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By James Hohmann (
mailto:jhohmann@politico.com
jhohmann@politico.com ; Twitter: @jameshohmann)

THE MESS IN MAINE - SOME RESULTS WENT TO SPAM:Inanother inexcusable failure of thecaucus system, "Maine Republican Party chairman Charlie Webster has admitted that the state party made numerous clerical errors in counting the state's caucus results - even omitting some votes because emails reporting tallies 'went to spam' in an email account." Tim Mak says Webster insists the errors did not change the outcome. The state GOP announced Romney had won Saturday, even though he led by fewer than 200 votes and not all municipalities had reported results. In Portland, for example, the state party's results originally showed that Paul won by 15 votes when in reality Romney won by 15, Webster
admitted. "We've corrected those clerical errors and will send those numbers out [soon]," he told Tim.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e961070319beb4707a2819cbf004217ea8981e1d969dac1509
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e961070319beb4707a2819cbf004217ea8981e1d969dac1509

BARACK OBAMA TWEETS:"Our FEC report today: In January 2012, #Obama2012 raised a combined total of $29.1 million between committees... 98% were $250 or less." That doesn't include the $8.6+ million that the president expects to raise during his three-state western trip. Yesterday alone, with four stops in California, a Democratic official said the reelection effort took in about $4 million. The president's Twitter page:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e970a6b4e732ef95bcddff9185e296eddad6249608c5ccfa92
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e970a6b4e732ef95bcddff9185e296eddad6249608c5ccfa92 . Item on this week's fundraising:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e95219e4e0940c336414c5814421459674bf70e942ceca5d4b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e95219e4e0940c336414c5814421459674bf70e942ceca5d4b .

A ONE-TERM PROPOSITION - GOP CELEBRATES THIRD ANNIVERARY OF STIMULUS:Watch for lots of state Republican parties and Republican Senate candidates to attack Obama and Democratic incumbents on the stimulus through today. The National Republican Senatorial Committee is up with a one-minute web video to highlight the president's statement about turning the economy around in three years.Here's a page of quotes from Democrat senators running in 2012 on the stimulus:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e938d075495d428a39188d3c69dca550050b5ac75e24af0fc9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e938d075495d428a39188d3c69dca550050b5ac75e24af0fc9 . The video:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e9ac7373b25b4fb46a983c484ff2d061b8ab57ef57086c48ff
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e9ac7373b25b4fb46a983c484ff2d061b8ab57ef57086c48ff .

Eager to be forward looking at the start of an election year,the main talking point of the coordinated attack on the White Housewill be this quote from the introduction to a Congressional Budget Office report released yesterday: "The rate of unemployment in the United States has exceeded 8 percent since February 2009, making the past three years the longest stretch of high unemployment in this country since the Great Depression. Moreover, the Congressional Budget Office projects that the unemployment rate will remain above 8 percent until 2014." The report:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e9a00dc49cd7ba8ebf919d1c7e0b9a81d398ce34cc95933505
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=63342c7e799412e9a00dc49cd7ba8ebf919d1c7e0b9a81d398ce34cc95933505 .

MORE ON #STIMULUSFAIL - RNC TRIES TO LOCALIZE CRITICISMS TO MAXIMIZE EARNED MEDIA:The Republican National Committee is rolling out a web video ("the promise that became a punch line"), a state-by-state breakdown of where the money went and a briefing book on the ways the undertaking did not live up to administration hype. A 24-page "comprehensive briefing book":
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748ad8f6ea51be3d47216df1e9bcc9d206cde485b2d6a22353d4
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748ad8f6ea51be3d47216df1e9bcc9d206cde485b2d6a22353d4 . A 22-page, state-by-state breakdown of stimulus failures:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748ae31e947fd5834bf727b5b635bacf8276d8e2d9b66ffe5c46
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748ae31e947fd5834bf727b5b635bacf8276d8e2d9b66ffe5c46 . A six-page hit accuses Obama of breaking the following five promises: unemployment's not below 8%, infrastructure didn't lead the recovery, one million electric cars did not get sold, poverty did not go down and the stimulus didn't jumpstart a green economy:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a710ccfe52ad7dfee11af1e89a5ca1528948b7ad0d56ab61c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a710ccfe52ad7dfee11af1e89a5ca1528948b7ad0d56ab61c . Their one-minute web video includes a clip of Obama acknowledging that "shovel ready was not as shovel ready as we expected":
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748af00c8a70d86e780f11ea8489cbf728d21836068a27e6723c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748af00c8a70d86e780f11ea8489cbf728d21836068a27e6723c .

