Top Items:


Trump: 'I don't get Rick Santorum;' talks Romney cabinet position — Donald Trump sits down with CNN anchor Ashleigh Banfield to discuss GOP candidates for president as well as what position he would want in Mitt Romney's cabinet. — Trump says, “Rick Santorum was a sitting senator …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Political Insider, TalkLeft and Connecting.the.Dots
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Santorum Upsets G.O.P. Race With Three Victories — His candidacy all but dismissed just days ago, Rick Santorum won the Minnesota and Colorado caucuses and a nonbinding primary in Missouri on Tuesday, an unexpected trifecta that raised fresh questions about Mitt Romney's ability to corral conservative support.
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs, Politico, JustOneMinute, Reuters, Guardian, Associated Press, Liberal Values, National Review, Craig Crawford's Trail Mix, Wall Street Journal, The Monkey Cage, Taylor Marsh, Towleroad News #gay, The Confluence, The Caucus, Outside the Beltway, msnbc.com, The Moderate Voice, American Spectator, Truthdig, The Political Carnival, BAGnewsNotes, Blue Mass Group, The Page, Sky Dancing and FiveThirtyEight

G.O.P. Race Has Hallmarks of Prolonged Battle — Whatever your perspective on how likely Mitt Romney was to lose the Republican nomination race prior to Tuesday evening, it should be acknowledged that he had about the worst results conceivable. — In Minnesota, a state which Mr. Romney carried easily …

Obama Inches Past Romney In Virginia Presidential Race, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Senate Race Still Tied — For the first time in this election cycle, President Barack Obama inches ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the leading Republican candidate, 47 - 43 percent in Virginia …
Discussion:
CNN, GOP 12, Reuters, Ballot Box, Taegan Goddard's …, Campaign 2012, Hot Air and Hotline On Call


Santorum: Romney's Money, Organization Didn't Matter — MCKINNEY, Texas — Fresh from his three-state victory in the battle for the Republican presidential nomination, Rick Santorum had a snappy comeback for those who questioned his shoestring campaign's staying power against a better-financed front-runner Mitt Romney.
Discussion:
The Hill


Primer: How super PACs rake it in — Super PACs raised about $181 million in the last two years — with roughly half of it coming from fewer than 200 super-rich people. — Those are the findings in a new study that confirms what public interest groups have long feared and campaigns …
Discussion:
THE WESTERN EXPERIENCE


The Incredible Shrinking Mitt: Romney's 2008 Support Crumbles In Three Key States
Discussion:
National Review, CNN, New York Times, The Spectacle Blog and The Impolitic

Santorum's Missing Ingredient
Discussion:
New York Times, msnbc.com, Washington Post and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Santorum revives campaign with wins in Colorado, Missouri and Minnesota
Discussion:
Reuters, CNN, 2012.talkingpointsmemo.com, 2012 Decoded, The Daily Beast, Washington Wire, Erick's blog, Wake up America, Guardian, Los Angeles Times, Ballot Box, USA Today, BuzzFeed, The Colorado Independent, Investor's Business Daily, Politico, Daily Pundit, The Huffington Post, Don Surber, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, American Spectator, The Moderate Voice, Scared Monkeys, Outside the Beltway, Right Wing News, US Politics, The Other McCain, Wonkette, Israel Matzav, ThinkProgress, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Michelle Malkin, The Last Tradition, Shakesville, Newshoggers.com and Althouse

Romney's Squeeze: Struggles With the Base and Independents Alike
Discussion:
Prairie Weather

Romneycare: Worth Getting Worried About
Discussion:
Power Line and Politico

Romney Campaign Tries to Put an Optimistic Face on a Disappointing Night
Discussion:
Media Decoder, Prairie Weather and The Atlantic Online

Fresh off GOP victories, Santorum goes on attack against Romney
Discussion:
Politico, GOP 12 and National Review

Why White House sees political opportunity in the contraception battle — (Public Religion Research Institute) The controversy over the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation's decision to eliminate funding to Planned Parenthood—and subsequent reversal— continues.
Discussion:
Reuters, The Atlantic Online, Jill Stanek, Florida Independent, CNN, Hullabaloo, Feministing and News Desk
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Obama Tries to Ease Ire on Contraception Rule — WASHINGTON — Facing vocal opposition from religious leaders and an escalating political fight, the White House sought on Tuesday to ease mounting objections to a new administration rule that would require health insurance plans …

