
CNN’s POLITICAL GUT CHECK | for July 16, 2012 | 5 p.m.
— n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle
SNEAK PEEK: A BLISTERING ANALYSIS FROM CHARLIE COOK... “The attacks on Bain, outsourcing, and his investments are sticking to Romney like Velcro, and it’s hard to see how that will change until he picks his running mate. Romney has lost control of the debate and the dialogue. Instead of voters focusing on the economy, they are now hearing about investments and accounts in Switzerland and the Cayman Islands, as well as about outsourcing and layoffs.… If I were a Republican, I would be very concerned about the events of the past two weeks, questioning both strategy and tactics as well as the underlying assumptions that have led to the campaign decisions made so far. It would appear that a certain overconfidence has built up in the Romney camp, a smugness that would appear to come from beating an incredibly weak group of underfinanced, poorly organized rivals. … This election is starting to look enough like 2004 that Karl Rove should be demanding royalties from the Obama campaign, and others may conclude that no presidential campaign should ever again be based in Boston.” (Full article will appear on Nationaljournal.com tomorrow).
DEVELOPING: TRYING TO TAME THE BEAST ON VEEPSTAKES... Senior Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom tells CNN’s Jim Acosta: "No decision. It could happen anytime between now and the convention but it will only happen after a decision has been made and no decision has been made." .... Earlier in the day, Fehrnstrom fielded questions from a hungry press corps asking about Mitt Romney’s meeting with Governor Jindal: “He met with Governor Jindal but they didn’t talk about VP.” “Education was one of the topics they covered but they did not discuss VP.” “There is no decision on VP.”
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(CNN) - Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst took in more money than his Republican opponent in the latest fund-raising period of the bitter Texas GOP Senate runoff.
Dewhurst's campaign said Monday it brought in $5.98 million between May 10 and June 30, with $4.47 million of the amount being lent from his own pocket. Meanwhile his rival, tea party favorite Ted Cruz, announced raising $1.7 million.
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(CNN) – She's been featured in two negative television ads from Mitt Romney's presidential campaign, but Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday the spots would have little effect on voters who already know the story of the 2008 Democratic primaries.
Speaking in Jerusalem at the tail end of a two week diplomatic trip, Clinton said in an interview with CNN Foreign Affairs Reporter Elise Labott the spots were a "waste of money."
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(CNN) – While Democratic opponents have been pounding Mitt Romney to provide a greater window into his personal finances, a smattering of conservative Republicans have recently joined the chorus calling for the presumptive GOP nominee to release more years of his tax returns.
Former speechwriter to President George W. Bush Matthew Dowd and conservative columnist George Will have joined the new-found conservative refrain.
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(CNN) - It's moving time. Both parties officially transitioned into to their respective convention arenas on Monday, a little more than a month before thousands flock to North Carolina and Florida to take part in their parties' largest gatherings.
The Democratic National Convention Committee received the key to the Time Warner Cable arena in Charlotte. The committee said the event marked the next "milestone" in its planning for the convention, scheduled for September 4-6.
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New York (CNNMoney) - The inability of Democrats and Republicans to work out their differences on the fiscal cliff is already becoming a problem for the economy.
And that problem will grow the longer the standoff lasts.
FULL STORY(CNN) – A top aide to Mitt Romney denied Monday that the presumptive GOP nominee had settled on a pick for his vice presidential running mate.
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(CNN) - Presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal are set to bring in $2 million at a fund-raiser in Baton Rouge Monday.
The event, scheduled for mid-day, cost $50,000 per ticket, and 40 supporters will attend.
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(CNN) – GOP Sen. Rob Portman defended his party's presumptive presidential nominee Monday from President Barack Obama's "personal" attacks, saying the Democrat was focusing on Mitt Romney because his record falls short.
Portman, speaking in Lebanon, Ohio, was holding an event for Romney roughly two hours ahead of Obama's own campaign speech in nearly Cincinnati.
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