Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

GOP Debate Highlights Weak Candidates - I posted on a tweet from Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson last night "Hard to say who is worse; the candidates or the questioners - either way, they are making Obama look very good."

The duo from Minnesota; Michele Bachmann and Tim Pawlenty got into it on several occasions with Pawlenty mostly winning the exchanges. Rick Santorum, Ron Paul and Herman Cain were not asked as many questions as the other candidates. Newt Gingrich sparred with the moderators repeatedly calling them out for what he called "got you" questions. Huntsman was okay and Romney probably won the debate with a mediocre performance which highlights the inept Republican presidential candidate field. No wonder Texas Governor Rick Perry is joining the fray with an official announcement Saturday.

TPM.com has some highlights from the debate.




---

Dow up in Early Trading - after a crazy up and down week, the Dow was up 149 in early trading today. going into the day the Dow had dropped a total of 302 for the week. Bloomberg.com has more here.

---

Obama Takes Hit in NY Poll - a must win state for the President. A Quinnipiac poll shows New York state voters disapprove of the job Obama is doing 49%-45%. However, by a 49-34% margin they prefer Obama over a unnamed Republican candidate. Troublesome is the slim margin Obama has when asked if he deserves reelection - 49-47%. You can read more poll results here.

---

Voters Prefer Democrats Over Republicans in Gallup Congressional Poll - the immediate results from the debt ceiling nonsense displayed recently on capitol hill. 51% preferred a Democrat, while 44% preferred a Republican. Only 6% indicated they preferred a third party. Gallup.com has more here.

---

Obama Pushes For Extension of Infrastructure Bill - while in Michigan touting a hybrid battery manufacturing company which will be employing 500.

The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) act, expires Sept. 30. The Senate and the house have two separate versions for extending the bill. TheHill.com has more here.

---

British Police Deployed in Force - with hopes to deter additional rioting which has hit cities over the past week. Reuters.com has more here.

---

To receive "Daily Updates" from Air-it-Out with George Wenschhof, click on "Subscribe to this feed" below.