memeorandum: South Carolina primary exit polls: 2/3rds say debates mattered (Brian Montopoli/CBS News)

8:50 PM ET, January 21, 2012

Top Items:

Michael O'Brien / msnbc.com:

Gingrich wins SC GOP primary, beating Romney — Newt Gingrich has won the South Carolina Republican primary, capping off a remarkable comeback for his presidential bid that reshapes the trajectory of the battle for the GOP nomination. — Based on early exit polls, NBC News projects Gingrich …

Discussion: Fox News, The Moderate Voice, Wall Street Journal, The Daily Dish, FITSNews, ABCNEWS, Zandar Versus The Stupid, The Spectacle Blog and The Democratic Daily

McKay Coppins / Politics:

BYU Students Bus In To South Carolina To Rally For Romney — The campaign has been buzzing about growing energy at recent events. But it turns out, many of the candidate's most energetic fans are actually in from Provo, Virginia, or D.C. — (Reuters / JIM YOUNG)

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Ricochet Conversations Feed, Erick's blog, FITSNews, Daily Kos, The Political Carnival and US Politics

Brian Montopoli / CBS News:

South Carolina primary exit polls: 2/3rds say debates mattered — Nearly two out of three South Carolina Republican primary voters say the recent Republican presidential debates played an important factor in their decision, according to early CBS News exit polls - a good sign for Newt Gingrich …

Discussion: The Politico, The Atlantic Online, Firedoglake, The Caucus, The PJ Tatler, Ballot Box, Don Surber, Hot Air, The Other McCain, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Strata-Sphere, SCVotes.org, FiveThirtyEight, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, The Stranger … and ABCNEWS

Abby Rapoport / American Prospect:

No One Cares About the Affair — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks to a crowd in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. — Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina—One of the larger tourist landmarks in the Charleston-area is a decommissioned warship that's been converted to a museum.

Discussion: Scared Monkeys and Eschaton

Brian Montopoli / CBS News:

Newt Gingrich wins South Carolina primary, CBS News projects — Newt Gingrich has defeated Mitt Romney in the South Carolina Republican primary, CBS News is projecting from analysis based on exit polls and early vote totals. Rick Santorum and Ron Paul are battling for third place.

Discussion: Wonkette and Atlas Shrugs

Richard A. Oppel Jr / The Caucus:

Santorum Says He Will Remain in Race Through Florida — CHAPIN, S.C. — Rick Santorum said he would be pleased with a third-place finish in South Carolina Saturday but vowed to stay in the presidential race through the Florida primary no matter what. — He also blasted his “desperate” …

Discussion: The Political Carnival, New York Times and HotAirPundit

Gschwarzcnn / CNN:

Final survey suggests Gingrich leads in SC — Columbia, South Carolina (CNN) - A new poll suggests that Newt Gingrich has a double digit lead in Saturday's crucial Republican presidential primary in the Palmetto State. — According to an American Research Group survey released Saturday morning …

Discussion: FiveThirtyEight, New York Times, The Stranger …, Pat Dollard, Weasel Zippers, Mail Online, Hot Air and Riehl World View

CNN:
CNN projection: Gingrich wins S.C. primary

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, The Reaction, The Raw Story, Liberal Values, US Politics, Telegraph, The Stranger …, The Politico, This Just In, Wonkette and ThinkProgress

Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
Santorum releases Florida campaign schedule just after SC polls close

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Gingrich Is Well-Positioned as South Carolina Votes

New York Magazine:
Heilemann: USS Gingrich Now Boarding in South Carolina

Discussion: The Daily Dish and Hot Air

Jim Rutenberg / New York Times:
Gingrich Wins South Carolina Primary, Upending G.O.P. Race

Discussion: Washington Post, TalkLeft, CBS News, USA Today and JustOneMinute

Fox News:
Gingrich, Romney in savage fight as South Carolina voters head to polls

Discussion: Politics, Hot Air, Mediaite, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and ABCNEWS

Cameron Joseph / Ballot Box:
Romney demands Gingrich release contract for Freddie Mac work

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and CNN

Jon Ward / The Huffington Post:
Mitt Romney Campaign Begins Preparing For Possible South Carolina Loss

Discussion: Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and The Politico

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Not Just A Democrat Dirty Trick, But A Crime — A few years ago, as part of its strategy of facilitating voter fraud as a means of winning close elections, the Democratic Party undertook a campaign to secure as many Secretary of State offices in swing states as possible.

Discussion: Des Moines Register and Atlas Shrugs

Shane Vander Hart / Iowa Grounds:

Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz Targeted for Identity Theft by Former Obama Staffer — I heard this on WHO Radio tonight driving home, and then I saw this article in The Des Moines Register. … So for political reasons Secretary Schultz and his brother Thomas were targeted... hmmmmm.... Where are we Chicago?

Discussion: Campaign 2012 and The PJ Tatler

Iowa Department of Public Safety:
Man Charged with Identity Theft after Falsely Implicating Secretary of State in Illegal Activity

Discussion: National Review

Kevin Hall / The Iowa Republican:
Former Obama Staffer Busted for Stealing Iowa Secretary of State's Identity

Discussion: RedState, Hot Air and The Gateway Pundit

Cameron Joseph / Ballot Box:

Gingrich confronted on race, agrees to meet with Sharpton — GREENVILLE, S.C. — Newt Gingrich was confronted by a black man outside Tommy's Country Ham House, who drilled him on his comments on having poor children work as janitors. — The man, who sounded like he had a northern accent …

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Weasel Zippers, Politics and ThinkProgress

Fox News:
Sheila Jackson Lee: Newt Using ‘Codewords’ to be Racist

Discussion: Little Green Footballs

Charles Dharapak / ABCNEWS:
No Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich Throw Down at Tommy's Ham House

Discussion: National Review

Charles Murray / Wall Street Journal:

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: Eunomia, The Mahablog, No More Mister Nice Blog, alicublog, pandagon.net and Ricochet Conversations Feed

New York Times:

The iEconomy: Apple, America and a Squeezed Middle Class — When Barack Obama joined Silicon Valley's top luminaries for dinner in California last February, each guest was asked to come with a question for the president. — But as Steven P. Jobs of Apple spoke, President Obama interrupted …

Discussion: Gretawire, Daring Fireball and The Politico, more at Techmeme »

Matt Gertz / Media Matters for America:

Huckabee Wants To Know If Obama Got College Loans “As A Foreign Student” — During a Fox News appearance this evening, Mike Huckabee suggested that Mitt Romney, who has come under fire for refusing to immediately release his tax returns, respond by challenging President Obama to release …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Zandar Versus The Stupid, The Political Carnival and The Raw Story

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

Obama Averages 44% Approval in 3rd Year — Averaged 43% job approval in most recent quarter in office — PRINCETON, NJ — President Barack Obama averaged 44% job approval for his third full year in office, which ended Jan. 19. His third-year average is down slightly from his second-year average …

Discussion: Hot Air, Don Surber, Campaign 2012, Scared Monkeys and Weasel Zippers