Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

Gingrich Scores Big in Latest Polls - with less than a month to go before the Iowa caucuses.

ABC News/Washington Post Poll has Newt Gingrich in first in Iowa by a large margin over Mitt Romney 33%-18%. Details here.

Winthrop University Palmetto State Poll has Gingrich in first in S. Carolina over Romney 38%-22%. Details here.

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Obama in Kansas Today - the president is expected to deliver a "New Nationalism" speech in Osawatomie, Kansas. The last time a president visited was in 1910 when President Theodore Roosevelt delivered his "New Nationalism" address. The theme of the speech will be giving middle class workers a fair shake and financial security. The Kansas City Star has more here.

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Qualye to Endorse Romney Today - the endorsement coming from the former Vice President, who received the most attention in his political career for misspelling the word potato in front of a grade school class. The Washington Post has more here.

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Drone Lost in Iran Operated By C.I.A. - after initial reports the plane was lost during a routine military mission in Afghanistan, it is now being reported the Drone was operated by the U.S. central intelligence agency. You can read more here.

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Will Congress Avoid Government Shutdown? - yep, once again disagreement abounds on a 900 Billion Omnibus Bill which needs to be passed before funding expires on December 16. Passage is expected prior to Christmas. TheHill.com has more here.

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Round Two on Payroll Tax Cut Extension - Republicans and Democrats released their latest proposals yesterday and it is unlikely either will pass in their current form. Politico.com has more here.

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Maryland Governor O'Malley To Get Second Term as Head of DGA - in a vote at a meeting in Los Angeles, Democratic governors are expected to give Martin O'Malley another term as chair. In his first year, the organization raised a record 11 million in the first six months. The Baltimore Sun has more here.

O'Malley is term limited in Maryland and speculation abounds as to what his future will entail. As head of the DGA, he has received national attention with frequent appearances on political discussion shows. As next year is an election year, O'Malley is certain to receive even more national exposure.

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George Wenschhof

Gingrich Campaign Spends $250,000 on Iowa Ad - begins airing today.



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Cain To Endorse Gingrich Today - Fox New Atlanta is reporting the endorsement will come today. You can read more here.

Not, that the Cain endorsement will count for much at this point. If, Newt is the recipient, much will be said of one womanizer endorsing another....

My analysis is the Cain rise and fall in the Republican presidential sweepstakes was so quick, voters did not have time to attach to Herman Cain. Therefore, their allegiance is limited and it is more likely they will gravitate to the candidate catches their fancy. Which, makes the Cain endorsement more or less meaningless.

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Euro Zone Meetings This Week - french President Nicholas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel meet today, prior to meetings with the full European Union summit on Friday. U.S. Treasury Secretary Tinothy Geithner is also expected to attend.

How Greece and Italy fare in the bail out measures will impact the world economy. BBC News has more here.

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Putin Party Loses in Russia Parliament Elections - in a rebuke to Vladimir Putin, voters turned against the United Russia Party, with exit polls showing less than 50% won election yesterday. Election monitors also suggest a flawed vote, indicating it was likely United Russia Party representatives received even less support of the voters. The Washington Post has a good read on the implications of the election here.

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Reid To Introduce New Measure on Payroll Tax - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) will introduce a new version of the bill after competing plans put forward by Democrats and Republicans failed last week. The issue is how the savings in the bill would be paid. The average family would see a yearly increase of $1,500.00 in taxes if the bill is not extended by the end of December. The Wall Street Journal has more here.

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Cordray Unlikely To Receive Senate Confirmation - Richard Cordray bid to become the director of the new Consumer Finance Protection Agency will likely come to an end when the Senate votes on his appointment. Republican Senators have long opposed the creation of the new agency and it was their opposition to Elizabeth Warren which led her to abandon her attempt to become director and choose instead to run for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts. Politico.com has more here.

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Iran Captures U.S. Drone - a unmanned drone on a flight over western Afghanistan, which borders Iran, has gone missing with Iran claiming they shot it down. CNN.com has more here.

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Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

Gingrich on Top in Des Moines Register Poll - Newt Gingrich leads easily with 25% from likely Iowa caucus voters. Texas Representative Ron Paul is second with 18% and Mitt Romney has 16%. The Des Moines Register has more here.

The Iowa caucuses will be held January 3, 2012.

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Romney Endorsed by Iowa Sioux City Journal - a plus for the Romney campaign in a state where he has not campaigned. You can read their endorsement here.

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Who Wants Cain's Endorsement? - it will not likely make the difference the Cain campaign would like. Cain's rapid surge in the polls was followed by an implosion and an even faster plummet in the polls. Few of his supporters have had the time to become attached to their candidate. As a result, most will gravitate to whomever they want.

On the other end, what candidate would want an endorsement from a tarnished former candidate? TheHill.com has some initial thoughts in this regard here.

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Gingrich's Turn in The Hot Seat - in last night's Mike Huckabee's GOP presidential forum held in New York. He took shots from fellow candidates on issues ranging from health care, Cap and Trade, and even his appearing with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calf.) in an ad about global warming. Fox News has more here.

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Parliament Vote in Russia Today - Vladimir Putin is hoping his United Russia Party fares well as he runs to regain the position he once held. Reuters.com has more here.

The Washington Post has a good read here on how many voters in Russia are cynical about the elections.

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Sunday Morning "Talking Heads" Lineup

George Wenschhof

Let's see what is said about unemployment dropping to 8.6%; the lowest level in 21/2 years. If unemployment continues to drop during the 2012 election year and the U.S involvement in unpopular wars in Iraq and Afghanistan coming to an end, the election promises to be an interesting watch.

More discussion will take place on the 2012 presidential election. Republican National Committee Chair Reince Priebus will appear on NBC "Meet the Press" and CBS "Face The Nation". Obama Campaign strategist David Axelrod and former Obama White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs also will be guests.

Republican presidential hopefuls; Representatives Ron Paul (R-Tex.) and Michelle Bachmann (R-Minn.) will appear on CNN "State of The Union".

Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who just announced he was not seeking reelection, will appear on ABC "This Week". Also on "This Week" will be Republican presidential candidate; Senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) who is registering at the bottom of all of the polls.

Politico.com has a quick overview of the guests below:



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