Boehner, GOP pledge to reverse Obama birth-control mandate
Discussion:
Politico and ThinkProgress

Obama Weighed Faith Politics in Contraceptives
Discussion:
Politico, Reuters, ABCNEWS and Weasel Zippers

Thoughts on the Ninth Circuit's Same-Sex Marriage Decision — 1. This is going up to the Supreme Court. I suspect that the backers of Prop. 8 won't even ask for en banc review by the Ninth Circuit, since they're unlikely to win there. Depending on how quickly they file their petition for certiorari …
Discussion:
Slate, National Review, L.A. NOW, Concurring Opinions, Poliglot, News Desk, Balkinization, Rod Dreher, Sky Dancing, The Daily Dish and Election Law Blog
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Santorum Compares 9th Circuit To Soviet Union, Says Court Is ‘Intolerant’ For Striking Down Proposition 8
Discussion:
Good As You, Mitt Romney for President …, Towleroad News #gay and NOM Blog

In wake of Proposition 8 ruling, Santorum attacks Obama
Discussion:
Daily Kos

Prop 8 Supporters Announce U.S. Supreme Court Appeal
Discussion:
Firedoglake


AUCTIONING DEMOCRACY: THE RISE OF SUPER PACS AND THE 2012 ELECTION — The presidential race had barely gotten off the ground when it became clear that 2012 would be the year of the Super PAC. The millions of dollars raised and spent by these strange and powerful court-created entities have created a kind of parallel campaign.
Discussion:
The Huffington Post
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Obama Has Handed The Election Over To The Super Rich
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, Althouse, AlterNet and Clayton Cramer's Blog


The 2012 Index of Dependence on Government — Abstract: The great and calamitous fiscal trends of our time—dependence on government by an increasing portion of the American population, and soaring debt that threatens the financial integrity of the economy—worsened yet again in 2010 and 2011.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, The Heritage Foundation and Business Insider
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Dependency Index Surges 23% Under President Obama
Discussion:
Wake up America, RedState, Weasel Zippers, The Enterprise Blog and The Lonely Conservative


ROLAND MARTIN SPEAKS OUT AGAINST ANTI-LGBT VIOLENCE; GLAAD CALLS ON HIM TO MEET WITH ADVOCATES — CNN Remains Silent after Calls for a Statement — CNN political analyst Roland Martin posted an apology on his website following calls from GLAAD, the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) …
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CNN's Roland Martin suspended for homophobic tweets — On Super Bowl Sunday, Roland Martin of CNN issued some homophobic tweets that got him in trouble with gay organizations and this blog. CNN stayed silent on the matter, until just moments ago, when it issued this statement:

Republican Enthusiasm Issue is Real — The paltry turnout in the Republican Presidential contests over the last week reflects what we've seen in our recent national polling: Democrats are now more excited about voting this fall than Republicans are, reversing the enthusiasm gap that plagued the party in 2010.
Discussion:
The Maddow Blog, The Moderate Voice, Balloon Juice, Politico and Saint Petersblog

Congress' Job Approval at New Low of 10% — Republicans and Democrats equally negative — PRINCETON, NJ — A record-low 10% of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, down from 13% in January and the previous low of 11%, recorded in December 2011.
Discussion:
The Hill, Lez Get Real and USA Today


Study: ‘Conservative’ Movies Make More Money Than ‘Liberal’ Movies (Exclusive) — Patriotism and traditional values, like those displayed in “Thor,” “The Artist,” “Soul Surfer” and “Hugo,” are what moviegoers want, says a group that will honor such films at an awards gala Friday.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Weasel Zippers, iOwnTheWorld.com, Guardian and The Daily Caller


Nation's Largest Catholic University: We Offer ‘A Prescription Contraceptive Benefit’ — The largest Catholic university in the nation has admitted to providing contraception coverage as part of its health care benefit package, further undermining the GOP's claims that Obama's regulation requiring insurers …
Discussion:
Lez Get Real, The Huffington Post, 2012.talkingpointsmemo.com and Public Religion Research …