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Big crowd. Curdling screams in Myrtle Beach. You think this is a vacation town? Think again. This is the ultimate political fighting championship, a no-holds-barred blood sport. Little bear Bret Baier announces that Fox News has done away with the time-is-up sound. That’s how crazy the 16th GOP debate is going to be.
Mitt Romney stammered on Monday night when debate moderators asked him whether he’d release his tax returns. “I hadn’t planned on releasing tax records, because the law requires us to release all of our assets, all the things we own. That I have already released. It’s a pretty full disclosure,” he said. “But, you know, if that’s been the tradition, and I’m not opposed to doing that, time will tell. But I anticipate that most likely I am going to get asked to do that around the April time period, and I’ll keep that open.” It wasn’t actually an answer–he’s already been asked–and worse yet, it was much more awkward than Romney’s usual Pomade pivot from unwelcome questions. On Tuesday he gritted his teeth and gave an answer that shed more light on his reluctance.
To follow up on yesterday’s post about the “greatest act of presidential weakness” in Newt Gingrich’s lifetime, my estimable friend and fellow Ashkenazi Goldblog asked the Pentagon why the joint Israeli-US missile-defense exercise was postponed. Answer:
–A tweet from Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod during Monday night’s debate.
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
You may have missed it, but the “biggest act of weakness by any American President in my lifetime” took place this morning. At least, according to Newt Gingrich, who has a bit of a problem with hyperbole. Indeed, in the ensuing moments after denouncing the wimpatheticity of Barack Obama, he proclaimed the President “the most radical President in American history” and the election “the most important in American history.” (Shockingly, most of the acts that made Obama “most radical” in American history–like support for an individual mandate for health care and cap-and-trade to control Co2, were things that Newt used to support.)
But anyway, back to…the biggest act of weakness in the history of the worrrrrld! I’ll keep you waiting, hide the answer beneath the fold. Because it was just so damn big and so damn weak. O.K., Here it comes…sit down:
Despite Saturday’s announcement that prominent Evangelical leaders would support Rick Santorum for President, the battle for social conservative votes is far from over. On Monday, backers of Newt Gingrich disputed reports that Evangelical leaders had reached a consensus to support a single candidate, as Family Research Council president Tony Perkins had announced following the Texas powwow on Saturday.
Jon Huntsman bowed out of the Republican presidential race on Monday morning and endorsed Mitt Romney, winnowing the GOP field and giving Romney a boost just five days before South Carolina’s pivotal Jan. 21 primary.
A group of 125 evangelical leaders met in Texas this weekend and after eight hours of conversation and a final ballot taken on 3 x 5 cards named Rick Santorum as their preferred GOP candidate.
TIME’s photo editors bring you the best pictures of the past week from the Beltway and beyond.
