Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

Obama Campaign and DNC Raise 70 Million in Third Quarter - continuing the staggering numbers being reported. The Obama campaign raised 42.8 million and the DNC 27.3 million. TheHill.com has more here.

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Herman Cain Rises to Top in Recent Poll - the Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll has Cain on top with 27%, Mitt Romney second with 23% and Texas Governor Rick Perry third with 16%. TPM.com has more here.

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Trade Bills Approved by Congress - the long stalled trade deals with Colombia, South Korea and Panama were approved yesterday in votes in the Senate and House. The Washington Post has more here.

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Some Democrats Favor Balanced Budget Agreement - going into next year's elections, some Democratic members of Congress, especially those facing tough reelection battles are speaking out in support of a BBA. You can read more here.

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Republican Senators to Propose "Real American Jobs Act" - perhaps. as early as today. Senators John McCain (Az.), Rob Portman (Ohio), and Rand Paul (Ky.) will introduce their plan for creating jobs. Politico.com has more here.

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Gaddafi's Son Captured in Battle for Sirte - The National Transitional Council announced Mo'Tassim, who had been the national security adviser, had been captured. Reuters.com has more here.

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Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

Romney Performs Well at GOP Debate



The front runners; Mitt Romney and Herman Cain performed well enough in the round table discussion format last night to ensure their current poll standings. While, Texas Governor Rick Perry continued his free fall from his early surge in the polls after he made his announcement he was running for president.

My thoughts were Romney was very much as ease with the round table discussion format and easily won the debate last evening. Cain performed well although Michele Bachmann did get in a good one liner in regard to his 9-9-9 plan - she said "if you turned it upside down, you could see the devil was in the details". Otherwise, Bachmann continued to exhibit a lack of substance. Huntsman continued to be unable to stand out among the crowded field, Santorum was trying to fire any shot he could to be noticed, as was Gingrich.

Overall, one can see why Republican Party operatives continue to look for other candidates. With the economy continuing to haunt Obama, one would think the 2012 presidential campaign would be a slam dunk for Republicans. The reason it is not, is the overall weak field of announced Republican candidates.

Mark Halperin of ThePage.com has his take here. Politico.com has their thoughts here, TPM.com here and Chris Cillizza of The Washington Post has his thoughts here.

Jennifer Rubin of The Washington Post adds her thoughts here and Jeanne Cummings of Bloomberg.com has her take here.

CNN.com has their "Truth Squad" takes on the debate here.

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Jobs Bill Blocked in Senate - as expected the move to end discussion on the American Jobs Act failed by a vote of 50-49. The White House has indicated they will now proceed with advancing pieces of the bill. TheHill.com has more here and here.

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Senate Passes Chinese Currency Bill - the vote was 63-35 and now moves to the House where it has little chance of passage. The bill is aimed at the alleged currency manipulation by China who has responded if the the bill passed it would likely spur trade wars. The Obama administration has not expressed support of the bill. Politico.com has more here.

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Saudi Arabia says Iran Will Pay for Threat - adding problems to an already unstable region in the world. The statement was in response to the alleged plot by Iran to kill their U.S. Ambassador. Reuters.com has more here.

CNN.com has more here on the U.S. considering appropriate responses.

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Daley to Leave White House after Election - Chief of Staff William Daley will be stepping down after the 2012 election. He replaced Rahm Emanuel who left to run a successful campaign for Mayor of Chicago. RollCall.com has more here.

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Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness to Release Report Today - chief executives of major companies support President Obama's proposal to fix U.S. infrastructure. They also support increasing foreign capital and being more aggressive in energy. Reuters.com has more here.

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Romney Leads In Two Recent Polls - GOP Presidential Candidate Debate Tonight - NBC News-Marist polls in Iowa and New Hampshire show Mitt Romney in the lead. These two states will lead off the Republican presidential primary calendar. MSNBC.com has more here.

The latest Gallup poll has Romney in front at 20%, Cain in second with 18% and Perry in third at 15%. Gallup.com has more here.

The debate will take place tonight at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire beginning at 8:00 PM ET. Bloomberg.com has more here.

Expect front runner Romney to be a target tonight, with Perry needing a good showing to stop the free fall he has been in and Cain needing to show he is a serious contender.

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Jobs Act in It's Entirety Likely To Fail - a vote this evening in the Senate to end discussion and move forward to a vote is expected to fail. It is unlikely 60 votes are there to end discussion. The more likely scenario is for pieces of the proposed legislation to be ultimately passed. You can read more here.

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Recall Drive Against Walker Begins - not a surprise as Democrats have been unhappy with Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker with his anti Union stance.

It will take a huge effort to meet the requirements of 540,208 (25% of votes cast in general election) within a 60 day period. The NY Times has more here.

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Reid explains Senate Rule Change - amidst Republican outrage, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) explains the rule change as being a move to restore senate comity. The Washington Post has more here.

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Warren Raises 3.15 Million - showing she is a candidate to be reckoned with, Democratic Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren raised over three million in just six weeks since announcing her campaign. TheHill.com has more here.

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Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

GOP Presidential Candidates Debate in N.H. - tomorrow, the debate will be held at Dartmouth College. It will be moderated by Charlie Rose. DNC Chair Debbie Waserman Schultz (D-Fla.) will also be attending and offering her take afterward. You can read more here.

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Jon Huntsman to Deliver Foreign Policy Speech Today - the Republican presidential candidate who is lagging far behind in the polls will give a speech this morning he hopes will give him a boost with the voters. You can read more here.

It will begin at 11:00 AM ET and may be watched live here.

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D.C. Polarization at New Low? - at a time when a bleak economy demands cooperation, the dysfunction on Capitol Hill may be at an all time high. TPM.com has a good read here.

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More On Occupy Wall Street - what started out as a small gathering in a park in New York City, is now faced with becoming a national movement. The Washington Post has a good read here.

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Trade Agreements Up For Votes This Week - the long awaited trade agreements with Colombia, South Korea and Panama are expected to pass the House and the Senate in votes this week. TheHill.com has more on the week ahead here.

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