Adelson saves the day!
"Super PACs and their cash are political game-changers" January 20, 2012|By Brian C. Mooney
COLUMBIA, S.C. - No matter how Newt Gingrich fares in tomorrow’s Republican presidential primary here, he can thank Las Vegas casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson and the operatives at Winning Our Future, the super PAC that has leveled the media playing field for him since Adelson, a billionaire, wrote a check for $5 million to the organization.
See: Gingrich Offensive in South Carolina
Gingrich’s candidacy was hanging by a thread after woeful finishes in Iowa and New Hampshire, caused in part by negative ads financed by a super PAC allied with Mitt Romney. The Adelson gift has helped alter the equation in one of the nation’s most conservative states.
And as dramatically as super PAC money has whipsawed the Gingrich campaign, it also threatens to return the making of the president to a pre-Watergate free-for-all of big money chasing big returns at the ballot box.
In addition to the PAC boost, Gingrich has also gained late momentum the hard way, grinding through long days on the ground in South Carolina, distinguishing himself in debate, and demonstrating his career-long ability to make news.
But since Adelson - a Gingrich friend and benefactor of long standing - kicked in desperately needed cash a few days before the New Hampshire vote, the former House speaker has benefited enormously on the airwaves in South Carolina....
The PACs are supposed to operate independently of candidates and parties, but in reality, all of the candidates can send messages to their PAC allies via their public statements. The PACs’ proliferation has sounded alarms among campaign finance watchdogs and the public alike. A New York Times/CBS poll released yesterday indicated that voters overwhelmingly want limits on individual contributions.
With the second anniversary of the game-changing Citizens United case this weekend, reformers are clamoring for new restrictions, or at least more transparency, with disclosure of donors in real time or close to it. Some advocate a constitutional amendment, which would take years.
As of yesterday, super PACs had reported spending about $28.5 million for and against Republican presidential candidates.
Win or lose in South Carolina, Gingrich intends to fight on to the Jan. 31 primary in Florida, with its 10 media markets, some of them very expensive. Awaiting him is an environment already seeded with $4.9 million worth of ads and direct mail funded by the pro-Romney super PAC, reports to the FEC reveal. Many reprised the Iowa and South Carolina ads that dusted off Gingrich’s old baggage, including a $300,000 ethics penalty and work with two of the Republican right’s betes noires, mortgage giant Freddie Mac and Democrat Nancy Pelosi. Yesterday, Restore Our Future reported buying $1.54 million worth of ads attacking Gingrich in Florida.
Longtime political media analyst Kenneth Goldstein said a study by his organization, Kantar Media’s Campaign Media Analysis Group, showed that super PACs are outspending candidates’ campaigns in South Carolina, and that Gingrich is still the target of the most negative ads, about 22 percent of all ads. Compared with Iowa, however, that’s a love tap. In Iowa, 45 percent of all TV ads hit Gingrich, according to the analysis by Goldstein’s organization.
Overall, 54 percent of the South Carolina ads have been positive, compared with 46 percent negative, the group found. In Iowa, negative ads accounted for more than 70 percent of all spots, the study showed....
“Because of the ability not just of individuals but also corporations to drop big money into important political messages in these early primary states, the urgency is far greater now to have this information before the voters cast their ballots in those early states,’’ said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan group that tracks the influence of money in politics.
The only reason the public knows about Adelson’s donation is that he confirmed it after it was leaked that he intended to give an even larger amount....
The magnitude of the changes in the new environment was made clear by Michael Toner, a former FEC commissioner: “As much as is being spent now by super PACs, I think it will be a drop in the bucket compared to what will be spent in the general election by them; I expect we’re going to see in excess of $1 billion by the time of the November election.’’
$1 billion dollars spent on a political campaign as this nation is suffering. Disgusting.
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"Romney’s lead slips away in S.C." January 21, 2012|By Matt Viser and Michael Levenson
GILBERT, S.C. - Mitt Romney’s march to the nomination, which looked to be on a smooth path only a week ago, could be knocked off course if South Carolina voters sweep Newt Gingrich to victory today, reviving his prospects and effectively anointing him as the main alternative to the former Massachusetts governor.
In a sign of his darkening outlook in this crucial battleground state yesterday, Romney downplayed his chances in the primary and began shifting his focus to later states, unveiling supporters in Texas, for example, even as he and his allies attacked Gingrich in a furious, last-minute attempt to stem the former House speaker’s resurgence.
“I said from the very beginning South Carolina is an uphill battle for a guy from Massachusetts,’’ Romney told reporters here, after a rain-soaked rally where supporters crowded outside under umbrellas. “I knew that.’’
Romney’s fortunes have changed quickly. A week ago, propelled by a narrow win in the Iowa caucuses and a convincing victory in the New Hampshire primary, he steamed into South Carolina with a double-digit lead over his rivals. He hoped that three successive victories in the first three states would swiftly seal the nomination for him and allow him to begin focusing on the general election.
Then Gingrich’s candidacy roared back to life, buoyed by strong debate performances and a wave of ads attacking Romney’s business record that were financed by his political allies. Rick Santorum then snatched away Romney’s Iowa victory, after a final count revealed the former senator from Pennsylvania had not lost the state to Romney by 8 votes but had edged him by 34.
See: Santorum's Symbolic Victory
Now, Romney faces the prospect of going one-for-three in the early states and being forced to fight a drawn-out battle against rivals who are aggressively attacking his conservative credentials, jabbing at his vast wealth, and questioning his electability.
The Palmetto Poll, conducted by Clemson University and released yesterday had Gingrich leading Romney by 6 points, 32 percent to 26 percent. Ron Paul came in third, at 11 percent; and Santorum was last, with 9 percent. About one in five voters still remained undecided, according to the poll.
Meaning he is STILL IN THERE!
Update: Ron Paul Surges To Third Place In South Carolina Primary Poll
Those numbers look more believable to me.
Clemson political scientist Dave Woodard said the assertion from one of Gingrich’s former wives that he had asked her for an “open marriage’’ would probably not significantly dent his lead....
I'm finding it hard to believe evangelical Christians would vote for a man like that.
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