Politics In 60 Seconds

Michael Brendan Dougherty | Nov. 30, 2011, 12:00 PM | 3 |

Greetings,

Welcome to the world of Global-Bailouts!

We inaugurate the return of Politics In 60 Seconds on the very day that the world's six major central banks announced a coordinated intervention to save the Euro and thereby save human civilization with is apparently synonymous with one of the youngest currencies on Earth.

In other news, according to the Financial Times, USA is in for good jobs numbers.

Let's get to it.

THE REPUBLICAN RACE

Mitt Romney's Weakness In Polling Should Horrify Him. Everyone gets a ride up and down the polls but Romney is stuck below 30 percent and has been for some time. It is just startlingly to realize that no former Huckabee/Bachmann/Cain supporters are leaving their candidates and settling for Romney. Especially when he is such an improved campaigner.

In a race between the Mitt and the "Not Mitts" - Mitt is actually losing support. And Red State's Erick Erickson has noticed.

Romney's squirm-endorsing interview with Bret Baier showed why Romney has avoided the media.

And Romney's main rival in the GOP is trying to capitalize. The chat-shows are still buzzing since Newt told an audience. "I don’t claim to be the perfect candidate; I just claim to be a lot more conservative than Mitt Romney."

Not So Fast Newt: But Newt Gingrich isn't just getting a second look; he's getting a second scrutiny. The New York Times dumped a huge story showing that many of Newt Gingrich's "health-care solutions" were little more than things he was paid to say by health-care clients. And the right-leaning Washington Examiner is warning conservatives to "Think Twice About Newt" concluding that it is "difficult not to view Gingrich as an exemplar of Washington's professional Republican politicians who talk the talk to get elected, but often don't walk it once in office."

The Republican Party has two deeply flawed front-runners one month away from Iowa.

FROM THIS MORNING

Liberal Read; Paul Krugman against British austerity.

Conservative Read: David Frum on whether the Republicans have been poisoned by Tea.

THIS DAY IN POLITICS

On November 30, 1993 President Clinton signed into law the Brady Bill, which required a five-day waiting period for handgun purchases and background checks of prospective buyers.

Today in 1864, Confederate General John Bell Hood attacked troops under John Scholfield at the Battle of Franklin, Tennessee. Five CSA generals were wounded. Six others were killed. Hood attacked John Scholfield again at Nashville on December 15.

TWEETS OF THE DAY SO FAR

Injection of puns Timothy P. Carney

Tim Carney Tweet of the Day