Today On The Trail: February 4, 2012
Is Komen’s PP Reversal For Real Or Just A Stunt?
Brewer Distances Herself From AZ Anti-Union Bills
TPM Editors’ Blog Opinions, Context & Ideas from TPM Editors
Picture of the Day
Know Your Base
Herman Cain's fundraising spiked after his sexual harassment allegations.
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Here's What To Watch
The unemployment numbers this morning were not only good news for the country. They were unquestionably good news for the President's reelection efforts. A couple years ago, 8% unemployment was often the benchmark people referenced as what the President needed to be secure in his reelection efforts. By the middle of last year, that seemed wildly unrealistic. But now, with the news that the unemployment rate has fallen to 8.3%, we can't rule out the possibility that it will cross the 8% threshold by November.
But here's what to watch.
Read More →Bringing Out The Big Gun
Newt's now challenging Romney to a "Lincoln-Douglas" debate.
Chart of the Day
Why did Obama's numbers tank and then rebound? A great visual that explains it.
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8.3%
Economy adds 243k jobs in January. Unemployment rate falls to 8.3%.
Weakest Speaker Of The Modern Era?
In the not too distant past, the worst reputation to have in Washington was as someone who didn't negotiate in good faith, couldn't deliver what he promised, and wasn't a man of his word. Times have changed, of course. Someone like that can now be speaker of the House.
To be clear, John Boehner isn't a lying, cheating, scoundrel. He's merely an incredibly weak speaker with little sway over his own caucus. Here's the latest example of Boehner's weak-kneed leadership.
Relive The Tension
How perfect was it that Donald Trump's endorsement came on Groundhog Day?
Romney on Trump Endorsement: This is Awesome
Mitt Romney ecstatic over Trump endorsement: "There are some things that you just can't imagine happening in your life -- this is one of them. Being in Donald Trump's magnificent hotel and having his endorsement is a delight."
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The Virginia Problem
There's talk of a maneuver that could hurt Romney's delegate count in Virginia... but could Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum swallow their political pride for long enough to pull it off?
Insert 'Trump' Pun Here
David Taintor has a recap of just how Donald Trump drove a madcap media narrative today.
Meanwhile, here's Evan McMorris-Santoro on why the Donald's endorsement is something of a poisoned chalice.
Jobs For Bombs?
The GOP suggests a plan for holding off Defense cuts without increasing taxes.
Meanwhile, Sahil Kapur outlines the standoff, and why Dems think they won't be the ones to blink.
Really?
All joking aside, in American popular culture, Donald Trump is iconically tied to the phrase "You're fired." And not a pained "You're fired" but the pleasure of chopping wood job well done "You're fired."
During season one of the Apprentice he even had this custom firing hand gesture. 90 degree angle hand, flat hand, "You're fired." Mitt Romney is going to appear together with him? For pictures? If I were one of the guys at the RNC in charge of getting Mitt elected in November, I really think I'd be shaking my head right now.
What am I missing?
Who Gets Hit Hardest
Find out who the Komen decision will hit hardest.
Watching Closely
It happened in Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana. Now Republicans are moving to push a raft of fiercely anti-union legislation in Arizona. And Labor is scrambling to react.
Six Mile Figure High Club
Almost all Super PAC money comes in contributions of $100,000 or more.
Scramble
Unions scramble as Arizona Republicans move to rush through tough anti-Labor bills.
Enter The Twilight Zone
Benjy Sarlin reports from a gathering of young Las Vegas Republicans... who aren't into Ron Paul.
CLASS Dismissed
The House GOP tries to take Ted Kennedy's CLASS Act off of life support.
Battle Royale
What's really behind the Komen Foundation cutting off funding to Planned Parenthood?
Dems Catch A Break In WI Signatures Law Suit
A WI appeals court has ordered a conservative judge to hear Democrat arguments in the signatures dispute.
Even Fox News Took Notice Of The Jobs Numbers
Fox News can be - how to put this? - reluctant to give Obama credit for anything. So Friday’s jobs numbers caused a stir.
