Subject: POLITICO's Afternoon Score: The latest from Iowa--Who has the best ground game?--12 kinds of undecided voters--A grain of salt ahead of tonight's Register poll--5 arrested at Bachmann HQ--Santorum's new ad
From: "Morning Score" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 31 Dec 2011 16:07:47 -0600

By James Hohmann (
mailto:[email-masked] 
[email-masked] ; Twitter: @jameshohmann)

SIOUX CITY, Iowa-Happy New Year's Eve from western Iowa. With only three days left until the caucuses, it felt silly not to send out Score today. So here's a special late afternoon snack version to break up the deluge of last-minute fundraising solicitations from campaigns and party committees trying to pad their Q4 fundraising numbers.

THE LATEST FROM THE TRAIL -

GINGRICH REINS HIMSELF IN:"With just three days to go to the Iowa caucuses, gone are the references to railroads, space exploration, heavy policy positions or the nitty-gritty of running for office that he'd kept to even as he rose and fell in the polls. Thursday night, he didn't get to talking about his jobs plan until finishing an extended impromptu history lesson about Abraham Lincoln deciding to build the transcontinental railroad after a visit to Council Bluffs. But in Council Bluffs on Saturday morning, 50 yards from the tracks and in earshot of a train noisily rumbling by, he didn't even mention it. Instead, Gingrich stayed mostly on message, delivering a nearly identical speech for
 the fourth time in a row - a sudden show of consistency." Ginger Gibson, on Newt's bus tour, also reports that he said at a press conference this afternoon that he's been feeling sick for the last 24 hours:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f6fc012d7bb3348b7d80e75132ff7c43a0de5b6d4da6148b16 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f6fc012d7bb3348b7d80e75132ff7c43a0de5b6d4da6148b16 .

TO BE SURE - HE'S NOT COMPLETELY ON MESSAGE:At the Council Bluffs stop, per the AP, he "suggested the Obama administration wants to 'steal elections'" in trying blocking a South Carolina voter identification law. "You have to ask, why is it that they are desperate to retain the ability to steal elections?"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f6087532275e7c7190266ef7b865fcdd977d5e330ace01dcd3 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f6087532275e7c7190266ef7b865fcdd977d5e330ace01dcd3 

MORE REPORTERS THAN VOTERS FOR SANTORUM:There have been way more reporters than voters at Rick Santorum's first two events today, according to dozens of tweets from...reporters. Maggie Haberman, in Knoxville right now, says there are only about 15 people there. This speaks to the importance of campaign advance and infrastructure, which helps bring out people to hear the candidate, but could it spell trouble for the "surge" narrative? Dan Balz posts an Instagram:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f6dc91e060828f2c75211d77e32e454bc6ae45880a94563455 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f6dc91e060828f2c75211d77e32e454bc6ae45880a94563455 .

THE OTHER RICK - PERRY FOCUSES ATTACKS ON SANTORUM:"Speaking to about 75 people at Boomers coffee house in Fort Dodge, Perry made Santorum...the main target of his attacks," according to the LA Times' Paul West. "Reading from notes, the Texas governor repeated charges that his negative campaign ads are employing against Santorum - blasting his votes for earmarked spending, raising the federal debt ceiling during his years in the Senate and the Medicare drug benefit that George W. Bush signed into law...Inflating Santorum&#39;s influence for the purpose of knocking him down, Perry accused the Santorum of enabling a larger rise in the federal debt 'on his watch' than President Obama has
 during his term."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f67faa994daa504a99e0c3f1940baee84ce43a029816ae07db 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=107113aa030902f67faa994daa504a99e0c3f1940baee84ce43a029816ae07db 

NBC's embed Carrie Dann notes that Perry has hit Santorum on earmarks at EVERY EVENT for THREE DAYS IN A ROW now. "Definitely most sustained targeted attack of this bus tour," she tweets.

