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

NEBRASKA SENATE - NELSON INTERNAL POLL SHOWS HE CAN WIN: A survey of 1,300 likely Nebraska voters conducted for Ben Nelson puts him ahead of all three Republicans running against him. The vulnerable Democrat, trying to decide whether to run for another term, has a 54% favorable rating, up from 47% in a February survey conducted by the firm Hickman Analytics. He leads Jon Bruning 47%-45%, Don Stenberg 49%-43% and Deb Fischer 50%-37%. "For those who might argue that our survey was conducted after weeks of paid media by the Democratic Party: that is correct," Nelson campaign manager Paul Johnson wrote us in an email. "But let it also be noted that this survey was conducted after months of
negative advertising by Mr. Rove, Americans for Prosperity and other like-minded groups." Here's a two-page memo from pollster Harrison Hickman:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c926f292173efb1a175c37c8d6e70f8773cb63f625322c78f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c926f292173efb1a175c37c8d6e70f8773cb63f625322c78f .

ESCALATION - DNC ATTACKS ROMNEY AS "DISHONEST FRAUD": The Democratic National Committee is releasing another web video this morning to attack Mitt Romney for taking President Obama out of context in his first paid ad, further escalating a fight that's been going on for almost a full week. This one features man-on-the-street interviews with normal-looking people calling Romney dishonest, a fraud and someone lacking integrity. The 2.5 minute video is titled "NH Voters on Mitt Romney: A Dishonest Fraud."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c2094cdebb312d066e3f7e42480009a010ec9f21bad97f909
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c2094cdebb312d066e3f7e42480009a010ec9f21bad97f909

THE FIGHT GOES ON: Yesterday's DNC ad that attacked Romney as a flip-flopper is reportedly only backed up with $21,375, but it got insane amounts of earned media. The Romney campaign made sure of that when they organized a dozen conference calls for surrogates to push back on it. We do not see very many sites that did NOT write about it, including all the big conservative blogs. We can't decide who relishes this general-election style bickering more: the DNC or Romney's campaign. It makes great copy for reporters, and depending on your perspective either elevates or bloodies Romney. Both sides think they're winning the argument.

- Keying off this, Alex Burns looks at how both sides continue to glaringly ignore Newt Gingrich:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c59de893d4b02f05adb33b9fa02572f0f274e51750e4358ef
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c59de893d4b02f05adb33b9fa02572f0f274e51750e4358ef .

- For his part, Gingrich said on CNN that the DNC flip-flop attack is legitimate. "If you run to the left of Teddy Kennedy, it is trickier than trying to run to the right of Newt Gingrich," he said.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9c25ff6ab7d1d5b6c25285e54e0bf7fc1a87ed6326b3d92b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9c25ff6ab7d1d5b6c25285e54e0bf7fc1a87ed6326b3d92b

- The squabble is breaking through into pop culture. On his show last night, Stephen Colbert spent three minutes mocking Romney for taking the 2008 Obama quote out of context.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9ff7ff1a621f37a596c3fd267ac9c3a6c944143fb7d4722b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9ff7ff1a621f37a596c3fd267ac9c3a6c944143fb7d4722b .

** As Gingrich talks about immigration in South Carolina, Romney gets three key Cuban endorsements and Sam Brownback apologizes to a teenager, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: your daily guide to the permanent campaign.

RAISING CAIN -

WOMAN ALLEGES AFFAIR: The Atlanta Fox affiliate broke the story last night of a woman claiming she had a 13-year-long affair with Herman Cain: "Ginger White says she met Herman Cain in the late 90s in Louisville, Kentucky, when as president of the National Restaurant Association, he made a presentation. She was impressed. She says they shared drinks afterwards and he invited her back to his hotel room. 'I'd like to see you again,' White said Cain told her. 'You are beautiful to me, and I would love for us to continue this friendship.' She says in his hotel room, he pulled out a calendar and invited her to meet him in Palm Springs. She accepted, and she says the affair began."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c285f0324eee910bc3701d07bdc224becad993cebb5f63b64
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c285f0324eee910bc3701d07bdc224becad993cebb5f63b64