"THE OLYMPIC BAILOUT" - DNC BRACKETS ROMNEY'S UTAH TRIP:Ahead of Mitt Romney's Saturday trip to Salt Lake City for the 10th anniversary of the 2002 Winter Olympics, the Democratic National Committee is challenging a central part of the frontrunner's narrative. A new 2.5-minute web video is meant to cast doubt on whether he actually "saved" the games. The buzziest part of the video is decade-old footage of John McCain lambasting Romney's Olympics as the worst kind of pork-barrel project. Then there's a clip of Romney bragging about all the federal money he got while running for Massachusetts governor. The gist is that a federal rescue (er, "bailout") made the Olympics work, not Romney's
leadership. Watch:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748aa47e9037c4f67ca3632e8c08f0edc3194e399a072b31e075
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748aa47e9037c4f67ca3632e8c08f0edc3194e399a072b31e075 .

** As Gingrich sets the bar at 15% for Michigan, Chicago ponders how they'd run against Santorum in a general and Foster Friess becomes a household name, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: your daily guide to the permanent campaign.

THE AIR WAR -

PRO-SANTORUM SUPER PAC GOES POSITIVE - "BOLD PLAN":The Red White and Blue Fund is using its three quarters of a million dollar ad buy in Michigan to introduce Santorum to voters as a conservative family man. Watch the soft, 30-second spot:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a3bde1d442bedb6210d51484a695c1275573cc27fba5bf656
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a3bde1d442bedb6210d51484a695c1275573cc27fba5bf656 .

$2.5 MILLION - RESTORE OUR FUTURE AD BUYS PLACED ON THURSDAY:Ben Smith's BuzzFeed reports on the biggest round of fresh buys yet from the pro-Romney Super PAC. From a Republican media-buying source: ARIZONA: - a $305,887 statewide broadcast and cable TV buy, for February 21 to 28. ALABAMA: - a $94,430 statewide broadcast TV buy, for February 21 to 28. MICHIGAN: - added $12,102 to their statewide cable buy, for February 16 to 20. - also placed a $591,179 statewide broadcast and cable TV buy, for February 21 to 28. MISSISSIPPI: - placed a $45,026 statewide broadcast buy, for February 21 to 27. TENNESSEE: - added to their statewide radio buy. The new flight total for radio is $39,197 starting
February 15. - a $314,385 statewide broadcast TV buy for February 21 to 27. GEORGIA: - a statewide broadcast TV buy of $393,780 from February 21 to 27. OKLAHOMA: - placed a $150,439 statewide broadcast and cable TV buy for February 21 to 27. OHIO: - placed a $578,820 statewide broadcast TV buy for February 21 to 27."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748adf6c75c451f6c2560e1f5647d9ac20e0b97fb67e2f1576bf
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748adf6c75c451f6c2560e1f5647d9ac20e0b97fb67e2f1576bf

MARCH 1 DEBATE CANCELED - ROMNEY PULLED OUT:"Mitt Romney and Ron Paul told the Georgia Republican Party, Ohio Republican Party and CNN Thursday that they will not participate in the March 1 Republican presidential primary debate," per CNN. "However, next week, CNN and the Arizona Republican Party will host all four leading contenders for the GOP nomination. That debate will be held in Mesa, Arizona on February 22 and will be moderated by CNN's John King.'
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748ad8471856c0f90359397078c567243e8606f545ef8d222c7c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748ad8471856c0f90359397078c567243e8606f545ef8d222c7c

MITT WILL RAISE MONEY IN WASHINGTON INSTEAD:Boston cited a scheduling conflict in turning down the debate invitation. ABC's Emily Friedman notes that the governor is scheduled to attend a fundraiser in Bellevue, Washington, that night. Here's the Facebook invitation:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a6c2e393512e2e42a91816f9a6c0806cf2b0ed830f9526228
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a6c2e393512e2e42a91816f9a6c0806cf2b0ed830f9526228 .

