In an interview with KSDK-TV, Mitt Romney said he would eliminate any federal funding of Planned Parenthood in an effort to reduce the national debt.
Said Romney: “Planned Parenthood, we’re going to get rid of that.”
Tonight’s Primary Results
Polls close in Alabama and Mississippi at 8 pm ET. Caucuses in Hawaii begin at 2 am ET.
A win by Mitt Romney in either or both of the two Southern states voting today would seriously undermine his two primary rivals, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum.
Nate Silver notes Southern states “have a reputation for counting their vote slowly.”
This is interesting: The Washington Post reports Romney is not holding a celebration tonight and is instead watching results from a hotel room in New York City.
Exit polls show Santorum leading by five points in Alabama, Romney leading by five points in Mississippi. No network is willing to make a projection based on these numbers.
Washington Examiner: “Newt Gingrich’s campaign has just sent out a memo that reveals (to no
one’s surprise) a defiant determination to stay in the race until the
end. If you read between the lines, it looks like he’s almost conceding
tonight’s races in advance.”
NBC News projects Santorum will win in Alabama.
Fox News projects Santorum will win in Mississippi.
Expect the narrative that Romney can’t reach the 1,144 delegates to gain steam in the coming days.
The Illinois primary on March 20 will be an epic battle between Romney and Santorum.
Poll Finds Obama Approval Up
For the first time since early July, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll finds more Americans approve of the job President Obama is doing than disapprove, 50% to 48%.
Some other polls have shown a recent dip in Obama’s approval rating, and linked that to rising gasoline prices.
A new Bloomberg poll shows Obama’s approval at 48%.
Bill Would Require Candidates to Take Drug Tests
Candidates for Oklahoma state or local offices would have to take a test for illegal drugs before they could file for the posts under an amendment to a bill passed by the state House of Representatives, Tulsa World reports.
“The measure was the Democrats’ response to a Republican-backed bill that would require adults receiving welfare assistance to undergo drug tests.”
Democrats Recruiting Former GOP Lawmaker in Michigan
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is recruiting former Rep. Joe Schwarz (R-MI) to run against Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI), The Hill reports.
Said Schwarz: “We talked and have had very pleasant conversations about it. The DCCC is correctly looking for a candidate to run in the 7th district because there certainly would be a stark contrast between Congressman Walberg and a viable, credible Democratic candidate.”
GOP War on Women
A new MoveOn video clearly highlights the problem Republicans could have with women in this year’s elections.
Palin Challenges Obama to a Debate
Sarah Palin responded on Facebook to President Obama’s reelection campaign after footage of her was used in a fundraising video.
Said Palin: “I’m not running for any office, but I’m more than happy to accept the dubious honor of being Barack Obama’s ‘enemy of the week’ if that includes the opportunity to debate him on the issues Americans are actually concerned about.”
She added: “I’m willing and free to discuss these issues with the President anywhere, anytime.”
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“Our democracy has been hacked. It no longer works, in the main, to serve the interests of our people.”
— Al Gore, quoted by CNN.
Romney Likely to Win More Delegates Tonight
Regardless of the final popular vote result in Alabama and Mississippi, Harry Enten notes the the net delegate count in each state is likely to be pretty even.
“Mississippi’s delegates are going to be split proportionally, and we’re probably looking at a split of nine delegates for Gingrich, nine for Romney, and seven for Santorum. Alabama has a ‘top two’ primary in each congressional district (that is, the winner in each district will get two delegates and second-placed candidate will get one), while the state-wide delegates will be apportioned proportionally. Determining who will win which districts is difficult in such a close state-wide race. Romney’s probably going to come in third in the more rural areas, but he could win the districts around Birmingham, Huntsville and Mobile. My estimate is that he’ll take 14-17 delegates state-wide, while Santorum and Gingrich take 11-20 delegates each.”
That said, Romney will still likely end the night with more delegates than his rivals.
“Though not subject to much media focus, Romney’s going to do very well in the American Samoa and Hawaii caucuses. American Samoa is 30% Mormon (the most Mormon-dominated contest this year, outside of Utah)… Hawaii’s delegates will be divided more evenly because its allocation
system is proportional.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“Had he failed in that audacious mission, he would’ve been a one-term president.”
— Vice President Joe Biden, quoted by The Hill, on President Obama ordering the mission to kill Osama bin Laden.
How Sarah Palin Ruined Politics
Richard Cohen notes that since Sarah Palin stepped on the national political stage we’ve been subjected to “a deluge of dysfunctional presidential candidates. They do not lie with quite the conviction of Palin, but they are sometimes her match in ignorance. As with Palin, it seemed hardly to matter… Palin is no longer an anomaly.”
“So far, the Palin effect has been limited to the GOP. Surely, though, there lurks in the Democratic Party potential candidates who have seen Palin and taken note. Experience, knowledge, accomplishment — these no longer may matter. They will come roaring out of the left proclaiming a hatred of all things Washington, including compromise. The movie had it right. Sarah Palin changed the game.”
Quote of the Day
“I think he’ll have the most delegates but not a majority.”
— Newt Gingrich, in an interview on Fox News, suggesting Mitt Romney will not win the 1,144 delegates needed to clinch the GOP presidential nomination.
Big Majority Wants Super PAC Banned
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds 69% of all Americans say super PACs, a fundraising vehicle that allows wealthy donors to make unlimited donations in support of a particular candidate or party, should be banned. Just 25% said they should remain legal.
A Great Pork Senator
Though he was “totally stunned” Rick Santorum could be considered a viable presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) praised him on Morning Joe as a “great pork Senator.”
Said Rendell: “You know, Rick over the course of time, some things he did very well, he was a great — I hate to say this, he was a great pork Senator. I would call him and say we need this, we got it. He was a great pork Senator.”
Did Obama’s Approval Rate Really Collapse?
First Read looks at the dramatic drop in President Obama’s approval rating found in last night’s CBS/NYT poll but suggests it may be an outlier since there’s no major event which occurred in the past month to account for this drop.
“It’s probably worth waiting for a few more national polls before reaching the conclusion that something has happened to Obama’s standing in the past month.”
More Americans Say They’re Better Off
A new Bloomberg poll finds more Americans now say they are personally better off since President Obama took office than worse off, 38% to 36%, the first favorable reading for the president on that question since Bloomberg began asking in December 2010.
That said, Americans are still far from content, with 61% saying the U.S. is moving in the wrong direction.
How Republicans Screwed Themselves
John Avlon: “Republicans are in a bruising primary struggle with no candidate close to the 1,144 delegates needed to win the nomination, and leaving aside the advent of super PACS, they did it to themselves by adopting a proportional-delegate rule in 2010.”
Big Night for Republicans
Yes, we’ve heard this many times before, but the Republican presidential nomination could come down to a single night’s primary results.
Mike Allen: “If Newt Gingrich loses the primaries in both Mississippi and Alabama, after being tied for first in each, he could be effectively out of the race. If Gingrich wins both, he has a fresh rationale for going forward and denies Rick Santorum the chance for a one-on-one — ensuring that no non-Romney can accrue anywhere the delegates needed to deny Mitt Romney the nomination. If Santorum wins both, he has an argument to go on, despite little shot at the crown. If Romney wins both, he can say he has won in the deepest South, Michigan, Ohio and Florida – case closed.”
First Read: “By the way, there’s a reason why the Romney folks have concentrated more
on Alabama than Mississippi: Because third place in an Alabama
congressional district doesn’t net you a delegate, second place there
matters a lot.”
Polls close in both states at 8 pm ET.