ROMNEY TAKES A NEW HAMPSHIRE VICTORY LAP:Hundreds filled a restaurant in Hampton, N.H., this morning to see Romney. He'll be back in Iowa this afternoon for more events and stay here through Tuesday. "His 24-hour trip back to New Hampshire was a tactical effort to demonstrate the argument that his campaign has the greatest operational and national strength," per Emily Schultheis and Isaac Dovere.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abe6851c883b02739fee46d44fd6c89f14a2ff2bdccb198cfd 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abe6851c883b02739fee46d44fd6c89f14a2ff2bdccb198cfd 

THE WAY TO WIN - ROMNEY'S MONOTONOUS MARCH:"The events start when they're supposed to. The candidate says what he's supposed to. The staff does what it's supposed to. To watch the Mitt Romney operation in action is to see Swiss precision applied to the campaign trail...For Romney, monotony is the mission. And the mission is regularly accomplished...Romney's rivals don't come anywhere close to his level of message control and execution."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab871c564c5ac42750b6e2c80888d6d0e77aefcad0f79e716c 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab871c564c5ac42750b6e2c80888d6d0e77aefcad0f79e716c 

COVERING ALL HIS BASES:Anyone in Iowa who Googles 'Ron Paul' right now sees a Romney search ad that directs to his own page. Screenshot:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abeb4658cb442acd3a89b1e0b34819364f64b5371979f42038 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abeb4658cb442acd3a89b1e0b34819364f64b5371979f42038 .

60 PROTESTERRS IN DES MOINES:"About 60 protesters today banged drums, waved signs and chanted slogans decrying Wall Street greed, corporate money in politics and income inequality," per the Register. "They marched from the East Village neighborhood in downtown Des Moines, up to the steps of the state Capitol and to an encampment of Occupy Des Moines protesters at Stewart Square, a public park at East 14th St...About two dozen people arrived today from Texas, Michigan, Minnesota, Kansas and Illinois, organizers said."At least five protesters connected to the nationwide Occupy movement have been arrested outside Bachmann's HQ:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abd1cb1bb8ba9014369ea0c257d1f36d260637db3a86d521dc 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abd1cb1bb8ba9014369ea0c257d1f36d260637db3a86d521dc .

TONIGHT'S REGISTER POLL - FODDER FOR PUSHBACK:Everyone is waiting forthe Des Moines Register poll to drop at 7 p.m. CT. This Iowa poll is the gold standard, and Ann Selzer's remarkable accuracy in 2008 burnished her survey's reputation. Tonight we'll see how close her numbers are to what we saw from CNN on Thursday and NBC on Friday. Four years ago, the Clinton and Edwards campaigns attackedvigorously when Ann gave Obama 32 percent of the vote (which ran counter to other public polling at the time). The results validated her turnout model and made their blistering responses look silly. After offering high praise for the poll in a post this afternoon, the Huffington Post's Mark Blumenthal
 (formerly of pollster.com) adds that "the Register&#39;s past success is neither magic nor a guarantee of future performance. Purely random error lurks as the enemy of every poll, andIowa remains what famed Republican pollster Richard Wirthlin once described as 'the ultimate sand trap for pollsters.' As in 2008, Selzer is fielding her final poll in the week between Christmas and New Year&#39;s Day, a time when many Americans are traveling and away from home."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abf192528a959c727d1b759c94a39d50d95a3f3f1e74c718e4 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abf192528a959c727d1b759c94a39d50d95a3f3f1e74c718e4 

The Associated Press' deputy director of polling Jennifer Agiesta adds: "On top of that, it&#39;s hard to find true primary voters to survey because so few people vote. In 2008, a record 120,000 Republicans voted in the Iowa caucuses, but that was only 5 percent of Iowa&#39;s adults."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604aba4488ce529e464211627d873554dfed96bff967f49557e9c 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604aba4488ce529e464211627d873554dfed96bff967f49557e9c 

OVERLOOKED - THE GROUND GAME:Because it is so hard to get a read on and so much less fun to write about, the press neglects the ground war. A.G. Sulzberger and Michael Barbaro try to get behind the curtain in the New York Times: "Gingrich's campaign headquarters just outside the city is a spectacle of pre-computer-age disorder, with volunteers rushing voter updates across the room on yellow Post-it notes...At the offices of Mitt Romney, who has built a ground organization aimed at matching the intensity of his television advertising barrage, aides are methodically analyzing data on each voter to create the perfect pitch: those worried about illegal immigration, for example, are invited to
 join a conference call with a border county sheriff in Arizona...And at the Michele Bachmann operation, lofty aspirations are rapidly fading into a dispiriting reality: the bells that campaign workers are supposed to sound with every new recruit rarely chime...

