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By Alexander Burns (@aburnspolitico, aburns@politico.com)


NEW HAMPSHIRE SIREN - OVIDE DOES 2012: Former Republican Senate candidate Ovide Lamontagne, whose robust grassroots campaign nearly powered him to victory over Sen.-elect Kelly Ayotte in the September GOP primary, has formed a federal PAC aimed at shaping the 2012 presidential nominating contest. Beginning in January, the Granite Oath PAC will host a series of house parties for Republican presidential hopefuls at Lamontagne's Manchester home. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum is slated to appear at the first event, on January 11, and Lamontagne hopes to schedule events with every GOP candidate. Lamontagne told the Union Leader, which first reported the PAC's creation, that he views the group as a vehicle for keeping New Hampshire Republicans accountable after a very successful election: "I intend to do my part to ensure that the pledges taken by conservatives over the past year are honored and that the will of the people is honored." http://bit.ly/dEJ8G4


MORE - WHY IT MATTERS: Lamontagne has the potential to be a real player in the 2012 cycle: He impressed Republicans in New Hampshire and Washington with his powerful showing against Ayotte, which GOP strategists attributed to a muscular activist organization. The conservative attorney has also been mentioned as a potential candidate for governor, especially if Democratic Gov. John Lynch opts against running for another term. A source familiar with Lamontagne's new initiative e-mailed Score: "Ovide ended his primary election with huge favorability and is the conservative leader in New Hampshire. His blessing will be the key 'get' for any 2012 Presidential candidate in New Hampshire."


As Scott Brown treads carefully, Sarah Steelman has room to grow and Mark Dayton gives credit where due, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: your daily guide to the permanent campaign.


PUTNAM PARTNERS LAUNCHES: Democratic ad man Mark Putnam will announce today that he's founding a new consulting firm, Putnam Partners, LLC, with fellow strategists Philip De Vellis and Jim Duffy. Putnam, who's parting ways with Murphy Putnam Media, says in his announcement that he'll "continue to work on state-wide, congressional and local elections as well as provide strategic communications and advertising services for businesses and issue-oriented clients. Steve Murphy and I had a great firm for many years, but it was time for me to act on the challenge of building a new firm that will offer a broader array of services in traditional and new media." Putnam's most memorable 2010 campaign ad is likely Colorado Gov.-elect John Hickenlooper's celebrated commercial, "Shower," featuring the Denver mayor taking a rinse in full business attire. Watch it here http://bit.ly/hfAnbG


THE 2012 SCORE - FUNNY LIKE A FOX: Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney sidestepped Jay Leno's questions last night about his plans for 2012, joking: "If you ever see me sign up for a gig on Fox News, it'll be a clear indication that I've decided to run for president - that's not in the cards anytime soon, thanks." The Boston Herald has more: "[H]e praised [Sarah Palin] as a 'a remarkable, energetic, powerful figure in my party - attractive, too.' ... Leno moved him brusquely through what seemed like a PowerPoint presentation of hot-button issues for the Republican party presidential nomination. ... He seems have hired some of Leno's castoff writers from his failed 10 p.m. show. Asked about the TSA, Romney said, 'I have an idea: The TSA and the IRS ought to be merged because the IRS has had their hands in our pants pockets for years.'" http://bit.ly/e4R9h2


NOT A GOOD HEADLINE: "Pawlenty seeking perjury investigation against sex offender he helped pardon," from the Pioneer Press: "Gov. Tim Pawlenty says the sex offender that he joined in pardoning two years ago may have committed perjury to get his criminal record wiped clean. If so, the governor wants him prosecuted for that offense in addition to new molestation charges. Pawlenty said he sent letters to prosecutors Wednesday urging them to investigate whether Jeremy Giefer of Vernon Center lied to the state pardon board to have his criminal record expunged. Last month, Giefer was charged with sexually abusing a girl more than 250 times before and after he was pardoned in 2008." http://bit.ly/fA6Uqj


TAKING IT FOR GRANITE - If 90 percent of life is showing up, Sarah Palin would have to bet heavily on the other 10 percent in a New Hampshire primary fight. The Herald reports Republicans in the state are miffed that the former Alaska governor is nowhere to be found: "New Hampshire Republican leaders are still waiting to learn when the top GOP contender will visit the key primary state. ... Palin, meanwhile, has repeatedly ignored requests for appearances, according to town committee leaders. 'A lot of people are surprised Palin hasn't made a visit or contact,' said Manchester GOP chairman Cliff Hurst. 'Maybe she's getting enough press as it is.'" http://bit.ly/f1WPm2


PLUS - BRANSTAD WARNS: The once and future governor of Iowa doesn't want 2012 hopefuls cutting corners in his state, and in a local TV interview urged presidential candidates to plan on participating in the August straw poll held by the state Republican Party. "Not participating is certainly not a very good strategy," he told WHO-TV. "I would certainly come and participate." http://bit.ly/dKEmSn (h/t Jessica Taylor: http://politi.co/e9rhn1)


