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Newt expands South Carolina lead — Newt Gingrich heads into South Carolina election day as the clear front runner in the state: he's now polling at 37% to 28% for Mitt Romney, 16% for Rick Santorum, and 14% for Ron Paul. — Gingrich's lead has actually increased in the wake of his ex-wife's controversial interview with ABC.
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Gingrich Is Well-Positioned as South Carolina Votes — Newt Gingrich, who had trailed Mitt Romney by a double-digit margin in South Carolina in several polls conducted just after the New Hampshire primary, may instead be headed to a big victory there, recent polling suggests.

MY ENDORSEMENT FOR PRESIDENT — Exclusive: Chuck Norris reveals his choice for Republican nomination — Our republic as America's founders created it is under assault from extremists outside our country and anti-constitutionalists inside our country. Combined with the flailing American economy …
Discussion:
Pat Dollard, Balloon Juice, Riehl World View, Mediaite, Hot Air, Gawker, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Hill and The Daily Caller

Doubts creep in as an awkward Romney tries not to lose GOP nod — What's wrong with Mitt Romney? — In the early stages of this cycle's Republican nominating process, the former Massachusetts governor seemed confident and sure-footed. Now he seems awkward and defensive.
Discussion:
Pundit & Pundette and Riehl World View


America hates Newt Gingrich — Unlike Mitt Romney, who occasionally beats President Obama in general election poll match ups, Newt Gingrich trails far behind President Obama in every survey. But just how bad are Gingrich's unfavorable among the general public compared to Obama and Romney?

The Momentum of Ideas — During last night's Republican debate, the candidates were asked to name something from the campaign that they would have done differently. Here was Newt Gingrich's answer: … I have, for my sins, watched Gingrich make his pitch across what feels …
Discussion:
americanthinker.com, National Review, Rod Dreher, American Spectator, Swampland, The Atlantic Online and Campaign 2012

Santorum now the Iowa winner, officially — This statement just landed from the Republican Party of Iowa, just about 20 minutes shy of midnight: … This is a switch from the party's stand yesterday morning, that the results were inconclusive and a winner couldn't be called because of a number …
Discussion:
CNN, Taegan Goddard's …, The Other McCain, Politics, ABCNEWS and Telegraph

Romney demands Gingrich release contract for Freddie Mac work — GREENVILLE, S.C. — Mitt Romney called on Newt Gingrich to release all correspondence he'd had with mortgage giant Freddie Mac on Saturday morning, the day of South Carolina's primary, while meeting with supporters at his Upstate South Carolina campaign headquarters.
Discussion:
CNN


Newt Gingrich's three marriages mean he might make a strong president — really

Newt Gingrich Surges In South Carolina, But Expect The Unexpected

A Test for Gingrich as Political Strategist
Discussion:
The Caucus and TalkLeft

Sen. Scott Brown urges Romney, Gingrich — come clean
Discussion:
Hot Air, The Politico, ThinkProgress and The Hill


Blacks Face Bias in Bankruptcy, Study Suggests — Blacks are about twice as likely as whites to wind up in the more onerous and costly form of consumer bankruptcy as they try to dig out from their debts, a new study has found. — The disparity persisted even when the researchers adjusted for income …
Discussion:
SSRN and Prairie Weather


The New American Divide — The ideal of an ‘American way of life’ is fading as the working class falls further away from institutions like marriage and religion and the upper class becomes more isolated. Charles Murray on what's cleaving America, and why. — America is coming apart.
Discussion:
pandagon.net and Ricochet Conversations Feed

Barack Obama's Middle East Miscalculation — In Egypt, we are witnessing the democratic election of a dictatorship — A little-noticed event gives a grim insight into what is really happening in the Middle East. The euphoria of the “Arab Spring,” the instant Twitter-style transition …

Exactly 3 years in, Obama's job approval hits lowest level yet — Exactly three years after Aretha Franklin's hat launched the Obama administration, the Democrat's annual job approval rating has sunk to his lowest level. — That's not normally a good sign after 1,095 days in office. But who's counting?
Discussion:
Don Surber and Campaign 2012


Our Mr. Brooks Climbs The Romney Family Tree — The applause came from deep in the plush leather armchairs gathered by the fireplace in the clubroom of the Premature Fogies Club. It was warm and sustaining, as was the morning brandy. People touched the patches on his master's blazer as he walked by.
Discussion:
Rod Dreher, The Moderate Voice, Eunomia and New York Times


Justices Bar Texas Court's Election Map — WASHINGTON—The Supreme Court on Friday ordered new interim maps drawn for Texas' April 3 primary, handing Republicans a partial if possibly short-lived victory in a battle over as many as four House seats. — The unsigned decision sends the case …
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How Should the Supreme Court Rule on the Individual Mandate?
Discussion:
Hit & Run and The Other McCain

Consumer group accuses Hollywood of ‘threatening politicians’ — Consumer group Public Knowledge on Friday accused the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and its head, former Sen. Chris Dodd, of trying to intimidate lawmakers into supporting a pair of controversial anti-piracy bills.
Discussion:
RedState and Techdirt, more at Mediagazer »


Undercover police had children with activists — Disclosure likely to intensify controversy over long-running police operation to infiltrate and sabotage protest groups — Two undercover police officers secretly fathered children with political campaigners they had been sent to spy …
Discussion:
Boing Boing and Harry's Place

Santorum: Newt Has ‘Issues of Character’ — LEXINGTON, S.C. — Addressing a question today about Marianne Gingrich's allegations that her former husband, Newt, wanted an “open marriage,” Rick Santorum said “these are issues of character” but declined to push his rival for further explanation.
Discussion:
Hot Air
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