 — SARASOTA — Former first lady Laura Bush wishes there were one more candidate in the Republican presidential primary: Jeb Bush. — Speaking to a sold-out Sarasota audience on Wednesday, Bush said she had hoped that her brother-in-law …
Discussion:
GOP 12, CNN, Outside the Beltway, Indecision Forever, Guardian, The Daily Caller, Saint Petersblog and USA Today
Dan Savage / The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper:
Canada's Conservative Government Turns My Husband Back Into My Boyfriend — After issuing thousands of marriage licenses to same-sex couples from United States and other nations where same-sex marriage is not yet legal—marriage licenses that did not come with a disclaimer or an asterisk …
Discussion:
Globe and Mail
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Kirk Makin / Globe and Mail:
Despite legal about-face, Harper has ‘no intention’ of reopening gay marriage
Discussion:
Firedoglake and Poliglot
Fox News:
Panetta orders probe of video allegedly showing Marines urinating on dead Taliban — The top commanders of the Marine Corps U.S. forces in Afghanistan are investigating a video that purports to show U.S. Marines urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban after Defense Secretary Leon Panetta ordered …
RELATED:
Steve Clemons / The Atlantic Online:
U.S. Soldiers Give Ammo to Taliban
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs and Atlas Shrugs
Al Kamen / Washington Post:
President Obama's got sons? — President Obama, speaking last night in Chicago at a fundraiser at a private home, unloaded this bombshell: — Obama, according to the White House transcript, talked about “The first bill I signed — a bill that said that we're going to have equal pay …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, The Daily Caller and Jammie Wearing Fools
Lydia Saad / Gallup:
Conservatives Remain the Largest Ideological Group in U.S. — Overall, the nation has grown more polarized over the past decade — PRINCETON, NJ — Political ideology in the U.S. held steady in 2011, with 40% of Americans continuing to describe their views as conservative, 35% as moderate, and 21% as liberal.
Discussion:
The PJ Tatler and The Big Picture
Cameron Joseph / Ballot Box:
GOP Rep. Jerry Lewis to retire from House — Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.), the former chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, will retire at the end of this term, he announced on Thursday. — Lewis, a 17-term lawmaker from southern California, was pushed into a Democratic-leaning district …
Discussion:
CNN and The Website …
RELATED:
Ben Goad / Press-Enterprise:
2012 ELECTIONS: Veteran Rep. Lewis to retire
Discussion:
Daily Kos and FlashReport
Glenn Thrush / The Politico:
Obama's billion-dollar albatross — The Obama campaign raised roughly a quarter-billion in 2011, but Democrats worry that over-hyped expectations of a billion-dollar haul are dissuading donors from giving enough to fight Mitt Romney and an army of GOP super PACS.
Discussion:
Big Journalism, Nice Deb and CNN
RELATED:
Michael D. Shear / The Caucus:
Obama Campaign Raises $42 Million in Fourth Quarter
Discussion:
The Loyal Opposition and Outside the Beltway
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