Most Recent Latest news stories from TPM reporters
Dems Catch A Break In Wisconsin Recall Signatures Law Suit
An appeals court in Wisconsin on Friday ordered a judge in conservative Waukesha County to vacate his ruling and rehear the arguments of a lawsuit filed by the state Republicans about the procedures for counting signatures in the recall effort. The big issue: That the judge had refused to allow Democratic recall organizers to get involved in the case and make arguments. This means that Democrats are getting another bite at the apple on this matter -- depending on the outcome of the additionalWisconsin...Today On The Trail: February 4, 2012
Today is caucus day in Nevada. Here are ten things you need to know today. Nevada votes: Republicans in Nevada will actually cast ballots today in their statewide caucuses. The individual caucuses have different meeting times, but most start at 9 a.m. Pacific Time, and GOP officials told the Las Vegas Sun that meetings could be done within 20 to 30 minutes. But despite the early start time, results don't start coming in until around 5 p.m. Eastern, with tallies from Clark county, home of Las Vegas,Sun:Sun...Newt Condemns Mudslinging From The Pulpit -- Then Bashes Romney
LAS VEGAS, NV -- As even the pastor enthusiastically introducing him at the International Church of Las Vegas on Friday noted, Newt Gingrich has always had a rocky relationship between his faith and his actions. The ex-Speaker's address to the congregation was no different, featuring a moralizing denunciation of negative campaigning only hours after leveling most brutal attack yet against rival MItt Romney. Gingrich, who began his address by calling all the children in the audience to stand with him on...A Handy Guide To The Nevada Caucuses
After a week of spirited campaigning and, despite conflicting reports, exactly one Donald Trump endorsement, the candidates are ready to face the voters in Nevada on Saturday. Here's everything you need to know going into the caucus. Nevada's Pretty New To This Whole 'Caucus' Business Being a caucus rather than a primary no early or absentee voting or casually stopping by a polling place on the way to the craps table to vote. You can only vote in-person after listening to surrogates deliver speeches on...Day In 100 Seconds: The Numbers Game
The consensus across cable news was that today was a good day. A great day. The best of days! Some encouraging job statistics came out this morning which even caused some anchors on Fox to accept that the President can claim his proposals are creating jobs. Watch it now, because you may never see it again... The numbers were also good news of sorts for the GOP candidates lining up for their latest vote this Saturday. This certainly took the focus of TV crews off statements regarding not caring...Is Komen's Planned Parenthood Reversal For Real?
Though Susan G. Komen for the Cure announced a reversal of its decision to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood, the language of the statement suggests the foundation could still refuse to fund the women's health care provider in the future. After a two-day hailstorm of criticism -- during which Planned Parenthood raised $3 million, according to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America -- Komen announced on Friday that it would abandon a plan to cut off grant funding for breast cancer screenings at ...GOP Rep Michael Grimm: I'd Be 'Very Stupid' To Take Cash Near FBI Building
House Speaker John Boehner said Friday that he was "not familiar with the details" of the unfolding campaign finance scandal involving Rep. Michael Grimm (R-NY). Let's bring him up to speed. The New York Times reported this week that Grimm worked closely with Ofer Biton (a top aide to the orthodox Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto) back in 2009 to recruit the rabbi's followers to donate to Grimm's campaign. Together, they collected more than $500,000 for his campaign, helping convince Republican leaders Grimm ...Schumer: GOP Has Lost Its Obstructionist Mojo
Does the Senate's passage of the STOCK bill suggest the Republicans have lost their obstructionist mojo? Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) seems to think so. The third-ranked Senate Democrat made the taunt hours before the chamber's overwhelming 96-3 approval of the President Obama-backed STOCK Act Thursday, which aims to crack down on congressional insider trading. He accused GOP lawmakers of inelegantly dragging their feet on STOCK as well as the payroll tax cut in an effort to sink the measures. "Haven't...Antarctica's 19-Mile Ice Crack Will Produce New York-Sized Iceberg
The Big Apple is about to get some competition down south. A New York City-sized iceberg will eventually split off of Antarctica as a result of a 19-mile long crack on a glacier on the Western part of the world's southernmost continent, according to NASA. The crack was first observed up-close on the Pine Island Glacier in mid-October 2011 by NASA scientists working on Antarctica, the agency explained. Later in November, NASA's Terra AM satellite -- the same one that reportedly suffered "interference" ...CHART: Herman Cain Fundraising Spiked After Sexual Harassment Allegations
Turns out the media firestorm over charges that former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain sexually harassed women was pretty good for the Cain campaign's bottom line. A TPM analysis of campaign finance data filed with the Federal Election Commission this week confirms the Cain campaign's assertion that their fundraising got a boost after Politico first reported that the National Restaurant Association reached two sexual harassment settlements with women who accused Cain of inappropriate...Newt Pulls Out All The Plugs On Anti-Romney Rhetoric