PHONE BANKING: "In a big, sparsely populated state, where knocking on doors is impractical, the crucial tool of campaigning is the trusty telephone," the Times story adds. "And while the lights were off and the doors locked at the Bachmann headquarters the other night, there was a renewed sense of possibility at Mr. Santorum's office, up and running past midnight, where staff members have been dismissing the once pervasive questions about electability with increasing confidence." CNN on Perry's ground game:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab2215ba387944f8d07abd23f9e27e09ed187cf88142123688 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab2215ba387944f8d07abd23f9e27e09ed187cf88142123688 . The NYT piece:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abb0055c48631c613c47560f3e145a8fed68f5c0351ebe4f00 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604abb0055c48631c613c47560f3e145a8fed68f5c0351ebe4f00 .

VICTORY LAB - 12 KINDS OF UNDECIDED VOTERS:"Just over one-half of the Iowa Republicans survey by Time/CNN this week said they would 'definitely support' the candidate they backed at the time of the poll. Among the remainder, opinions are still fluid-by any measure, a staggeringly high share of likely voters," Sasha Issenberg writes in a smart piece for Slate. "Campaigns know that undecided voters are not all the same." He goes on to identify a dozen different types of self-described undecided voters, with an example and information on how the campaigns are dealing with them. Sasha's categories: 1. The Future Bandwagon Riders; 2. The wedgies; 3 The followers; 4. The peer pressured; 5. The
 liars; 6. The Apathetic; 7. The Mavens; 8. The Subconsciously Already-Decided; 9. The Know-Nothings; 10. The Christmas Eve Shoppers; 11. The Ashamed; 12. The Haters."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab970de200ea4e5162ed9b8d392dfe2dc7fe951ae0745f154a 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab970de200ea4e5162ed9b8d392dfe2dc7fe951ae0745f154a 

SANTORUM'S NEW AD - RUNNING IN SOUTH CAROLINA NEXT WEEK:"In a sign of Rick Santorum's mounting confidence over a strong showing in Iowa, a senior strategist with the campaign tells ABC News that the campaign is going up with ads on South Carolina TV starting next Wednesday," per Amy Walter and Shushannah Walshe. "The South Carolina primary takes place January 21. He's made over 25 visits to South Carolina state so far. The South Carolina electorate, with its heavy population of evangelical voters, is more hospitable territory for the socially conservative Santorum than New Hampshire, which has a more moderate leaning electorate." Story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab4d8003126be8cba5b5c75090b98815a6bd19ee1918153c07 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=62a5628828b604ab4d8003126be8cba5b5c75090b98815a6bd19ee1918153c07 . Ad:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915907db409420722d839c46c8d9f1f97a1e882daea55f5684d4 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915907db409420722d839c46c8d9f1f97a1e882daea55f5684d4 .

Speaking of South Carolina, CNN's Peter Hamby reports today that "Richard Quinn, a top Huntsman consultant and veteran South Carolina Republican operative, sent a memo to campaign manager Matt David and senior adviser John Weaver this week calling for a robust effort in the Palmetto State" even if Huntsman falls short of winning in New Hampshire.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca39159d7a9a2de5125758aa4176322497da05e373a3ff211c25c59 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca39159d7a9a2de5125758aa4176322497da05e373a3ff211c25c59 