CAIN PUSHES BACK: The candidate vigorously denied having the affair during a closed-door fundraiser at the Hilton in McLean. "Washington, D.C. attorney Mary Brett, who attended the event, told The Daily Caller that Cain swore to supporters that if he had a Bible, he'd put his hand on it and vow that the allegations are false."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cf58af8c4abb0bc26b626b09143f007227b5c641f0a5da6eb
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cf58af8c4abb0bc26b626b09143f007227b5c641f0a5da6eb

GLORIA ALLRED, the celebrity lawyer for one of Cain's accusers, puts this in context: "He's now accused a total of five women of being liars." Her CNN hit:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ce8748728bae2f629a90583be0323861dd0219f2e097a46c8
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ce8748728bae2f629a90583be0323861dd0219f2e097a46c8 .

TOWN HALL - GINGRICH TRIES TO PLAY OFFENSE ON IMMIGRATION: Newt vigorously attacked the Justice Department for trying to block South Carolina's tough immigration law. "Clearly the Obama administration has been comfortable allowing foreign governments to enter a lawsuit against an American state," he said during a town hall sponsored by Rep. Tim Scott in Charleston last night. "So here's a simple way to think of it: President Obama sided with Mexico, I would side with South Carolina." ABC reports that the crowd "erupted with applause and cheers." He's staying on core message: "Gingrich said he was not for amnesty but does not 'believe you'll ever pass a bill to hunt down every single person
who's been here for a quarter century.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cf95add658b25bdc35325b2b91407c37b66e6f5a371fe16bc
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cf95add658b25bdc35325b2b91407c37b66e6f5a371fe16bc

OBAMA'S FIRST BUY - POTUS ASKS SUPPORTERS TO JOIN HIS "MOVEMENT": "A senior Obama 2012 campaign aide says the ["tiny"] buy is intended more as a test to see if people will sign up with the campaign than as a full-blown television spot," CBS's Norah O'Donnell reports. "Two different ads, part of the same ad buy, will air nationally on satellite." Obama, talking into the camera, says: "It starts with one person making a decision -- that things need to change, and they're going to help change them. That person finds another person who shares their values. They go out and find a few more -- and before long, neighborhoods come together. Communities organize. A movement builds. It all starts with
you, making a decision to get involved -- because we've got so much more to do. Call the number on your screen or visit JoinObama.com to let me know you're in." Norah's post:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ce486b5e035e9bc298e9fe16f3b8a1b7e4e61232f9c9adf7b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ce486b5e035e9bc298e9fe16f3b8a1b7e4e61232f9c9adf7b . Watch the spot:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c53a5da0a3a2616fbe4e44fd1a9aa457e46b8529f5afb1a0b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c53a5da0a3a2616fbe4e44fd1a9aa457e46b8529f5afb1a0b .

FLORIDA ENDORSEMENTS - ROMNEY SNAGS ULTIMATE CUBAN-AMERICAN TRIFECTA: That's how the Miami Herald describes U.S. representatives Ileana Ros Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart, and his brother, former Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart. The three will endorse Mitt Romney at 8:30 a.m. in Florida today, giving him a big boost in the Cuban community if the race is still going on come Jan. 31. All three backed John McCain in 2008, along with then-Sen. Mel Martinez. Marc Caputo: "McCain effectively ended Romney's candidacy by winning Florida's GOP primary with a margin of 97,000 votes... Exit polls showed McCain took 51 percent of the Hispanic vote in the 2008 primary, while Romney only garnered 15
percent support in Florida."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c0b899d5ea51d58f88ba4f11a6ac2c8df95056391935ead2f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c0b899d5ea51d58f88ba4f11a6ac2c8df95056391935ead2f

SOUTH CAROLINA ENDORSEMENT - GINGRICH GETS ANDRE BAUER: "A former South Carolina lieutenant governor who once likened the state's poor to stray animals has endorsed Newt Gingrich's bid for the Republican presidential nomination." That is actually the lead of the Associated Press story about Andre Bauer's endorsement. The State (South Carolina's most prominent newspaper) is running the wire story on its home page. "Bauer finished last in a four-way race for the GOP nomination for governor last year."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cf3d04f1cfff0a00fff03a5bbdc1b16974066c77187013040
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cf3d04f1cfff0a00fff03a5bbdc1b16974066c77187013040