THE RNC RACE - Three candidates competing to chair the Republican National Committee and one surprise guest met at a forum in Washington Wednesday, and POLITICO's Jonathan Martin reports their debate did little to clarify a still-hazy candidate field: "Absent from the meeting was the current RNC Chairman, Michael Steele ... Unexpectedly present was Steele's predecessor, Mike Duncan, who has previously evinced little interest in pursuing another bid to helm the party. ... Only when pointedly asked by a moderator about Steele did the hopefuls move away from their unmistakable-but-only-implied language before a crowd of a couple dozen committee members. ... 'I don't think it clarified anything,' said Arizona GOP Chairman and RNC Treasurer Randy Pullen, who is uncommitted and taking his time before picking a favorite." What's next - The candidates who appeared together yesterday will meet privately with the Republican National Conservative Caucus in Washington today, as will four other possible prospects: State Chairmen Chris Healy of Connecticut and Reince Priebus of Wisconsin, former RNC official Maria Cino and ex-Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman. http://politi.co/euDf2y


AND - COMING SOON: "The RNC FEC report Thursday will show over $15 million in debt ... that doesn't included some invoices that have yet to be paid." http://politi.co/euDf2y TODAY - CLEAR YOUR SCHEDULE: The University of Virginia Center for Politics and POLITICO are teaming up for the American Democracy Conference, starting at 1 p.m. at the Newseum. "Professor Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics, and John Harris, editor-in-chief of POLITICO, will each moderate panel discussions. Speakers scheduled to appear include Nick Ayers, Matt Bennett, Glen Bolger, Donna Brazile, Carl Cannon, Candy Crowley, Nathan Daschle, Karen Finney, Guy Harrison, Mara Liasson, Mark Mellman, Susan Page, Ed Rollins, Tom Schaller, Bill Schneider, John Sununu and more." Register here: http://bit.ly/dFHEzJ


AT THE WHITE HOUSE - From the daily guidance: "The President will ... meet with [Ohio] Governor [Ted] Strickland in the Oval Office. .. . At 10:30 AM, the Vice President will meet with Governor Ted Strickland. ... In the afternoon, the President and the Vice President will meet with newly elected governors at the Blair House."


NEVADA SHOCKER - "Justice Department halts John Ensign probe" - From the Las Vegas Sun's Karoun Demirjian: "Lawyers for Sen. John Ensign say the Department of Justice has halted its investigation of the Nevada senator, who was accused of improperly paying off employees to cover up an extramarital affair. 'The Department of Justice has informed us that Senator Ensign is no longer a target of its investigation and that it has no plans to bring any charges against him on this matter,' lawyers said in statement. This is the second recent reprieve for Ensign, with the Federal Election Commission deciding last month not to pursue a campaign finance complaint against the senator. That leaves only the Senate Ethics Committee investigation into Ensign. ... The revelation of the affair in June 2009 seemed all but guaranteed to decimate Ensign's political career, which some poll watchers were predicting might be geared toward a potential Senate run in 2012. But in the time since, it hadn't seemed likely that Ensign could even hang onto his Senate seat for the rest of his term. That may all change now -- especially if the Ethics Committee follows the Justice Department's lead and drops charges." http://bit.ly/f1KsH3 (Score's take: Congratulations, Patty Murray!)


POLL OF THE DAY - MAN IN THE MIDDLE: Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown faces a daunting reelection fight in 2012, especially after Bay State Republicans wiped out on the statewide level this year. According to Public Policy Polling, however, Brown has succeeded at shaping a political profile that's more or less what Massachusetts voters want. Tom Jensen writes: "We asked folks whether they thought the GOP was too liberal, too conservative, or about right. 52% said the GOP was too conservative and only 32% said it was 'about right.' Then we asked the same question, but just about Brown. The numbers were an almost exact flip- only 33% said Brown was too conservative and 53% said he was 'about right.'" PPP's releasing head-to-head numbers on Brown's race today, including a possible match-up with Vicki Kennedy. http://bit.ly/i4JHXy


AND - IT BEGINS IN MISSOURI: Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill has her first declared challenger in the form of ex-state Treasurer Sarah Steelman. PPP shows McCaskill currently leading Steelman by 1 point and trailing former Sen. Jim Talent, another likely opponent, by a 2-point margin. POLITICO's David Catanese digs deeper into the numbers on his must-bookmark blog: "The most instructive data points out of Public Policy Polling's Missouri Senate survey are not the head-to-head numbers, but rather the favorability ratings of Sarah Steelman versus former Sen. Jim Talent ... Despite two previous statewide runs, PPP finds that Steelman remains mostly undefined. Fifty-nine percent are 'not sure' whether they like her or not. That's 27 points higher than the 32 percent who don't have a concrete opinion on Talent." http://politi.co/fKElcd


YOUR DAILY DOSE OF MINNESOTA - There's more sound and fury in the state's gubernatorial recount and little evidence that any developments so far have shaved down former Democratic Sen. Mark Dayton's lead. Minnesota Public Radio: "Tensions continued to mount Wednesday in the governor's race recount in Hennepin County. Elections officials wanted to add more counting tables in hopes of keeping the recount from bogging down with frivolous ballot challenges. They blame Republican Tom Emmer's side for the vast majority of frivolous challenges. The Emmer side threatened legal action if more tables were added, and the chair of the state Republican Party accused Hennepin County's top elections official of being biased toward Democrat Mark Dayton." http://bit.ly/fhU9xH


CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY - "Did you ever imagine you'd be spending these two years of your life doing all this to elect your ex-husband governor of Minnesota." - Mark Dayton, telling a DGA audience that his former wife, Alida Messinger, played a key role in funding the pro-Democratic Alliance for a Better Minnesota. http://politi.co/eLiSIT

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