Rick Perry will end his bid for the Republican presidential nomination today and endorse Newt Gingrich, the New York Times reports, “a decision that could influence the South Carolina primary on Saturday.”

“The announcement from Mr. Perry was expected to inject fresh momentum into Mr. Gingrich’s efforts to emerge as the leading alternative to Mitt Romney. It was unclear whether Mr. Perry would campaign with Mr. Gingrich in the final two days of the primary campaign here.”

David Brody: “There are a few lessons to be learned in the failed candidacy of Rick Perry. First of all, it doesn’t matter how many boxes you check (and Perry checked a lot of boxes) because if you can’t consistently articulate your message you’ve got no chance. You only get a certain amount of times you can make mistakes on the campaign trail before a narrative begins to form about you. Perry was way over the limit on mistakes.”

More proof the Super PAC formerly run by Stephen Colbert is independent of the comedian’s presidential exploratory bid: It released an ad attacking Colbert himself.

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Obama strategist David Axelrod “is already making plans for after the 2012 election, and they do not involve another candidate or another trip to Iowa,” the New York Times reports.

Instead, Axelrod will lead “a new, nonpartisan Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago aimed at helping students seeking careers in public and social service.”

Said Axelrod: “This is my last campaign.”

The Des Moines Register reports Rick Santorum ended up with a 34 vote lead over Mitt Romney in the Iowa caucuses but “there are too many holes” in the certified totals to know for certain who won.

“Results from eight precincts are missing — any of which could hold an advantage for Mitt Romney — and will never be recovered and certified.”

A new NBC News/Marist poll in South Carolina shows Mitt Romney leading the GOP presidential primary with 34%, followed by Newt Gingrich at 24%, Ron Paul at 16%, Rick Santorum at 14% and Rick Perry at 4%.

“Yet the numbers are strikingly different before and after the debate on Monday… On Monday before the debate, Romney led Gingrich in the poll by 15 points, 37% to 22%. But on Tuesday, that advantage narrowed to just five points, 31% to 26 %.”

A new Politico poll shows Romney at 37%, Gingrich at 30%, Paul at 11%, Santorum at 10% and Perry at 4%.

“Gingrich has momentum: When voters are asked to volunteer the name of the candidate they plan to vote for without being prompted by a list of names to choose from, Romney’s lead over Gingrich slips to 31-29.”

Kyle Kondik updates the House forecast at Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Democrats need to win 25 additional House seats to retake the speaker’s gavel next year. In order for them to do that, President Obama will need to win next year, and that probably won’t be enough. What Democrats really need is a poisonous, damaged Republican nominee who not only loses to Obama but causes harm down the ticket.”

“At this point, we believe that 341 of the 435 House seats are safe for the Republicans (189) or the Democrats (152), which leaves the other 94 as potentially competitive. Ultimately, if Republicans win all the seats we currently favor them to win, and Democrats win all the seats they are favored to win plus all 15 toss ups, Republicans would still hold a 233-202 edge in the House.”

The five remaining Republican presidential candidates take part in yet another presidential debate tonight from 8 pm to 10 pm ET.

The debate will be televised on CNN.

Earlier this week, Newt Gingrich’s ex-wife, Marianne Gingrich, conducted an interview with ABC News, according to the Drudge Report.

She spoke to investigative reporter Brian Ross for two hours and “her explosive revelations are set to rock the trail.”

The AP reports the interview is likely to air on Nightline Thursday night.

“Although it is not apparent on his financial disclosure form, Mitt Romney has millions of dollars of his personal wealth in investment funds set up in the Cayman Islands, a notorious Caribbean tax haven,” ABC News reports.

“As the race for the Republican nomination heats up, Mitt Romney is finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a shroud of secrecy around the details about his vast personal wealth, including, as ABC News has discovered, his investment in funds located offshore and his ability to pay a lower tax rate.”

A Super PAC backing Newt Gingrich imagines a general election debate between Mitt Romney and President Obama in a new animated ad.

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A new CNN/Time poll in South Carolina shows Mitt Romney slipping and Newt Gingrich gaining.

Romney leads with 33%, followed by Gingrich at 23%, Rick Santorum at 16%, Ron Paul at 13% and Rick Perry at 6%.

Said pollster Keating Holland: “Gingrich appears to be the only candidate with momentum as the race in South Carolina enters the final few days. Support for Romney and Santorum appears to be slipping, and Paul and Perry seem flat. Gingrich, however, has gained ground and cut Romney’s lead in half since early January.”

President Obama’s campaign has begun buying advertising time in a
handful of key battleground states — in Michigan, Virginia, Ohio and North Carolina — making his first purchase of
television time so far this election, the New York Times reports.

“So far the purchase appears quite limited, according to someone who monitors political advertising. The ads were placed for one day only, Thursday. And the number of states where they will run could expand.”

Wall Street Journal: “A clutch of little-known records from what is now the University of West Georgia in Carrollton suggests the ambition and intellectual grandeur of Newt 2012 aren’t a long way from the 1970s vintage. In addition to seeking the college presidency, Mr. Gingrich was often absent as he pursued political goals. He embarked on an effort to moonlight as a paid consultant. And, it turns out, he spent little time teaching history.”

Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) will not seek re-election, the Poughkeepsie Journal reports.

The 73-year-old congressman underwent a second round of surgery for colon cancer earlier this month.