WHAT THE REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES ARE UP TO: Cain gives a foreign policy speech at 7 p.m. at Hillsdale College in Michigan. Besides his appearance with the Cuban-American leaders, Romney has two fundraisers in Florida. Perry will campaign with Sheriff Joe Arpaio in Hudson, N.H. Huntsman has a town hall in Nashua and a house party in Concord. In South Carolina, Gingrich tours a Christian school on Hilton Head Island, visits his campaign office in Bluffton, and finishes the day with a town hall in Newberry. Santorum stumps in Georgia.

WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS UP TO: At 2:30 p.m., "the President hosts Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands for a meeting in the Oval Office."

OUT THIS MORNING - RNC HITS "OBAMA'S FAILED SCRANTON PROMISES": The Republican National Committee will use President Obama's Wednesday trip to Scranton, Pennsylvania, to highlight the extent to which he has not lived up to the promises he made as a candidate four years ago. A four-page research hit going out later today emphasizes how he has come up short on energy, housing and post-partisanship. A GOP official tells us this is the beginning of a new messaging push that will follow president whenever he goes to places he visited as a candidate: "Barack Obama has a long paper and video trail of making big promises to communities like Scranton, PA, but as President he failed to deliver." Here
is today's installment:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c1f312d700a342c68596dc98b6b30f427fdd32fecbed558c3
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c1f312d700a342c68596dc98b6b30f427fdd32fecbed558c3 .

LATEST POLLING -

PPP: "Obama's Arizona approval rating is only 41% with 54% of voters disapproving of him...with independents he's at a pretty bad 35/57 spread...Obama trails a hypothetical match up with Mitt Romney, 49-42."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cdf69a28f4acdf8fd1f277695813bbaff94cb6e13411c42e8
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cdf69a28f4acdf8fd1f277695813bbaff94cb6e13411c42e8

GALLUP: Presidential job approval held steady at 43% last week, but "support for Obama has eroded most among 'pure' independents and moderate/liberal Republicans."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c529ee437d50e0635a1984df4591c1bfc31b7191d8b8def7d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c529ee437d50e0635a1984df4591c1bfc31b7191d8b8def7d

BARNEY FRANK RETIRES - HIS POLITICAL OBITUARY: "Love him or hate him - and there were very few who fell anywhere in between - Frank, 71, spent the past three decades crafting a pugnacious personality for the congressional age of television," Paul Kane writes in the Washington Post. "Behind the scenes, Frank became one of the most important legislators of his generation on domestic policy, a successful backroom negotiator who won the trust of the Bush Treasury Department and the gay rights movement."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ccf4a6a4c562073cf803879793df9405172ff2675b8327184
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ccf4a6a4c562073cf803879793df9405172ff2675b8327184

THE WSJ EDITORIAL PAGE CELEBRATES: "Few House Members have made a bigger legislative mark, and arguably no one so expensively. Mr. Frank deserves to be forever remembered-and we'll help everyone remember him-as the nation's leading protector of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac before their fall." The paper's Washington Wire blog compiled eight of his most memorable barbs from the last three decades:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9b57a3cbf9deaeafab9a803083c4b0da3372b673f944c7f8
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9b57a3cbf9deaeafab9a803083c4b0da3372b673f944c7f8 . The editorial:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ccdf41696b1ad6a39cc3f29c9a3ad1b7dad66ca1efe4a6e53
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31ccdf41696b1ad6a39cc3f29c9a3ad1b7dad66ca1efe4a6e53 .

