Top Items:

Florida Primary Overview and Forecast — The shift away from Newt Gingrich in the Florida polls has been as significant as the one toward him in South Carolina. The first two polls released after South Carolina showed Mr. Gingrich with a lead of 8 and 9 points, respectively.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Other McCain, Hot Air, Mark America, The Daily Dish, Guardian, The Mahablog, The Strata-Sphere, Daily Kos and The Huffington Post
RELATED:


Romney Ramps Up Attack Ads Against Gingrich to Unprecedented Levels — In the most negative primary season ever, Mitt Romney is outspending Newt Gingrich 5 to 1 on attack ads ahead of today's primary in Florida, stopping the ex-speaker's momentum coming off a South Carolina win.


Mute Gingrich — How Romney stole Gingrich's voice in Florida.
Discussion:
Washington Wire, ABCNEWS, Daily Kos and The Politico

Gingrich: I won't debate Obama if media moderates
Discussion:
Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, National Review and Race 4 2012

Morning Briefing: January 31, 2012
Discussion:
The Caucus, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and Prairie Weather, more at Mediagazer »

Buoyant Romney Speaks of Victory in Florida
Discussion:
msnbc.com, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, ABCNEWS, americanthinker.com and The Caucus

Romney headed for Florida victory
Discussion:
Firedoglake, The Politico, Daily Kos, Pirate's Cove, Washington Post and GOP 12

House GOP closer to vote on making English the official language
Discussion:
The Maddow Blog and msnbc.com

The Great Divorce — I'll be shocked if there's another book this year as important as Charles Murray's “Coming Apart.” I'll be shocked if there's another book that so compellingly describes the most important trends in American society. — Murray's basic argument is not new, that America is dividing into a two-caste society.
Discussion:
Neptunus Lex, Balloon Juice, alicublog, The Demos Blog, Political Mojo, Marginal Revolution and Brad DeLong


Ranger zaps off-leash dog walker with shock weapon — A Montara man walking two lapdogs off leash was hit with an electric-shock gun by a National Park Service ranger after allegedly giving a false name and trying to walk away, authorities said Monday. — The park ranger encountered Gary Hesterberg …
Discussion:
The Jawa Report, L.A. NOW and Hit & Run


Stephen Colbert's FEC report: Big money! — No kidding: Comedian Stephen Colbert's satirical super PAC raised some serious cash. — Between July 1 and Dec. 31, Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow collected more than $825,400, ending the year with nearly $674,000 cash on hand …
Discussion:
CNN, The Atlantic Online, BuzzFeed, Taylor Marsh and Outside the Beltway
RELATED:

Huntsman's father accounts for 70 percent of pro-Huntsman super-PAC donations
Discussion:
GOP 12 and The Politico

Holder's fantastical claim about ‘Fast and Furious’ — Philosophers and poets have argued for at least three millennia about who is more valuable. Poets claim they tell tales that inspire men to do things they would otherwise never accomplish. But philosophers argue that this requires …
Discussion:
Patterico's Pontifications
RELATED:

THE BUDGET AND ECONOMIC OUTLOOK: FISCAL YEARS 2012 TO 2022 — Each January, CBO prepares “baseline” budget projections spanning the next 10 years. Those projections are not a forecast of future events; rather, they are intended to provide a benchmark against which potential policy changes can be measured.

Newt Battles Mush From the Wimps — “Ford Declares Reagan Can't Win” — Headline in The New York Times, March 1, 1980 — Yet still more mush from the wimps. — To borrow a famous Reagan phrase: “Well, there they go again.” — Somewhere an exasperated Gipper is doubtless shaking his head.

Republicans have only themselves to blame — On Saturday night, at precisely 9:19 and 30 seconds, my iPhone, my iPad, my computer and, for all I know, my toaster were informed that Herman Cain had endorsed Newt Gingrich. The ping-ping of the devices suggested that something momentous had happened …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, NewsBusters.org and Mediaite

Occupy support drops more than 20 points in ... San Francisco? — One would think that the Occupy movement and San Francisco were made for each other. Perhaps at one time they were, but a new Survey USA poll shows that even the City by the Bay has its limits.
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and Campaign 2012
RELATED:

Oakland couple Susan Poff, Robert Kamin mourned
Discussion:
moonbattracker.com/wordpress, The Gateway Pundit, Verum Serum, Hyscience and Jammie Wearing Fools


Rick Perry's campaign burned through millions — Texas Gov. Rick Perry burned through the bulk of a once-sizable campaign war chest late last year in what became an increasingly desperate attempt to right his listing — and ultimately doomed — presidential campaign, federal financial disclosures released late Monday show.


College Says It Exaggerated SAT Figures for Ratings — Claremont McKenna College, a small, prestigious California school, said Monday that for the past six years, it has submitted false SAT scores to publications like U.S. News & World Report that use the data in widely followed college rankings.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, utsandiego.com and News Desk

Santorum says Gingrich should stop pressuring GOP rivals to drop out — Rick Santorum on Tuesday morning pushed back against calls to drop out of the GOP presidential race in order to unite the conservative vote. — Santorum told Fox News that people like fellow GOP candidate Newt Gingrich …
Discussion:
CNN and The Politico
RELATED:

Newt Gingrich says Mitt Romney denied Jewish seniors kosher meals while governor
Discussion:
FiveThirtyEight, National Review, Gallup, msnbc.com, MiamiHerald.com, The Raw Story, Shakesville, The Loyal Opposition, CNN and Mediaite

Iran, perceiving threat from West, willing to attack on U.S. soil, U.S. intelligence report finds — U.S. intelligence agencies believe that Iran is prepared to launch terrorist attacks inside the United States in response to perceived threats from America and its allies, the U.S. spy chief said Tuesday.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, The Atlantic Online, Pat Dollard, Hot Air and Corrente


Demonstrators from the Occupy Wall Street movement threw condoms on Catholic schoolgirls, refused to allow a Catholic priest to give a closing prayer, and shouted down a pro-life speaker at a Rhode Island right to life rally on Thursday, according to its organizer.

US drone strike kills 11 AQAP leaders, fighters: report — Eleven terrorists, including four local commanders, are reported to have been killed in a US drone airstrike in a southern Yemeni province where al Qaeda's affiliate controls significant ground. — Remotely piloted Predators …
Discussion:
Daily Mail, The Enterprise Blog and Lawfare
RELATED:

At least 12 militants killed in Yemen air strike
Discussion:
Shakesville, ABCNEWS and Weasel Zippers


Cynthia Nixon: Being Bisexual “Is Not a Choice” — Actress Cynthia Nixon is bisexual and that “is not a choice,” she said in an exclusive statement to The Advocate. — The former star of Sex and the City who is now on Broadway in Wit has been the focus of heated discussion among …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, American Prospect, Last Word, PinkNews.co.uk, msnbc.com and Gay Star News

New Hampshire Governor Pledges To Veto Repeal Of Same-Sex Marriage In State Address — New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch (D) spoke out against the GOP's effort to repeal the state's same-sex marriage law in his State of the State address this afternoon and promised to veto any bill that strips residents of their “civil rights”:
Discussion:
Good As You, Towleroad News #gay and Concord Monitor

Obama Tells Woman: “Interesting” Unemployed Husband Can't Find Job — During his Google+ hangout Pres. Obama tells a woman that her husband shouldn't be unemployed from the growth he has seen in the economy. Obama said he finds it “interesting” because he is getting “the word” …
Discussion:
Post on Politics, Hot Air, Mediaite and National Review