WHAT THE REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES ARE UP TO TODAY:Santorum rallies in Shelby Township, Mich. at 11:15. Then he goes to Ohio for two Lincoln Day dinner speeches: 6 p.m. in Mason and 8 p.m. in Georgetown. Romney has a noon fundraiser and 1:45 rally in Boise. Paul rallies in Richland, Washington, Moscow, Idaho, and Spokane, Wash. Gingrich has flown to Georgia for a fundraiser and rally in Peachtree City. He'll stay through the weekend. Details:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a6cd977ae1bbb0a2a9f717bd4ca2d617211efbcb5cf3cbfcd
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e41bc5254a5a748a6cd977ae1bbb0a2a9f717bd4ca2d617211efbcb5cf3cbfcd

PROGRAMMING NOTE:In honor of President's Day, there will be no Score on Monday.

SANTORUM - OBAMA CAMPAIGN WEIGHING HOW TO DEAL WITH HIM:The Wall Street Journal's Peter Nicholas writes that "Obama's re-election campaign has begun discussing whether to attack" Santorum. Santorum "doesn't come with the type of political baggage that Gingrich had," said one Obama adviser. "He has the ability to go farther and is much more likely to be a potential nominee." More: "Mark Penn, a strategist for Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential bid, said in an interview that in 'softening up Romney,' Democrats risk opening a path for Mr. Santorum to 'emerge as this fresh, new untouched face who could potentially represent a tougher opponent.' The risk of attacking Mr. Santorum:
elevating him further as a candidate dangerous enough to warrant the president's attention."

YA THINK?!?! "One approach might be to highlight Mr. Santorum's socially conservative views and argue that they are outside of the mainstream," Nicholas writes matter-of-factly. "Another might be to go after his economic positions."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa68e7d248c8f345dbc7658c68bb8fdda4d7ad403e6c015bb1e
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa68e7d248c8f345dbc7658c68bb8fdda4d7ad403e6c015bb1e

The Obama campaign sent an email to its Pennsylvania list asking for "recollections" of Santorum from his 16 years representing the state. This could help frame an attack down the road.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa66d81d9ad2adba894379e950d69890c31e943f6bee1929b97
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa66d81d9ad2adba894379e950d69890c31e943f6bee1929b97

PREDICTION:This WSJ piece will be the first of a handful of stories from the tier-one papers over the slowish President's Day weekend about how Chicago is thinking about how to deal with Santorum if he's the nominee. They'll all follow the same formula as the how-would-Obama-deal-with-Gingrich stories that came out before Christmas. For an example of the best in this genre, see Jeff and Jim's New York Times A1 story from Dec. 8:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6626f3c2d7f75dd4ceb7f2caceabbcb10ea7e6d51f24aad94
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6626f3c2d7f75dd4ceb7f2caceabbcb10ea7e6d51f24aad94 .

MICHIGAN MELEE -

DETROIT FREE PRESS HEADLINE - "SANTORUM SPEAKS AT AWKWARD GOP DINNER":"At a Republican dinner in Oakland County, where Mitt Romney grew up, Rick Santorum was the featured speaker, but the reception was a bit awkward.Santorum had to share the program with Romney's wife Ann and Gov. Rick Snyder, who officially endorsed Romney's candidacy earlier today. Mitt Romney was not there.Santorum was last on the agenda, after Snyder, Ann Romney and a handful of other speakers."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa612d08c731e500b9a9656498f93afebf630f6af68d5146f2f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa612d08c731e500b9a9656498f93afebf630f6af68d5146f2f

THE AUTO BAILOUT - SHOTS FIRED BY SANTORUM:"Governor Romney supported the bailout of Wall Street and decided not to support the bailout of Detroit," Santorum said at the Detroit Economic Club. "My feeling was that we should not support - the government should not be involved in bailouts, period. I think that's a much more consistent position."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6ad9f439dd80fd4d4feb5f251ec85a8aeb0555393d6c4c4d9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6ad9f439dd80fd4d4feb5f251ec85a8aeb0555393d6c4c4d9

AMERICAN BRIDGE WEB VIDEO - "DETROIT IS BACK: NO THANKS TO MITT": The liberal Super PAC tracking Romney releases a two-minute video juxtaposing clips of Romney saying 'let Detroit go bankrupt' against news reports on GM's record profits. Watch:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa69ade5bfa2f212b1027f08941a6637c2cfae70288f3793339
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa69ade5bfa2f212b1027f08941a6637c2cfae70288f3793339 .

