First, Herman Cain surged to double-digits and was in second place behind Mitt Romney. Then he faded away and Michele Bachmann came to within points of Romney. Then she faded away and Rick Perry took a commanding lead over Romney. Now Perry has faded, and, according to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, Cain has taken a small lead on Romney.
The one constant in all this polling is that somewhere around 75 percent of the Republican primary electorate has consistently chosen anybody but Romney as their top choice for the Republican nomination. Republicans may tell pollsters they are satisfied with their options, but their actual preferences show otherwise.
The overwhelming majority of Republican primary voters are desperate to have anybody but Romney as their nominee. They just can’t find a better candidate to fill that roll. Just as John McCain went on to win the GOP nomination about his campaign was declared dead earlier in 2008, calling Romney “inevitable” now is premature.
Around the Bigs
ABC News, Japanese Government Nixed Idea of Obama Visiting, Apologizing for, Hiroshima: According to a a secret cable published by Wikileaks, US Ambassador to Japan John Roos reported to the Obama administration that the Japanese government did not think it was a good idea for President Obama to visit Hiroshima and apologize for the US having dropped an atomic bomb on that city.
Fox News, Solar Firm That Received $1.2 Billion Federal Loan Plagued by Financial Problems: SunPower, a project which received a $1.2 billion and will help create 15 permanent jobs, if it stays in business, posted $150 million in losses during the first half of this year.
The Washington Examiner, Three trade pacts get rare bipartisan support: After defeating Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s, D-Calif., efforts to delay the bills, the House passed free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea last night.
The Wall Street Journal, Capital Files for Bankruptcy: Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania filed for bankruptcy yesterday, after the city council rejected a state-backed plan that called for selling or leasing assets to pay down debt.
The Washington Post, Why some Democrats oppose Obama’s jobs bill: In addition to Sens. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., and Jon Tester, D-Mont., who voted against ending debate on Obama’s second stimulus, Sens. Jim Webb, D-Va., Joe Manchin, D-W.V., and Joe Liebermann, I-Conn., all said they would have voted against the bill on final passage. That means Obama’s second stimulus failed to muster a majority of votes in either chamber of Congress.
The Wall Street Journal, Buffett Builds His Tax-the-Rich Case: Millionaire tax hiker Warren Buffett sent a letter to Republican Rep. Tim Huelskamp of Kansas, claiming that he made $63 million in 2010 and paid $7 million in income tax, for a effective tax rate of 17.4%. Buffett had claimed he pays a higher effective rate than his secretary, who has not released her tax information. But the average effective tax rate for those in the middle quintile of earners is lower than what Buffett paid, at 12%.
The Washington Post, Banks turn to demolition of foreclosed properties to ease housing-market pressures: The nation’s largest banks are giving away foreclosed properties, and sometimes even paying $7,500 a pop to demolish them.
The Los Angeles Times, Home foreclosure proceedings on the rise again: In states where the foreclosure process occurs outside the courtroom, the number of homes entering foreclosure surged 19% in the third quarter compared with the previous quarter in states, according to RealtyTrac. States like Florida and New York, where courts play a larger role, saw foreclosures increase only 9%.
San Jose Mercury News, Police arrest Occupy San Francisco protesters at Wells Fargo headquarters: San Francisco police arrested 11 demonstrators for trespassing, yesterday, outside Wells Fargo headquarters in the financial district.
Righty Playbook
The Examiner‘s Tim Carney writes about his night sleeping with the Occupy Wall Street protesters.
The Corner‘s Charles C. W. Cooke talks to a Occupy Wall Street protester who wants his college tuition paid for because … that is what he wants.
The Weekly Standard‘s Daniel Harper posts video of Vice President Joe Biden telling a Flint, Michigan, audience that there will be more rapes and murders if Obama’s second stimulus fails.
Lefty Playbook
Mother Jones‘ David Corn posts video of Romney signing his health care bill while calling Sen. Ted Kennedy a “collaborator” whose work “behind the scenes” was “absolutely essential” for passage of the health care plan.
Grist‘s David Roberts believes he has found polling that shows Americans love new EPA regulations.
John Sides reminds progressives that for all the talk of Hope and Change, Obaama’s 2008 campaign was actually relentlessly negative: “the percentage of Obama’s television advertising during the 2008 campaign included an attack on John McCain? Well above 50%, according to research by the Wisconsin Advertising Project.”