MUST-READ PERRY PRE-MORTEM - NEW DETAILS ON INSIDE POWER STRUGGLE:Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Martin explore the behind-the-scenes battle between the Texas governor's longtime advisers and a new cadre of consultants brought on this fall. "In the end, the outsiders won out - and ever since have marginalized Perry's longtime chief strategist while crafting a new strategy in which the Texan has portrayed himself as a political outsider and culture warrior," they write in a musty-read. "The view of the outsiders who took over Perry's campaign is that the candidate was set up for failure by an insular group led by Dave Carney, the governor's longtime political guru, which thought they could run
 a presidential campaign like a larger version of a gubernatorial race and didn't take the basic steps needed to professionalize the operation until the candidate already was sinking...Sources close to the operation describe a new team that was stunned to arrive in October and find a campaign that wasn't executing the most rudimentary elements of a modern presidential campaign: no polling or focus groups, no opposition research book on their own candidate to prepare for attacks and debate prep sessions that were barely worth the name...after Carney engineered a Perry trip to New Hampshire in late November with controversial Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio that was plagued by missteps, the
 strategist was, as one sourced put it, 'exiled' for good and is no longer involved in the strategic decision-making process."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca39159c5d48605c437d600930069b2f3f2943a0c6b2b24e36054db 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca39159c5d48605c437d600930069b2f3f2943a0c6b2b24e36054db 

The Austin American-Statesman's Jason Embry reports that Perry is going straight to South Carolina after Iowa, with two events scheduled there on Wednesday.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915903e412dc3a23ff121d7140ec41f72bf09d71a143a0477dd9 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915903e412dc3a23ff121d7140ec41f72bf09d71a143a0477dd9 

VIRGINIA BALLOT - FOUR CANDIDATES JOIN PERRY'S SUIT:In a letter today to the Virginia Republican Party and Board of Elections, Gingrich, Bachmann, Santorum and Huntsman all gave notice that they&#39;ll join the suit to get on the primary ballot.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca391595fcba9dc4f48f4b246fcaf727e9f26896547643776d259d5 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca391595fcba9dc4f48f4b246fcaf727e9f26896547643776d259d5 

CUCCINELLI INTERVENES:Fox News reports thatVirginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli will push for emergency legislation to deal with everyone but Paul and Romney being excluded. His "proposal is expected to state that if the Virginia Board of Elections certifies that a candidate is receiving federal matching funds, or has qualified to receive them, that candidate will upon request be automatically added to the ballot.Two former Democratic attorneys general are also backing the move, along with a former Democratic state party chairman and a former Republican state party chairman. Sources told Fox News that Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell is expected to support the emergency legislation as well."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca39159d85aef897e845c22ba0e65e9815ab4d4c0e4d56c9dd90dd0 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca39159d85aef897e845c22ba0e65e9815ab4d4c0e4d56c9dd90dd0 

MORE ON GINGRICH -

HE CRIED YESTERDAY:"Will Gingrich be hurt by show of emotion? Not if it&#39;s perceived as heartfelt, one analyst says. But some previous candidates have paid a price for crying." Story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915908aa0c0b89ad3fe4700446475a711f90297d21c0b450007d 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915908aa0c0b89ad3fe4700446475a711f90297d21c0b450007d .VIDEO from C-SPAN:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca391595a55537ba3533ebe94a93e20dcf2a07774978effc61cd2fb 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca391595a55537ba3533ebe94a93e20dcf2a07774978effc61cd2fb .

CUTS BOOK CHAPTER ON GLOBAL WARMING:"Gingrich says he has killed a chapter on climate change in a post-election book of essays about the environment. But the intended author of the chapter, who supports the scientific consensus that humans contribute to climate change, says that&#39;s news to her," scooped CBS-National Journal embed Sarah Huisenga. "Katharine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist at Texas Tech, confirmed in an email interview that she had been asked to write a chapter on climate change for the speaker&#39;s book. She said was approached by former Palm Beach Zoo CEO Terry Maple, Gingrich&#39;s co-editor, at an annual meeting of Republicans for Environmental Protection."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca391591d436954b9af994a143a163e5ce389329b16d6af1c2dd043 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca391591d436954b9af994a143a163e5ce389329b16d6af1c2dd043 

Hayhoe tweeted a reaction to the story overnight:'Nice to hear that Gingrich is tossing my #climate chapter in the trash. 100+ unpaid hrs I cd&#39;ve spent playing w my baby.'

