When Newt Gingrich was asked this morning what conditions could lead him to withdraw from the Republican presidential race, the Washington Post notes he said, “Probably none.”
Corbett Defends Ultrasound Bill
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett (R) said at a press conference that a bill that would force women seeking an abortion to undergo fetal ultrasounds was not “obtrusive” because women could simply close their eyes during the procedure.
Said Corbett: “I’m not making anybody watch, OK. Because you just have to close your eyes. As long as it’s on the exterior and not the interior.”
Romney Ahead in Illinois
A We Ask America poll in Illinois finds Mitt Romney leading the GOP primary field with 37%, followed by Rick Santorum at 31%, Newt Gingrich at 14% and Ron Paul at 8%.
A Rasmussen survey shows Romney leading with 41%, followed by Santorum at 32%, Gingrich at 14% and Paul at 7%.
The Illinois primary is next Tuesday.
Colbert’s Super PAC Still Has Plenty of Cash
Ken Vogel notes fundraising slowed significantly last month for Stephen Colbert’s super PAC, but that it “spent only $17,000 in February, mostly on media consulting, leaving nearly $780,000 in the bank.”
“That’s plenty of cash for the faux pundit to use to make mischief through joke ads as the presidential campaign progresses.”
Obama Approval Jumps Higher
The latest Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor poll finds President Obama’s approval rating rose to 51%, up from only 44% in each of the previous polls taken in October and December.
“That’s Obama’s highest approval rating in the Heartland Monitor since the survey taken immediately after the killing of Osama bin Laden in May. Other than that, the new survey marks the first time that Obama’s approval rating in the poll has crossed the critical 50 percent threshold since September 2009.”
This survey completely contradicts a CBS/NYT poll earlier this week that found Obama’s approval sinking to a new low.
Hatch Fares Well in Utah Caucuses
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) was facing perhaps his “gravest political threat” in a 36 year political career “but spent more than a year fighting back, mobilizing supporters to attend the caucuses and by early and anecdotal reports, appears to have fared well,” the Salt Lake Tribune reports.
Said Hatch: “I’ve been told that things went fairly well. Actually I’ve been told that things went really well, but who knows. I’m a tough old bird and nobody is going to push me around without a fight.”
GOP caucus-goers elected 4,000 state delegates, who will gather April 21 to vote on the party’s U.S. Senate nominee.
Why Do Territories Get a Say in the GOP Primary Process?
Byron York notes that in recent weeks it has been Mitt Romney’s wins “in the island territories — Marianas, Guam, Samoa, Virgin Islands — that gave Romney the edge in delegates. And on Sunday comes the primary in Puerto Rico. It’s possible that if Romney finally reaches the 1,144 delegates needed to clinch the Republican nomination, his delegate margin of victory will have come from the islands.”
“Which leads to the question: Why are places that are not states, whose residents cannot vote for president, and which have no electoral votes allowed to play a potentially critical role in selecting the party’s nominee?”
Dave Weigel notes a Republican’s vote in Samoa was actually worth 4,182 times more than a Republican’s vote in Florida.
Negative Campaigning on Facebook
Lauren Ashburn and Howard Kurtz have an interesting NewsHour segment about President Obama campaign’s use of social media to roll out its 17-minute “documentary” by an Oscar-winning director.
They also examine the proliferation of negative Facebook groups that belittle and mock the presidential candidates.
How the Primary Calendar Hurts Romney
Jay Cost: “Right now, we are in the tenth week of the GOP primary battle, and about half of the delegates have been allocated. But check out the lines in 2008 and 2012, at this point in those cycles roughly 80 percent of the delegates had been allocated!”
“What does this mean in terms of Romney’s political strength? Put simply: it blunts it. This slow allocation of delegates gives poorly funded candidates time to stake out ground in smaller states, pick up a surprising win or two, gain momentum, and challenge the frontrunner.”
Romney Stirs Less Enthusiasm Than McCain
A new Gallup Poll finds just 35% of Republicans say they would vote “enthusiastically” for Mitt Romney if he wins the GOP nomination — “similar to Republicans’ feelings about voting for Romney in early 2008, but lower than the enthusiasm level for that year’s eventual GOP nominee, John McCain.”
Just 34% were enthusiastic about voting for Rick Santorum and only 28% were enthusiastic for Newt Gingrich.
“Republicans are also less enthusiastic about voting for their party’s current pool of candidates than Democrats were about voting for their potential nominees in both 2008 and in 2004.”
Quote of the Day
“It’s the equivalent of malpractice to nominate someone who gives away the most important issue in this race.”
— Rick Santorum, in an interview with Mark Halperin, saying “there could be no person in this country we could nominate who would be any worse on taking on Barack Obama on the most important issue of the day, ObamaCare, than Gov. Romney.”
Santorum’s Rocky Puerto Rico Trip
ABC News
reports that Rick Santorum’s visit to Puerto Rico ahead of its
Republican presidential primary on Sunday has not been the smoothest of
campaign trips.
“Rather than boost his standing, the trip has ignited a
firestorm with Santorum’s comment that English would have to be ‘the
main language’ in order for Puerto Rico to become a U.S.
state… Santorum’s comments left one of his supporters, Oreste Ramos,
so upset that the former Puerto Rican senator rescinded his
endorsement.”
Obama White House Suffered Early Technology Failures
White House Chief Information Officer Brook Colangelo revealed in a talk with Computerworld that, upon taking office, “Over 82% of the White House’s technology had reached end of life. Desktops, for instance, still had floppy disk drives, including the one Colangelo delivered to Rahm Emanuel.”
“On taking his new position on inauguration day, he and his staff put in 80 hour weeks, ‘if not more.’ And in his first 40 days on the job, the White House email system was down 23% of the time.”
Ackerman Will Not Run Again
Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY) announced that he will not seek another term in Congress this year, the New York Daily News reports.
“On the eve of the Federal Circuit Court’s approval of Congressional
district lines that were seen to be extraordinarily favorable to
Ackerman, and with the primary-free backing of the Democratic Party
virtually assured, Ackerman has informed his family, staff, friends and
party leaders that he will not seek a 16th term of office.”
Prosecutors Grant Edwards’ Mistress Immunity
Federal prosecutors granted John Edwards’ former mistress Rielle Hunter immunity from criminal charges for anything she says on the witness stand during the former presidential candidate’s upcoming trial, WRAL reports.
Jury selection is to begin April 12, and prosecutors say it’s possible Hunter will be asked to testify.
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“One of my opponents recently said that it would take an act of God for me to win this primary. I agree with him.”
— Rick Santorum, quoted by ABC News.
Romney Bails on Another Debate
Oregon Republicans were forced to cancel the planned GOP presidential debate in Portland next week after Mitt Romney said he would not attend, the Oregonian reports.
Walter Shapiro: “How unfortunate. Republican voters need to hear more from the candidates than stump speeches and dueling calculations of delegate arithmetic. Newt Gingrich has had this one right from the beginning — more debates are always better. Now that the Republicans have been given (and not cursed with) the gift of time in choosing a presidential nominee, it would be folly if the debates — and the serious policy discussions — ended just as the race entered the home stretch.”
The Rules of Influence
Coming soon: The Rules of Influence: Winning When You’re in the Minority by William D. Crano.