SNYDER WANTS ROMNEY TO TALK ABOUT THE BAILOUT LESS:"The way I look at it is, you're armchair quarterbacking," Romney's top Michigan endorser, Gov. Rick Snyder, said last night at the end of a day when Romney talked about it quite a lot. "Why spend all the time on that when we have too much unemployment today? ... That's history, and let's move forward, and let's talk about who has good plans for the future of our country."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6c57d8c080b72a4e15e98ae78144acd5101dd8a0b53a9cc44
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6c57d8c080b72a4e15e98ae78144acd5101dd8a0b53a9cc44

GINGRICH SAID HE NEEDS TO BREAK 15%:"You have to break 15 percent," Newt Gingrich said on Fox News yesterday. "It's a proportional representation state. I think we will do that. So I think we will pick up delegates in Michigan. And my prediction is that if Mitt Romney goes and attacks Santorum as negatively as he attacked me in Florida and elsewhere, that what you're going to see is he'll peel votes off Santorum, but they're going to come to me. They're not going to go to Romney." Via GOP 2012:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6a693e362a6159804ba76413258f514074caca580efdf59e1
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6a693e362a6159804ba76413258f514074caca580efdf59e1 .

COULD ROMNEY LOSE?"That won't happen," Romney told reporters from Grand Rapids' newspaper. He also came out for the Red Sox over the Tigers. Transcript:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6990f7dcc17bac52b71858be222ea7dff7d7971dc3cb1e736
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6990f7dcc17bac52b71858be222ea7dff7d7971dc3cb1e736 .

BOTH WAX NOSTALGIC - THE CONTRAST:"The two men are wooing Michiganders in unabashedly emotional terms - a notable departure from earlier contests, during which Romney's economic bromides and his opponents' strident ideological rhetoric defined the debate," Alex Burns notes. "Now, the more prominent contrast is between Romney's lofty Michigan political lineage and Santorum's tightly-embraced Rust Belt identity as the grandson of a coal miner. Santorum's pledge to revive the manufacturing sector is a core part of his campaign platform."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6f1c33939e4644aa303cffefa5d5f211fcb5c4efe7ec4e4b9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2f5c3aba16df1aa6f1c33939e4644aa303cffefa5d5f211fcb5c4efe7ec4e4b9

NO MENTION OF SANTORUM IN ROMNEY'S OHIO APPEARANCE:Romney's first election-year visit to Ohio was a speech to 1,200 at a Lincoln Day dinner in Cuyahoga County, some of the most Democratic turf in the state. Cleveland Plain Dealer write-up:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e4fb56d9166fbb510b14991d7d53b177b2d5627cc1c09b2ca
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e4fb56d9166fbb510b14991d7d53b177b2d5627cc1c09b2ca .

THE ANATOMY OF A CABLE KERFULLE - WITH DONORS LIKE THESE...

FOSTER FRIESS ON MSNBC:The mega donor behind the pro-Rick Santorum Super PAC dismissed questions about his patron's controversial views on women in combat, contraception and gay marriage. "People seem to be so preoccupied with sex," he told Andrea Mitchell in the early afternoon. "On this contraceptive thing, my Gosh it's such [sic] inexpensive. You know, back in my days, they used Bayer aspirin for contraception. The gals put it between their knees, and it wasn't that costly."

SANTORUM DISTANCED HIMSELF ON FOX:"Santorum told [Fox News' Greta] Van Susteren that Friess made 'a stupid joke' and that it does not 'reflect on the campaign or me,'" per CBS. "Van Susteren appeared unsatisfied with Santorum's response and said Friess is '0 and one' in her book.' ... An uncomfortable-looking Santorum offered assurance that contraception will be permissible should he become president. 'Not everything that I... disagree with morally should the government be involved in,' Santorum said 'People have the right to in this country and it certainly will be safe to [use contraception] in a Santorum presidency.'" Story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68eed090019f97dc3f0febc128fc80da9e8c6ca570a97f8379f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68eed090019f97dc3f0febc128fc80da9e8c6ca570a97f8379f Video:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e0bdf8e0d7fa265d96bf0e62c73004c67c48bba7ab6f91024
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e0bdf8e0d7fa265d96bf0e62c73004c67c48bba7ab6f91024 .

THE DONOR CLARIFIES HIS COMMENT ON MSNBC:Friess went on MSNBC again in the 10 p.m. last night to clarify his comments. He sounded much more like a surrogate, noting that Santorum had said he would vote against state legislation to ban contraception and noting that in the Senate he'd voted for AIDS funding to Africa that included contraception. It was obviously a careful effort to try reassuring women. Watch:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e8283421afac15f52ae6c45c115c37f6e7527d878bb8b0e8e
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e8283421afac15f52ae6c45c115c37f6e7527d878bb8b0e8e .

