memeorandum: Jobs take center stage in Keystone fight (Andrew Restuccia/The Hill)

10:30 AM ET, January 16, 2012

Top Items:

Jeff Zeleny / The Caucus:

Huntsman Says He's Quitting G.O.P. Race — CHARLESTON, S.C. — Jon M. Huntsman Jr. informed his advisers on Sunday that he intends to drop out of the Republican presidential race, ending his candidacy a week before he had hoped to revive his campaign in the South Carolina primary.

NewsMax.com:

SC Poll: Romney Lead Grows, Gingrich Second — More ways to share... Mixx — Stumbled — LinkedIn — Vine — Buzzflash — Newstrust — Technocrati — Forward Article — An exclusive InsiderAdvantage poll released Sunday night shows GOP front-runner Mitt Romney gaining …

Discussion: Ballot Box, Taegan Goddard's … and The Hinterland Gazette

Fox News:

Fox News Poll raw data: Romney hits record high, but still tied with Obama — While far more Republican primary voters view Rick Santorum as the true conservative, Mitt Romney has become the clear leader in the race for the GOP nomination, according to a just-released Fox News poll.

Discussion: Ballot Box, Hot Air, Taegan Goddard's …, The Politico, Campaign 2012 and National Review

Maggie Haberman / The Politico:

Sources: Huntsman to drop out of 2012 race tomorrow, endorse Romney — Jon Huntsman, the former Utah governor who was seen by Democrats months ago as the potential biggest threat to President Obama in a general election, is dropping out of the race tomorrow and will endorse Mitt Romney, a campaign official confirms to POLITICO.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Towleroad News #gay

David Goldman / ABCNEWS:

Huntsman to Drop Out of GOP Race; Will Endorse Romney — ABC News' Michael Falcone reports: — Jon Huntsman will drop out of the Republican presidential race on Monday, a campaign spokesman told ABC News. — A source close to the Huntsman campaign said the former ambassador to China …

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Post, Patterico's Pontifications, Michelle Malkin, Campaign 2012 and National Review

Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:

Huntsman Drops Out: Is Set To Endorse Romney, Whom He Called ‘Unelectable’ — Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman (R) informed his advisers today that he is dropping out of the presidential race. After his third place finish in New Hampshire's primary, Huntsman declared that he had a “ticket to ride” …

Discussion: CBS News, Daily Kos, Comments from Left Field, Outside the Beltway, Firedoglake and US Politics

Kevinliptak / CNN:
Romney nabs Florida endorsement

Discussion: The Hill

Washington Examiner: Huntsman: A boutique candidacy that didn't sell

Maggie Haberman / The Politico:
Huntsman to exit, back Romney

Discussion: CNN, USA Today, ABCNEWS, Shakesville, The Week, Wall Street Journal, Ballot Box, Taylor Marsh, Zandar Versus The Stupid, Greg's Opinion and Outside the Beltway

Fox News:
Huntsman to withdraw from race for Republican presidential nomination

Discussion: The Spectacle Blog and Fox News Insider

Washington Post:
Jon Huntsman will leave Republican presidential race, endorse Mitt Romney, officials say

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Booman Tribune and Prairie Weather

Associated Press:
Campaign officials: Huntsman to quit US race

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

msnbc.com:
Huntsman to drop out of presidential race, endorse Romney

Discussion: Hot Air, Firedoglake and The Hill

Washington Post:
Jon Huntsman to quit presidential race, endorse Mitt Romney

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Bangor Daily News and THEROOT.COM

Zeke Miller / BuzzFeed:
Colbert Super PAC Goes Negative On Romney In First South Carolina Ad

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay, Runnin' Scared, Hullabaloo and The Politico

Andrew Restuccia / The Hill:

Jobs take center stage in Keystone fight — When U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue proclaimed that the Keystone XL pipeline would create 250,000 jobs, he touched a nerve in the environmental community. — “That's just not true,” Susan Casey-Lefkowitz, director …

Politics:

Axelrod: Huntsman Dropped Because He Wouldn't Sell His Soul — Obama's top strategist tells BuzzFeed in an email: “He was simply unwillingly to make the Faustian bargains with the Right that Romney has so willingly made.” — Jon Huntsman's withdrawal offers an opportunity for Democrats …

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …

Politics:
Huntsman, Trapped In 2009, Never Had A Chance

Discussion: msnbc.com

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Beast:

Andrew Sullivan: How Obama's Long Game Will Outsmart His Critics — The right calls him a socialist, the left says he sucks up to Wall Street, and independents think he's a wimp. Andrew Sullivan on how the president may just end up outsmarting them all. — You hear it everywhere.

Discussion: Big Journalism and The Mahablog

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

We Must Be Really, Really Stupid! — As you may have heard by now, Newsweek's forthcoming issue headlines, “Why are Obama's critics so dumb?” — Well, sure. We who who are unhappy that unemployment has increased on Obama's watch, that over-regulation has stymied economic growth …

Discussion: Instapundit

Mj Lee / Reuters:

Rev. Jesse Jackson: Talk race at GOP debate — The Rev. Jesse Jackson says he wants to hear the candidates at the Republican presidential debate tonight - Martin Luther King Jr. Day - discuss racial issues, which the civil rights activist says the GOP hopefuls have avoided throughout the campaign.

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette, Weasel Zippers, The Politico, CNN and The Hill

The Atlantic Online:

The Wreck of the Costa Concordia — On the night of Friday, January 13, the luxury cruise ship Costa Concordia, with more than 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew members on board, struck a reef, keeled over, and partially sank off Isola del Giglio, Italy. Six people are now confirmed dead …

Discussion: Prairie Weather

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:

CNN amplifies Romney's bogus jobs claims — Yesterday the Romney campaign distributed a memo to reporters that attacked Obama's record on jobs as a “failure.” To support this conclusion, the memo cited, among other things, the “net” job loss that has occurred on Obama's watch.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, CNN and A plain blog about politics