LAS VEGAS, NV -- After using the Occupy Wall Street playbook to attack Mitt Romney last month, Newt Gingrich is cribbing from the Tea Party's anti-Obama files, identifying his rival as yet another co-conspirator in a vast leftist plot to destroy capitalism itself. Not a great sign for those Republican strategists who hope Romney's Florida victory will quickly unite the party. Addressing fired up supporters in a cowboy-themed Vegas bar on Friday, Gingrich offered a new depiction of Romney as a tool of...Arizona Power Plant Goes Green With AREVA Solar Thermal Project
A coal-fired electrical plant in Tucson, Ariz., is going green -- or at least "greener" -- partnering with a French, state-owned nuclear company to install a solar add-on that will generate enough clean electricity to power 600 homes using high-pressure, superheated steam warmed by a series of mirrors. The new solar project is expected to begin construction in Spring 2012 and to be up and running at the current H. Wilson Sundt Generating Station in Tucson by 2013, according to a news release from plant...Obama's Speech At Arlington Firefighter Station
In his State of the Union address, President Obama found a metaphor for how he wanted the country to pull together: they should work like team of the navy seals who killed Osama Bin Laden - all individuals but all together, with each playing his part. Today he was in Arlington, Virginia, pushing a similar message but this time with firefighters instead of troops and his remarks caught the attention of the cable nets. Here are the highlights:Brewer Distances Herself From Arizona's Anti-Union Bills
Gov. Jan Brewer distanced herself on Friday from a series of Republican proposals in the Arizona Senate that could devastate organized labor in her state, saying she was never consulted on them and has other priorities. The popular Republican had remained silent on the matter since the bills were introduced on Monday, but her chief spokesman began talking to the media after it became clear the union proposals stood to drown out everything the governor wanted to see happen during the legislative session. ...FBI Investigating 'Illegally Obtained' Conference Call On Anonymous Probe
The FBI is investigating how the hacktivist group Anonymous got wind of an international law enforcement conference call they ran on their criminal investigation into the group, audio of which was posted online this week. "The information obtained on the call was intended for law enforcement only. It was illegally obtained and a FBI criminal investigation is underway," an FBI spokesman said in a statement to TPM. The conference call evidently took place on Jan. 17 and involved discussions of ongoing...Komen Reverses Position On Planned Parenthood, Pledges To Continue Funding
The Susan G. Komen foundation announced that it will reverse its decision to cut funding for Planned Parenthood, apologizing for "recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives." The statement calls the backlash over the decision to cut the funding "unsettling," and says that the organization will "amend the criteria to make clear that disqualifying investigations must be criminal and conclusive in nature and not political." "We will continue to fund existing ...'An Eye For An Eye Of The Tiger': Survivor Sings Newt's Book Without Permission On Colbert
Stephen Colbert is a big defender of copyright law. Colbert was moved by the news that former Survivor band member Frankie Sullivan is suing Newt Gingrich's campaign for using the song "Eye of the Tiger." Newt -- an author of many copyrighted materials -- should know better, Colbert said: "I say an eye for an 'Eye of the Tiger.'" "Someone should sing Newt's latest book, "A Nation Like No Other," without permission," Colbert added. So Colbert welcomed former Survivor frontman Dave Bickler to do just...Could NV Governor Become Romney's Running Mate?
LAS VEGAS, NV -- The latest polling suggests Mitt Romney's going to score a big victory in Nevada's caucuses this Saturday. Much of the chatter here, however, is about whether the state may also wind up giving him a running mate for the general election. Nevada's governor Brian Sandoval has been bandied about as a potential -- if longshot -- veep choice since his election in 2010. On paper, his resume looks solid. He's a young rising star in the party with strong approval ratings and, as a Hispanic...Jon Stewart On Trump's Big Announcement: 'That's It?'
No one was happier than Jon Stewart to see Donald Trump back in the headlines this week. Finally, there was someone to fill the "mogul-shaped hole" in Stewart's heart. "I haven't been this happy to see an orange face again since the end of Finding Nemo. So what's he going to announce? Stewart couldn't wait to hear. But when all Trump did was endorse Mitt Romney, the current GOP frontrunner and expected nominee, Stewart's spirits were crushed. "Oh, that's it?" Stewart said. "What does Trump see when...Today On The Trail: February 3, 2012
The Nevada caucuses are set for tomorrow. Here are ten things you need to know today. Romney up big in Nevada: Although we are headed for another vote in the Republican presidential primary process, polls show there may not be much drama on Saturday -- a new Public Policy Polling (D) survey shows former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with a sizable lead ahead of tomorrow's GOP caucus in Nevada. Romney gets 50 percent in the new PPP poll, which followed a UNLV survey in which he saw 45. Former House Not...Editor & Publisher
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