SANTORUM PLAYS JEREMIAH WRIGHT CARD ON CBS:"Pressed by Charlie Rose on Foster Friess's Thursday comments, Pennsylvanian accuses the CBS host of 'gotcha politics' and using a 'double-standard,' invoking the President's '20-year' relationship with Jeremiah Wright," per Time's Mark Halperin. Santorum: 'When you quote a supporter of mine who tells a bad off color joke, and I'm somehow responsible for that? That's gotcha....Look, this is what you guys do. You don't do this with President Obama.' More: 'I'm not responsible for any comment that anyone who supports me makes.'
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e0d29b4069144a9588730cd79a787df2dc297cbfd6ba122ed
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e0d29b4069144a9588730cd79a787df2dc297cbfd6ba122ed

PAUL - BIG CROWDS IN WASHINGTON STATE:How the Seattle Post-Intelligencer led its story on his standard stump: "Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, preaching ploughshares as fellow GOP candidates brandish sabres, quoted returning military personnel describing the Afghanistan War as a 'fake and a fraud' when his packed house Sea-Tac rally broke into a chant seldom heard at Republican gatherings: 'BRING THEM HOME! BRING THEM HOME!' 'Somebody asked me the other day, 'When should we bring them home?' I replied, 'As soon as we can get the ships over there,' Paul declared, and the audience of more than 1,300 was on its feet again." Great earned media, except for the mention of the newsletters in
the fifth paragraph:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e9c6874e3682e163bee9c78744e572c1d6f3f2714ac1bbcda
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e9c6874e3682e163bee9c78744e572c1d6f3f2714ac1bbcda . The Tacoma News-Tribune notes that Paul supporters started lining up hours before the rally:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e956beeb5771ff1c8b929c1ff3ee9419d7aafd6c1a1461544
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e956beeb5771ff1c8b929c1ff3ee9419d7aafd6c1a1461544 .

THE STRATEGIC ALLIANCE - NEW DETAILS ABOUT HOW ROMNEY HAS COURTED PAUL:"When Mr. Paul's campaign jet broke down last year in Wolfeboro, N.H., Mr. Romney's wife, Ann, offered to let Mr. Paul, an aide and one of his granddaughters stay the night at their summer home on Lake Winnipesaukee. When Mr. Romney arrived later, he offered his jet to take them home to Texas. Mr. Paul, not wanting to impose, was grateful but declined both offers," Rich Oppel reports on A14 of today's New York Times. "I talk to Romney more than the rest on a friendly basis," Mr. Paul said. "'I throw Romney's name out because he's made a bigger attempt to do it. The others are sort of just real flat.' He and Mr. Romney
talk 'all the time' and 'we've met all their kids.' Once he telephoned Mr. Romney just as Mr. Romney was calling him. 'Sometimes I'm never sure who issued a call,' he said."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e376dce2751a62b9b4544740eab0a84572ec1ad41d156153f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e376dce2751a62b9b4544740eab0a84572ec1ad41d156153f

PAUL RAISES $1.2 MILLION WITH VALENTINE'S DAY MONEY BOMB:"Paul's campaign announced Wednesday that it had raised nearly $1.2 million since Valentine's Day, bringing in cash at nearly the same rate as rival Rick Santorum in the immediate aftermath of the former senator's victories in Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado last week" per a write-up of a press release in The Hill that got picked up by the Drudge Report.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e411f0b27717d1d1b0b181673126951f82acbacf47fcb2511
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e411f0b27717d1d1b0b181673126951f82acbacf47fcb2511

GINGRICH RAISED $2 MILLION ON THIS WEEK'S CALIFORNIA SWING, per The Washington Post's Amy Gardner.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e6d0e1421d494ceca6743152a49513f68b046efbfe0dcd61d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9339227b6734f68e6d0e1421d494ceca6743152a49513f68b046efbfe0dcd61d

ROMNEY - POSTHUMOUS BAPTISM STORY DOGS HIM ANOTHER DAY:We're late to the continuing saga over Ellie Wiesel's public appeal to Romney to demand the Mormon Church cease the controversial practice of baptizing Holocaust victims after they die. The Washington Post's Jason Horowitz profiles the excommunicated Mormon who discovered that Simon Wiesenthal's parents had been posthumously baptized as Mormons:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319e478d9de867aaec27564ccd6a49493e96f095657f8215195
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319e478d9de867aaec27564ccd6a49493e96f095657f8215195

WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS UP TO:"In the morning, the President will depart San Francisco, California en route Everett, Washington...Later in the morning, the President will tour a production facility and deliver remarks at a Boeing Plant in Everett, Washington where he will continue to discuss his blueprint for an economy built to last...the President will deliver remarks at a campaign event at a private residence...Later in the afternoon, the President will deliver remarks at a campaign event at The Westin Bellevue Hotel...In the evening, the President will return to Washington, DC."