RETIREMENT REFLECTS PESSIMISM - HE EXPECTED A "TOUGH" REELECTION FIGHT: Frank's high-profile press conference is generating a flurry of stories on Democratic pessimism about retaking the House. "I predict there will be five to 10 other senior Democrats that will announce their retirements in the coming months," said former Democratic Alabama Rep. Artur Davis.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c6869b12e6777e224a58c9ceb89db2303d870c54834350d45
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c6869b12e6777e224a58c9ceb89db2303d870c54834350d45

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE IS READING - "TOP GOP AIDE FOR HOUSE PANEL HAS TIES TO SOLYNDRA": "Gary Andres, staff director of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, was a vice chairman at Dutko Worldwide until last December, when he was appointed to his current post by Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the energy panel. The committee is investigating Solyndra, which received a $528 million Energy Department loan in 2009," the Associated Press says in a story that went out on the wire last night. "The Kalamazoo Gazette reported Monday that Solyndra paid Dutko $30,000 in 2008 to handle its application for the federal loan. Alexa Marrero, a spokeswoman for the committee, said Andres never
worked on behalf of Solyndra and was not aware until recently that Dutko had represented Solyndra in 2008."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c737faacfb420e330164eedb101bd9aa73f290f13e2a9dca7
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c737faacfb420e330164eedb101bd9aa73f290f13e2a9dca7

NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR - FORMER PERDUE AIDES INDICTED: "A Wake County grand jury Monday handed down indictments alleging that a top aide to Gov. Bev Perdue's 2008 campaign schemed to pay a staff member $32,000 for work that was kept off the books in violation of state election laws," the Charlotte News and Observer reports. "Peter Reichard, 54, a Greensboro businessman who served as the Perdue campaign's finance director, was charged with obstruction of justice. The former campaign staffer and a campaign donor were also charged. The new charges, all felonies, are part of a long-running investigation into Perdue campaign activities." The Monday indictments mean an ethical cloud will hang
over the already vulnerable Democrat through her reelection campaign next year, when her president will be playing hard for the state.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cda6c7fc7858007bb5e2ca5d96877177ea6e85bac7dd4063f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cda6c7fc7858007bb5e2ca5d96877177ea6e85bac7dd4063f

WEST VIRGINIA REMATCH - REPUBLICAN MALONEY LOOKS TO RUN AGAIN: Republican Bill Maloney filed pre-candidacy papers with the Secretary of State's office yesterday, which allows him to raise money for a 2012 rematch. The Charleston Daily Mail translates: "The move doesn't guarantee Maloney will run but makes it look likely... [Gov. Early Ray] Tomblin beat Maloney by about 2.6 percent in the Oct. 4 special election... Republicans are excited to have Democratic President Barack Obama at the top of the ticket in West Virginia, where the president remains deeply unpopular." The RGA poured millions into the special, which helped drive up Tomblin's negatives going into 2012.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cbe75a5d260221f99f3e5500d3043cf143252c5a1a85a4c84
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31cbe75a5d260221f99f3e5500d3043cf143252c5a1a85a4c84

WISCONSIN GOVERNOR - ANTI-WALKER GROUP CLAIMS 300K SIGNATURES: "The group attempting to recall Gov. Scott Walker says it has gathered more than 300,000 signatures in 12 days," the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. "If its numbers are accurate, that would mean its staff and volunteers collected more than half of the 540,208 signatures they need in less than two weeks. The group, United Wisconsin, launched the recall effort on Nov. 15 and has 60 days to gather the signatures. They are due Jan. 17."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c0c427c068cb45f0e84001a2f0054777bcf47773e0415054d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c0c427c068cb45f0e84001a2f0054777bcf47773e0415054d

BROWNBACK APOLOGIZES - STAFF BALKED AFTER TEEN TWEETED: "Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback on Monday apologized for an incident involving a teen who had maligned him on Twitter," the LA Times reports. "In making his mea culpa, Brownback went to the obvious place - Facebook - to post his statement. Staff members had been overzealous, he said, in their monitoring of social media's electronic public square, which is where they found Emma Sullivan's comment that the governor 'sucked.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9dd9fb6bbe309383a630001d1b986cca0b0fc60de3d118b9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c9dd9fb6bbe309383a630001d1b986cca0b0fc60de3d118b9

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Let me be very clear, I will be neither a lobbyist nor a historian." - Barney Frank, taking a swipe at archenemy Newt Gingrich while announcing his retirement
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c26a1a25c48255308215a4fa627af358102f1cd13e4f80ca2
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0f6d36c014f8d31c26a1a25c48255308215a4fa627af358102f1cd13e4f80ca2

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