30-MINUTE SPECIAL PROMOTES HIM THIS WEEKEND:"Newsmax, the conservative magazine and Web site, will show a 30-minute special on Mr. Gingrich throughout the weekend in all of Iowa's major television markets," per the New York Times' Jeremy Peters. "The program is hosted by Michael Reagan, son of the former president, and makes the case that Mr. Gingrich is the strongest candidate to carry forward Ronald Reagan's legacy...A second major player in conservative circles, Liberty University, the evangelical institution founded by Jerry Falwell, is also giving Mr. Gingrich some help in Iowa, running 30-second commercials in which Mr. Gingrich extols the virtues of a Liberty education. Neither video
 explicitly endorses Mr. Gingrich as the Republican nominee, but their pro-Gingrich messages raise a host of election law questions and highlight how loopholes in the law allow politically motivated groups to influence the outcome of elections." Story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915977822c5726075b044f5e962b5e2c7d5624557375834454b2 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f52a27c4aca3915977822c5726075b044f5e962b5e2c7d5624557375834454b2 . The Liberty spot:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d30874bac908a27e78cf76fcf6d29d260bccfa1c9a0f8f55c6c3 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d30874bac908a27e78cf76fcf6d29d260bccfa1c9a0f8f55c6c3 . Watch the full 30-minute special:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d30804c76eb34256a69c9c60272e7897c35d95ac6589c03712c1 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d30804c76eb34256a69c9c60272e7897c35d95ac6589c03712c1 .

DEACE ENDORSES:Influential conservative radio hostSteve Deace endorsed Gingrich yesterday afternoon. His full endorsement letter:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3085e4dcf7e794794bb3902a47b834d84c9e56b1f72b00e62c0 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3085e4dcf7e794794bb3902a47b834d84c9e56b1f72b00e62c0 . The Iowa Republican's Craig Robinson doesn't get how this jives with his social conservatism:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d308f3c3293b77fee7d0eabd0ee5803166551567e86c77cf6439 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d308f3c3293b77fee7d0eabd0ee5803166551567e86c77cf6439 .

SANTORUM LATEST - SAVORING HIS MOMENT:"Traffic to his campaign website is up 300 to 400 percent, says Santorum spokesman Matt Beynon, and 15 new phones were just added to their offices to handle the incoming calls. Four days away from the caucuses, Santorum just posted his best day of fundraising of the campaign," Charlie Mahtesian writes in a story this afternoon. "On Sunday he'll be the lone presidential candidate on NBC's 'Meet the Press.' The former senator insists he never doubted the moment would come."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3087da2f9e26879d68ac0286716db93fa1bc37da1df5424d583 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3087da2f9e26879d68ac0286716db93fa1bc37da1df5424d583 

REGISTER PROFILE - GRASSLEY OFFERS PRAISE:The Des Moines Register has been running profiles of all the candidates. Santorum gets his today. Chuck Grassley, the state's popular senator, is not endorsing. But he offered pretty high praise in an interview. "[Grassley] recalled how Santorum went the extra mile to win his support for landmark welfare reform legislation in 1996...he sees many of those same political traits reflected on the campaign trail.'I can say this: The sincerity and effort that he has to get his point across in the presidential campaign is almost a total reflection of how he operated as a United States senator,' Grassley said. 'He is transparent. A tough fighter. A person
 not afraid to take on tough issues.' No surprise: the Santorum camp blasted the comments out in a press release this morning.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3085675c519732f9148c8d6cd3c08eb59fcff4ed3a50ddc9823 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3085675c519732f9148c8d6cd3c08eb59fcff4ed3a50ddc9823 

GRASSLEY THINKS FOUR MIGHT BE ABLE TO CLAIM VICTORY TUESDAY:'I would be surprised if there was a clear winner,' the Iowa Republican said on C-SPAN&#39;s Washington Journal Friday. More from the Sioux City Journal: "With three candidates polling between 16 and 25 percent and the race remaining fluid, he said it's possible three or four candidates could do well enough to claim victory as they head to New Hampshire."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3088e7a9b33e9c4e1cabbabe57dd14fc6304c75a84eccc4a654 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3088e7a9b33e9c4e1cabbabe57dd14fc6304c75a84eccc4a654 

