“There are a lot of other people out there that some of us wish had run for president — but they didn’t.”
— Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), in an interview with Matt Lewis, apparently qualifying his endorsement yesterday of Mitt Romney.
Haley Indictment Coming Soon?
Two legal experts have independently told Palmetto Public Record they expect the U.S. Department of Justice to issue an indictment against South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) on charges of tax fraud as early as this week.
When Candidates Get Desperate, They Try to Scare You
Rick Santorum’s eerie new ad “Welcome to Obamaville” isn’t the first time a candidate to tried to scare Americans into voting for him.
As Dave Weigel notes, “There’s a history here, a rich tradition of ads from candidates who predict doom if they don’t win. These candidates, being desperate, usually lose. America endures. But the ads keep coming anyway.”
Not Just Another Book by a Talk Show Host
The New York Times raves about Rachel Maddow’s new book, Drift.
Most books by political talk show hosts are nothing more than marketing tools, but this book “is much more. It is an argument — a sustained, lucid case in which points are made logically and backed by evidence and reason. What’s more, it follows one main idea through nearly a half-century… Ms. Maddow’s point is that the way we go to war has changed: that there has been an expansion of presidential power, a corresponding collapse of Congressional backbone and a diminution of public attention. She does not see this in conspiratorial terms, but she has an explanation for the step-by-step way it evolved.”
I have an author signed copy of Drift to give away to a reader. To be eligible, recommend Political Wire to your friends on Facebook (like our Facebook page) or Twitter (include @politicalwire in your tweet). I’ll pick a winner later today.
Romney Mocked Kerry for Having a Large Home
Though reports on the size of Mitt Romney’s California vacation home are frustrating for his presidential campaign, Romney made fun of Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) for the same thing in a 2004 speech.
Said Romney: “There’s a Senator from my state who wants to get elected President. I don’t know why he would want to do that, because he would have to move into a smaller house.”
Blagojevich’s Chief of Staff Sentenced
John Harris, a former chief of staff for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich who provided crucial assistance to investigators, was sentenced “to a mere 10 days in prison by a federal judge who reserved his harshest comments instead for the former governor, suggesting he was an impossible boss and pointing out some had even questioned his mental stability,” the Chicago Tribune reports.
“The sentence for John Harris was in stunning contrast to the crushing 14-year term Blagojevich began serving earlier this month in a federal prison in Colorado. In fact, Blagojevich has already spent more time in prison than Harris will.”
Forecast Suggests GOP Will Control House and Senate
Alan Abramowitz presents a House forecasting model which predicts “a very small Democratic seat gain (2-3 seats) in the House but not nearly the 25 seats Democrats would need to take back control of the House.”
Meanwhile, the Senate forecasting model “gives Republicans a good chance to regain control of the Senate with an expected pickup of 6-7 seats. That is due almost entirely to the fact that Republicans are defending only 10 Senate seats this year while Democrats are defending 23 seats.”
Wisconsin is Santorum’s Last Chance
First Read: “With Mitt Romney holding a sizable delegate lead and with more prominent Republicans (George H.W. Bush and Marco Rubio) formally endorsing the former Massachusetts governor, Tuesday’s GOP primary in Wisconsin is shaping up to be Rick Santorum’s last chance — in math and perception. If Romney wins Wisconsin, Santorum can’t stop him from getting to the magic number of 1,114 delegates, according to our math.”
“When we crunched the numbers showing that Romney would fall about 50 delegates short of the magic number, that ASSUMED Santorum would win Wisconsin, as well as pick up more delegates than he did in Louisiana. When it comes to perception, Wisconsin is Santorum’s final opportunity to convince Republicans that this race isn’t over, and a win in the Badger State would do the trick.”
However, Santorum’s campaign tells Byron York the media’s delegate counts are wrong.
Obama Outspends His GOP Rivals
President Obama’s re-election campaign has spent more than $135 million so far, the AP reports.
That’s about $3 million more than all his Republican challengers combined.
Romney’s Harvard Years
While Mitt Romney regularly bashes Harvard in an attempt to paint President Obama “as an ivory tower theorist out of his depth in the presidency,” Bloomberg notes Romney “owes his chief White House credential — his business career — to the school.”
“That Ivy League pedigree undercuts Romney’s appeal to many Republicans who already doubt that he shares their values. So as he heads for his party’s nomination, Romney lacerates his alma mater on the campaign trail, seeking to channel the resentments of voters soured on elite institutions… Yet by all accounts, Romney thrived at Harvard, reveling in the intellectual challenge and impressing classmates with his drive and discipline.”
Still Voting for Rick Perry
Ken Herman: “You might recall that Texas Gov. Rick Perry had some trouble getting people to vote for him when he was running for president. And now that he’s not running, he is having some trouble getting people to stop voting for him for president.”
The tally: Perry got 14,321 votes before he dropped out January 19, two days before the South Carolina primary. Since bailing out, Perry’s picked up another 39,435 votes.
Gingrich Held Secret Meeting with Romney
Newt Gingrich met secretly with Mitt Romney on Saturday but the former House speaker says he has made no deal to end his bid for the GOP nomination, the Washington Times reports.
Gingrich “did not deny the meeting, but explicitly said he hasn’t been offered a position in a potential Romney administration in exchange for dropping out. Nor, he said, is there a deal to have Mr. Romney’s big donors help retire Mr. Gingrich’s campaign debt of more than $1 million.”
Said Gingrich: “There is no agreement of any kind, and I plan to go all the way to Tampa.”
A Tough Sell
The RNC released a brutal new ad attacking Obamacare using audio clips from the Supreme Court.
Update: Bloomberg reports the ad “uses altered audio.”
Brown Leads Mandel in Ohio
A new Quinnipiac poll in Ohio shows Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) leading Republican challenger Josh Mandel (R) by double-digits, 46% to 36%.
Said pollster Peter Brown: “Sen. Sherrod Brown retains his double-digit lead in the Ohio U.S. Senate race. As is the case with President Obama’s lead in the White House race, the Democratic margin is made up almost completely of the votes of women.”
Nelson Pulls Away from Mack in Florida
A new Quinnipiac poll in Florida finds Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) opening an eight point lead over challenger Rep. Connie Mack (R), 44% to 36%.
Said pollster Peter Brown: “President Obama’s surge in Florida is helping Sen. Bill Nelson’s re-election chances. Just as President Obama’s lead in the presidential race in the Sunshine State is fueled by female voters, so too is Nelson’s. He also is running better among several groups, including whites and Catholics and voters 50 to 64 years old.”
New Jersey Lawmaker Used Funds for California Trips
Rep. Rob Andrews (D-NJ) has spent at least $97,000 in campaign money on at least 18 trips over the past five years to California, where his daughter has been pursuing a singing and acting career, the AP reports.
“Andrews is not accused of any wrongdoing, and his campaign says that his expenditures in California were legitimate, in part because connections there have helped him raise money in other states.”
Rubio Backs Romney
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) endorsed Mitt Romney tonight on Fox News.
Said Rubio: “Not only is he going to be the Republican nominee, he offers a stark contrast to this president’s record.”
Adelson Isn’t Writing More Checks for Gingrich
Sheldon Adelson, who with his wife has given more than $15 million to Newt Gingrich’s Super PAC, said he believes Gingrich is “at the end of his line” regarding the race for the Republican presidential nomination, Jewish Journal reports.
Adelson also predicted it’s unlikely Gingrich will become a vice presidential candidate.