MASSACHUSETTS SENATE - SUFFOLKS PUTS BROWN UP 9:"Republican Scott Brown (49 percent) has a 9-point lead over Democrat Elizabeth Warren (40 percent), according to a Suffolk University/7NEWS (WHDH-Boston) poll of likely general election voters in Massachusetts." Brown leads 60-28 among independents. Top lines:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc6491813191676b376db23da25b45df31fb31c8048a2a74af7ba38a901
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc6491813191676b376db23da25b45df31fb31c8048a2a74af7ba38a901 .

VEEPWATCH - CHRISTIE VETO OF GAY MARRIAGE BILL SETS STAGE FOR SHOWDOWN:"Even as Gov. Chris Christie's threat of a 'swift' veto looms, gay rights activists basked [Thursday] after the state Assembly took final action on a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in New Jersey," per the Star Ledger. "With supporters imploring lawmakers to make history, the lower house passed the bill after hours of debate on a day that began with protests and prayer vigils under gloomy skies outside the Statehouse."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319596855bdeff53e4b7a050676d966e985da6a85eba84cb1fd
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319596855bdeff53e4b7a050676d966e985da6a85eba84cb1fd

VEEPSTAKES - MCDONNELL MAY HAVE TO WEIGH IN ON PERSONHOOD:"The so-called 'personhood bill' defines life as beginning at conception and gives the fetus the same legal rights as an everyday citizen. It already passed the House of Delegates and now needs only Senate approval before it goes to McDonnell," the Washington Examiner reports."The bill opens the door for the state to ban abortion if the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade is ever overturned, and some opponents argue that the measure's broad parameters could ban some forms of birth control and the morning after pill.McDonnell last month reiterated his pro-life stance but said his staff still needed to confirm the
constitutionality of the measure.The governor's office said Thursday that McDonnell still doesn't know if he'd sign the bill into law.A majority of state residents, 58 percent, oppose the personhood bill, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released in December, and 54 percent said they think abortion should be legal in all or most cases."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc6491813190ad084b05df1b3f1a6e2b5c3c3051b1b86e999a0d1f32b3b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc6491813190ad084b05df1b3f1a6e2b5c3c3051b1b86e999a0d1f32b3b

THE HOUSE - HISPANICS POISED FOR 2012 PICK-UPS:"Latinos are positioned to seize at least a handful of new House seats, thanks to redistricting. California has three new Hispanic-majority districts, and Texas, depending on the final outcome of legal wrangling over congressional maps, is expected to have one or two," Alex Isenstadt reports. "Democrats also are fielding at least six strong Hispanic recruits in other districts currently represented by white members. And the GOP has a high-profile candidate of its own in former California Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado, who's trying to unseat Rep. Lois Capps, a white Democrat.Taken together, the Hispanic delegation could see its ranks swell. Hispanic
lawmakers currently hold 25 House seats, according to The Almanac of American Politics, and after the election, that number could reach well over 30."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319ab715783857e83d8c0823aa05c15017f631daf85ff12caec
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319ab715783857e83d8c0823aa05c15017f631daf85ff12caec

THE GIFFORDS SEAT - JESSE KELLY LEADS GOP FIELD IN PRIMARY POLL:Republicans favor Jesse Kelly as their candidate for former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' Arizona House seat according to a poll released first to Dave Catanese. "A Wenzel Strategies survey, paid for by Citizens United Political Victory Fund, shows Kelly is ahead of his nearest GOP primary challenger by close to 25 percentage points in the special election. The poll, taken Wednesday and Thursday of this week, puts Kelly at 43 percent to State Sen. Frank Antenori's 18 percent and sports commentator Dave Sitton's 10 percent. Twenty percent aren't sure...The primary is April 17, where anointed Democrat Ron Barber,
Giffords' district director, is expected to advance to the special election general for the Democrats."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319b55d4c1769d3b1e50cc3bcabd9d0e088684dcf3cf1ed180a
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319b55d4c1769d3b1e50cc3bcabd9d0e088684dcf3cf1ed180a

