A Wall Street Journal editorial tries to settle down Republicans after Newt Gingrich’s trouncing of Mitt Romney in South Carolina:

“As for the GOP establishment, such as it still is, Mr. Gingrich’s re-emergence is likely to cause a panic attack. They don’t believe he is electable. Our advice would be to relax and let the voters decide. If Mr. Romney can’t marshal the wit and nerve to defeat the speaker, then he isn’t likely to defeat Mr. Obama.”

Mark Halperin: “It seems the Republican Establishment is waiting until after Florida for any panic, hoping Romney can set the universe back in order then. Of course, it will be (even) harder to stop Newt if he wins Florida.”

The latest Gallup daily tracking poll shows Mitt Romney’s once formidable national lead over his Republican presidential rivals has completely collapsed. Romney now barely edges Newt Gingrich, 29% to 28%. They are followed by Ron Paul at 13% and Rick Santorum at 11%.

More potential bad news for Romney: The tracking survey is a five day rolling average and reflects just one day of polling since Gingrich’s blow out primary victory in South Carolina.

Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) and his likely Democratic challenger Elizabeth
Warren have reached a deal to keep super PACs out of their race, reports
The Hill,
marking “the first attempt by candidates to wrest control of their
races back from groups over whom they have no direct control.”

“The
pact signed by Warren and Brown on Monday imposes a financial penalty
whenever an outside group intrudes on the race. If an outside group
places a television or Internet ad supporting a candidate, the candidate
would be required to donate 50 percent of the cost of the ad to a
charity of the opponent’s choosing within three days. Negative attack
ads would also trigger the penalty, with the candidate whose rival is
attacked being forced to forfeit half the cost.”

Meanwhile, Greg Sargent notes Karl Rove’s Super PAC already appears to be signaling that it may not honor the deal.

“We could see an October surprise once a day from Newt Gingrich.”

— Mitt Romney, quoted by Slate, on what might happen if Newt Gingrich wins the GOP nomination.

Michael Crowley: “To the extent Newt threatens the Establishment, it’s because of his electability-or lack thereof. The GOP’s mandarins see Gingrich’s nomination as a sure way to blow their chance of deposing Barack Obama. They see Gingrich as the political equivalent of a Fukushima nuclear plant worker, with polls showing him to be lethally irradiated by his negative approval ratings. Whereas Mitt Romney is running about even with Barack Obama in head-to-head polling, Newt loses by double-digit margins. Sure, those numbers could change if Gingrich beats Romney and wins the nomination, with all the accolades it entails. On the other hand, his grandiosity syndrome may kick in, as it has before, and render him a laughing stock. Hence the many Establishment Republicans now saying things like, ‘Newt means losing 45 states.'”

First Read: “When the remaining four presidential candidates gather for the 18th debate of the cycle tonight in Tampa, FL, the stakes couldn’t be any higher, especially for Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich. For Romney — fresh off his double-digit defeat in South Carolina and after uneven performances in his last two debates — tonight’s debate is a crucial moment for his campaign. Either he rises to the occasion (by providing sharper answers, by disqualifying Gingrich, and by proving to GOP voters the confidence he can be their guy in November), or he struggles again, giving Gingrich a path to overtake him in Florida. For Gingrich, tonight’s debate will prove if he can withstand the attacks (because they’re coming), and if he can pull off another strong performance.”

“And don’t lose sight of Rick Santorum (who has leveled pointed criticism
at both Romney and Gingrich in past debates) or Ron Paul (who has
sometimes has served as Romney’s wingman). If we learned anything from
South Carolina, it’s that the debates have mattered, and tonight’s
debate likely won’t be any different.”

The debate starts at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.

A new Rasmussen survey in Florida shows Newt Gingrich jumping into the lead in the GOP presidential race with 41%, followed by Mitt Romney at 32%, Rick Santorum at 11% and Ron Paul at 8%.

Two earlier polls also showed Gingrich surging into the lead in Florida.

As President Obama prepares to give his State of the Union Address on Tuesday night, The Hill looks at the efforts to balance the policy and politics of an election year address.

“The White House has said in no uncertain terms that Obama’s path to
another term will be cleared by open conflict with a
Republican-controlled House that is deeply unpopular with voters, so
observers expect a pugnacious Obama to take the lectern… While there
might be some finger-wagging, don’t expect a trash-talking president.
After all, you can’t exactly walk into someone else’s house, sit on the
living room couch and drop some insults… At the same time, the White
House has pushed back at suggestions the State of the Union will be
Obama’s first major stump speech of his reelection bid, insisting Obama
will focus on policy in the address.”

As Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) wraps up his failed presidential bid and heads home to continue governing his state, Time
reports that he “returns bruised and diminished, taking his place among
a gallery of strong talkin’, wide-steppin’ Texas politicos who have
ventured across the Red River only to return with their tails between
their legs.”

“Many Texans must feel that the governor is returning as
damaged goods with lots of self-inflicted political wounds which he
will have to heal fast to be able to be effective at governing the
state… Texas has no term limits and Perry spokesman Ray Sullivan said
following the drop out announcement that the governor would not rule out
another term… But there are other strong Republicans standing in the
queue for the top job in Texas, including Attorney General Greg Abbott.
Meanwhile, a few Republicans are beginning to question Perry’s policies
and approach, some even agreeing to go on the record.”

“The verdict is in: Mitt Romney’s Bain Capital problem is real,” Politico reports.

“Of all the forces that converged to doom Romney in Saturday’s South Carolina primary, none may be as disconcerting for Republicans as the attacks on Romney’s private equity work — an offensive that caught Romney off-guard and triggered a damaging conversation about his vast personal wealth.”

Coming off his big win in South Carolina, a new InsiderAdvantage poll in Florida shows Newt Gingrich surging into the lead of the GOP presidential race with 34%, followed by Mitt Romney at 26%, Ron Paul at 13% and Rick Santorum at 11%.

Meanwhile, in the first night of polling Florida, Public Policy Polling finds Gingrich and Romney “neck and neck.”

“We’re not choosing a talk show host. We’re choosing the person who should be leader of the free world.”

— Mitt Romney, quoted by the Los Angeles Times, alluding to his Newt Gingrich’s strong debate performances that helped shift momentum in the GOP presidential race.

Speaking in Florida, Mitt Romney “deviated from his standard remarks early, looking to define the candidate who mauled him in South Carolina in a different light by bringing up the tumultuous end of Gingrich’s tenure as speaker of the House of Representatives,” NBC News reports.

Said Romney: “So I’ve had the experience of leadership. Now Speaker Gingrich has also been a leader. He was a leader for four years as speaker of the House. And at the end of four years it was proven he was a failed leader. And he had to resign in disgrace. I don’t know if you knew that. He actually resigned after four years in disgrace. He was investigated under an ethics panel and had to make a payment associated with that and then his fellow Republicans, 88 percent of Republicans, voted to reprimand Speaker Gingrich. He has not had a record of successful leadership.”

“Direct assaults like this from Romney on the stump are rare enough to be startling to those who hear him speak daily, but Romney didn’t stop there, also tying Gingrich to the housing crisis in a state where the collapse in home values has been acutely felt.”