A new Rasmussen survey in Louisiana shows Rick Santorum way ahead of Mitt Romney, 43% to 31%, followed by Newt Gingrich at 16% and Ron Paul at 5%.

The Louisiana primary is on Saturday.

The latest Economist/YouGov poll finds President Obama leading Mitt Romney among women by a whopping 17 points, 55% to 38%.

In contrast, Romney edges Obama among men by 45% to 43%.

Newt Gingrich told NPR that “he sees no reason to exit the Republican presidential race and that there’s a chance of a new contender emerging at the party’s convention in August.”

Said Gingrich: “I’m not so sure you wouldn’t get a series of brand new players.”

Also interesting: Gingrich admitted for the first time he was likely to finish third in the delegate race.

Sen. Dick Lugar’s (R-IN) residency problems “just grew more uncomfortable,” Politico reports: “He’s reimbursing the Treasury for erroneously billing taxpayers for a series of hotel stays in Indianapolis in recent years.”

“The long-serving Senate Republican said because of staff errors, taxpayer money was improperly used to pay for about $4,500 in hotel expenses over the past decade.”

First Read notes the feeding frenzy over the Etch-A-Sketch comments yesterday highlights a big problem for Mitt Romney:

“He gets almost no benefit of the doubt. Every gaffe becomes a story; every mistake become fodder for late-night comedians. And more importantly, this is what happens when you don’t have a solid base of support that can serve as a cocoon of protection during the toughest of times.”

“Successful presidential candidates (Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama) had grassroots supporters rushing to their defense, even in the toughest of political times. Romney — right now — doesn’t have this. In fact, it was notable during yesterday’s “Etch A Sketch” controversy that we didn’t see many prominent conservatives railing against media bias or unfairness. Instead, they were either standing on the sidelines or piling on. And that’s a problem for Romney.”

“I’m very much in favor of people recognizing that these high gasoline prices are probably here to stay.”

— Mitt Romney, quoted by the New Republic in 2006.

Jeb Bush told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that Mitt Romney should pick Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) as his running mate, calling him “dynamic, joyful, disciplined and principled.”

Said Bush: “He is the best orator of American politics today, a good family man. He is not only a consistent conservative, but he has managed to find a way to communicate a conservative message full of hope and optimism.”

A new Quinnipiac poll in Connecticut finds Linda McMahon (R) leading former Rep. Christopher Shays (R) in a Republican U.S. Senate primary, 51% to 42%.

However, Shays was stronger against the possible Democratic candidates, Rep. Christopher Murphy (D) and Susan Bysiewicz (D). Murphy leads the Democratic primary race, 37% to 25%.

Vice President Joe Biden “has quietly assembled an A-team of advisers who would, without doubt, be considered the nucleus of a presidential campaign — if only he wouldn’t be 73 in 2016,” Politico reports.

“Biden’s age would snuff the last embers of a presidential ambition that led him to a pair of crushing defeats in 1988 and 2008, or so many in Barack Obama’s camp thought when they first tapped him. But the old fire crackles yet. And Biden, spurred in part by those rumors about being replaced on the ticket by Hillary Clinton (who turns 69 in ’16), is campaigning with a young man’s tenacity in 2012 — with an eye toward keeping all of his options open.”

“Since 1976, no serious contender, Democrat or Republican, has watched his favorable ratings fall as low as Romney’s have in recent months,” Andrew Romano: points out.

“Or watched his unfavorable ratings climb as high. Or watched his overall numbers stay underwater — that is, more unfavorable than favorable — for so long. At this rate, Romney is shaping up to be the most unpopular presidential nominee on record.”

Jonathan Chait: “The main reason, I suspect, is that the Republican Party is extremely unpopular. The Bush years deeply discredited the GOP, and while Republicans were able to make gains in 2010 by default, as the out party during an economic crisis, they did nothing to rehabilitate their image. Indeed, they have embraced even more unpopular positions than the ones that George W. Bush advocated.”

While party rules
may prevent Newt Gingrich from being presented for the Republican
presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, ABC News notes that this isn’t as meaningful as some have made it out to be.

“If
Gingrich fails to meet the five-state threshold, he won’t be eligible
for the nomination when the convention begins. No delegate will be able
to nominate him for the nomination, technically, on the convention
floor. This rule doesn’t nix Gingrich’s chances, even if he fails to win
five states. Effectively, anyone can win the GOP’s nomination in Tampa,
without having won or even campaigned in a single state… An RNC
official acknowledged that on later rounds of voting, it would  be
possible for a motion to be made to nominate a candidate who did not
qualify on previous rounds. Essentially, the
nomination-for-the-nomination process begins anew. At that point, a new
candidate could demonstrate plurality support from five states and
qualify.”

The Hotline
notes that the Florida Republican party has made a “very substantial”
television ad buy touting Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s (R) record as he
seeks to recover from dismal approval numbers.

A bit early: “When was
the last time a state party tried to boost a governor’s image with a TV
ad more than two years before he faces reelection?… Some Republicans
are concerned Scott could drag down the presidential ticket in the swing
state.”