PAUL - IN A SWITCH, HE IGNORES THE MEDIA:"Neglect by the mainstream media is so central to Ron Paul's identity that his campaign uses it to raise money. But as his surging poll numbers in Iowa have drawn scrutiny to his incendiary newsletters, reporters are complaining that Paul is now the one ignoring the mainstream media," Keach Hagey and I wrote last night. One Paul beat reporter who asked not to be named because the reporter didn't have permission to talk to the press: "He had been answering reporter questions on his way out the door, but since he has been back from Christmas, on Wednesday, he hasn't even been doing that."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d308aae247296c455f34920089906752d76fd61f37550b1d46dd 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d308aae247296c455f34920089906752d76fd61f37550b1d46dd 

GARY JOHNSON'S N.H. STAFF SIGNS ON:"After former Republican presidential candidate Gary Johnson decided to seek the libertarian nomination instead, his New Hampshire staff has defected en masse to the other libertarian-leaning Republican in the race: Texas Representative Ron Paul," per The Boston Globe. "All five of Johnson's New Hampshire staff members - state coordinator Brinck Slattery, communications director Matt Simon, and field coordinators Nick Murray, Andy Hauger, and Eric Jackman - have said they will support Paul."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3084542c2764a3c18ae959f754e426be59f40631c9774717d9d 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3084542c2764a3c18ae959f754e426be59f40631c9774717d9d 

JOHNSON ENCOURAGES HIS SUPPORTERS TO VOTE FOR PAUL:The libertarian candidate sent a press release this morning urging Iowans to back Paul on Tuesday and noting that he backed him in 2008.

CRITICIZED AIDS PATIENTS, MINORITY RIGHTS IN 1980s BOOK:"In his 1987 manifesto 'Freedom Under Siege: The U.S. Constitution after 200-Plus Years,' Paul wrote that AIDS patients were victims of their own lifestyle, questioned the rights of minorities and argued that people who are sexually harassed at work should quit their jobs," CNN's Hamby reported yesterday. "The slim, 157-page volume was published ahead of Paul&#39;s 1988 Libertarian Party presidential bid and touches on many of the themes he continues to hammer on the stump."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3087b730e8551471ff4c1142d0f84eb900f279bbdece564bb60 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2536f6600615d3087b730e8551471ff4c1142d0f84eb900f279bbdece564bb60 

IN DES MOINES - DNC WAR ROOM:The Democratic National Committee is going to bracket the GOP candidates with live, daily rapid responses from a war room at the Renaissance Des Moines Savery Hotel. They will open it up tomorrow and stick around through Wednesday. DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, DNC Communications Director Brad Woodhouse and National Press Secretary Melanie Roussell are eager to get into stories about the contest. They'll do daily press availabilities. The Renaissance is across the skywalk from Polk County Convention Center and caucus media center.

HUNTSMAN SUPER PAC CALLS ROMNEY A "CHAMELEON":Our Destiny PAC is spending$300,000 on broadcast and cable to urge New Hampshire voters to "Stop the Chameleon." Watch the 30-second spot:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a0044dd8d66a97638ed44f0e5df4962f776ccf256f7fd578dcf282f6338a7dd3 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a0044dd8d66a97638ed44f0e5df4962f776ccf256f7fd578dcf282f6338a7dd3 .

MINNESOTA REPUBLICANS ELECTED A NEW CHAIR TODAY:"Republican delegates elected political consultant Pat Shortridge as the next party chair of the Minnesota Republican Party. Shortridge won on the first ballot, receiving 66 percent of the vote. He defeated Second Congressional District Chair Terry McCall and businessman Todd McIntyre," per Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck. "Shortridge will have some heavy lifting to do. He&#39;ll be expected to eliminate a party debt that could be as high as $2 million at a time when lower level contributions are down. Republicans are also heading into the 2012 election without a top tier U.S. Senate candidate to challenge DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a0044dd8d66a976384d731486995bc875295af499de7b62a40c2d68a25ffbc4e 
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CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY:'New Jersey is watching you too...Let me tell you, you people disappoint me on Tuesday, you don't do what you&#39;re supposed do to on Tuesday for Mitt Romney, I will be back. Jersey style, people, I will be back." - Chris Christie, wearing a blazer but no overcoat in the freezing rain
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