NEW YORK HOUSE - ROMNEY CAMPAIGN DISTANCES ITSELF FROM GRIMM:The New York Times reports as a follow-up on their A1 story about freshman Rep. Michael Grimm's real estate deals that the Romney campaign, who he helped as a surrogate in New Hampshire, was distancing itself. "But on Thursday, a spokeswoman for Mr. Romney's national campaign, Andrea Saul, indicated that Mr. Grimm would no longer play such a role in the campaign... 'I can't speak to Mr. Grimm's personal schedule, but he is not an official surrogate for the campaign,' she said in an e-mail." That contradicted what Guy Molinari, the former Staten Island congressman who chairs Romney's New York campaign, told the Times. Molinari
responded to Andrea's email: "I think she didn't know what's happening. They're some distance removed from the real world." He said Boston would be foolish if they didn't keep using him.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc64918131934c9b4bb3f038d50406bc014ed3aacf49b5946935ddf5d76
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc64918131934c9b4bb3f038d50406bc014ed3aacf49b5946935ddf5d76

CONVENTION HOTELS - FLORIDA WILL MAKE OUT NICER IN CHARLOTTE THAN TAMPA:The Democratic National Committee is putting Florida at the Marriott City Center this summer, a prime spot for delegates from the key swing state that's close to the heart of convention activity. The Republicans haven't announced their hotel sites yet, but the Florida delegation is likely to be in far less optimal digs at the convention they are hosting in Tampa. The delegation is being punished by the committee for holding their primary in January. Here's the official link to the DNC hotel list:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319fe1ae60fe67d5ad5b2055a5416342b6ca38bdb1485ef6514
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b35c4fc649181319fe1ae60fe67d5ad5b2055a5416342b6ca38bdb1485ef6514 . The Charlotte Observer has an interactive map of all the DNC hotels:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e80527063990538e284e2a3bd4047abd63b90652fbfde180683e1bacd
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e80527063990538e284e2a3bd4047abd63b90652fbfde180683e1bacd . As a point of reference for what could happen to the RNC, this is what happened to Florida in 2008 at the Denver convention:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e80527063b97762fc92a2eae3db62e4d7d1188546eba7525d774cdee1
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e80527063b97762fc92a2eae3db62e4d7d1188546eba7525d774cdee1 .

FUN STORIES-

JON STEWARTmade fun of Santorum's ad decrying Romney's mudslinging on his show last night:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e805270639375090657265b449f5ad01a2d9ea487f43cd98653d5e0e1
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e805270639375090657265b449f5ad01a2d9ea487f43cd98653d5e0e1 .

FRED UPTON REACTS TO KATE'S SI COVER:"I've got a lot of my colleagues asking if I was adopted," the Michigan congressman said of his 19-year-old niece/Sports Illustrated cover girl on Fox News.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e805270633e24cf7cce06cb8e23cdf5e921a6ad02c04d703c682b7c1f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e805270633e24cf7cce06cb8e23cdf5e921a6ad02c04d703c682b7c1f

COLBERT SUPER PAC HAS $815K ON HAND:"Comedy Central satirist Stephen Colbert's super PAC has over $800,000 in the bank after raising $219,000 last month, almost entirely from small donors, and - just like a regular political committee - spent most of its cash on fundraising and consulting," Ken Vogel writes. "But, despite Colbert's shtick, his super PAC did not receive a single contribution in January that exceeded the $5,000 limit on regular political action committees, according to a report filed Thursday morning with the Federal Election Commission. And the PAC only reported one corporate contribution: a $250 donation from a New York City gourmet foods market called Kashkaval Foods LTD -
not exactly General Electric."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e80527063db6ac355dda81423a25ffd1b85ad42c01ea41b0fb52cf542
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e80527063db6ac355dda81423a25ffd1b85ad42c01ea41b0fb52cf542

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY:"You had some very beautiful young women here that I used to come try and date." - Mitt Romney to a crowd in Cleveland last night (he followed it with a humanizing story about a wedding prank)
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e805270632e7bc44779004da464eed19a91a8aa520c891c42bf266184
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=bed8ac2e805270632e7bc44779004da464eed19a91a8aa520c891c42bf266184

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