"The House will begin debating the health care repeal bill next week, following a week when legislative action was halted after the Tucson shooting tragedy," the Boston Globe writes. " House majority leader Eric Cantor’s office said yesterday that debate on the bill, which passed a procedural hurdle last Friday, is expected to begin when the House convenes on Tuesday. A vote is expected on Wednesday."

The Washington Post adds, “[N]o one quite knows what normal will look like, following a wrenching week in which members confronted concerns about their own safety and whether their heated rhetoric played any role in last Saturday's shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) and 18 others.”

The New York Times: “In a statement, Brad Dayspring, a spokesman for the office of the majority leader, Eric Cantor of Virginia, said, ‘It is important for Congress to get back to work, and to that end we will resume thoughtful consideration of the health care bill next week.’”

National Journal's Charlie Cook: "Much of the speculation about the implications of the tragic Tucson shooting has centered on whether it will lead to any meaningful change in the incendiary rhetoric that has been on the rise in American political campaigns and on Internet sites, cable television, and talk radio. A more productive line of thought is to look at whether the tragedy will change the strategy and tactics of the new Republican majority in the House and, more broadly, the 100 GOP freshmen in the House and Senate."

He adds, "The Tucson rampage is unlikely to change Republicans’ political philosophies or positions. It may serve, however, as a strong signal that they should approach things more cautiously and think before saying anything that a typical swing voter might find extreme. Members from safe districts are pretty insulated from blowback if they use extreme language, but in the world of the Internet and 24/7 cable TV, a particularly strident statement can hurt their colleagues who may not have the luxury of representing a ruby-red district."

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer likes the idea of commingled bipartisan seating at the State of the Union. The idea was pitched by centrist group Third Way and also endorsed by Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO). Also endorsing the idea is Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and John McCain (R-AZ).

Politico's headline: "Zero hour for Michael Steele at RNC."

From the story: "While each of the four party insiders seeking to oust Chairman Michael Steele– who took office less than two years ago with a pledge to give the RNC 'something completely different' – brings a unique set of skills, none have the national stature to compete with Steele’s TV-ready style. Still, the former Maryland lieutenant governor enters Friday’s voting in a dire position, with a majority of RNC members less inclined to praise Steele than to replace him." And there's this reminder: "Early vote tallies, of course, can be deceptive in a race that will be decided over the course of several secret ballots, with plenty of lobbying and deal-making in between."

The Hill: "Republicans will decide Friday whether Michael Steele deserves some credit for the party’s historic victory in last year’s midterm elections or whether he should be replaced ahead of the presidential campaign cycle for being a gaffe-prone liability."

“A Republican group that includes former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Thursday kicks off its efforts to improve the party's outreach to Hispanic voters, many of whom have criticized Republicans for using harsh rhetoric to attack illegal immigration,” the AP writes. “The new Hispanic Action Network convenes for a two-day policy conference starting Thursday evening that will feature several high-ranking Republicans and focus on issues such as trade, immigration, media outreach and education.”

CAIN: “Pizza magnate and potential presidential aspirant Herman Cain says President Barack Obama has done at least one thing well,” the Wall Street Journal writes. ““He has awakened the sleeping giant called ‘we the people,’ Mr. Cain said, talking from his hotel room in Phoenix… Mr. Cain got a jump on other potential GOP 2012 candidates Wednesday when he formed a presidential exploratory committee, which allows him to raise money for a possible White House run.”

DANIELS: “In another sign that Mitch Daniels is looking for a broader stage and eyeing a presidential run, the Indiana governor has accepted an invitation to be the Republican speaker at this year’s Gridiron Club dinner,” National Journal writes. “The annual journalism dinner has been used in the past by potential presidential candidates to break out of the pack and shine before an audience that includes the president, members of Congress, and leading publishers and editors.”

GINGRICH: Per the Myrtle Beach Sun News, the former House speaker spoke at a dinner hosted by the lobbying group Grand Strand Business Association in Myrtle Beach. “’The midterm win wasn't enough and Republicans need to aim for winning 40 more House seats and 12 or 13 more Senate seats in the next election,’ Gingrich said to a crowd.”

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports that Newt Gingrich will speak at Hawaii’s state GOP Lincoln Day dinner and fundraiser on February 18th.

PALIN: She'll be on Hannity on FOX Monday, her first TV interview since the Arizona shooting.

PAWLENTY: MinnPost.com’s takeaway from the former governor’s speech yesterday at the National Press Club: “He stood on the stage a business evangelist, preaching the gospel of small government to a room full of Republican politicos who ate it up and prominent national journalists who took it all down. Here at the National Press Club, where Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter and John F. Kennedy each kicked off a presidential campaign, Tim Pawlenty didn’t. But he sounded for all the world like someone who will in just a few months’ time.”

ROMNEY: He spoke about democracy with young Afghans, saying it also sometimes opens the door for bad people, but to look for the "good leaders." The Boston Globe: "Far from the sometimes-boiling partisan atmosphere back home, Romney sought to present a more nuanced side of himself during what his staff described as an important listening and learning tour — one that is bound to be seen as another step in his preparation for a likely second run for the presidency. Yesterday, Romney had breakfast with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and he is scheduled to meet today with Palestinian Authority prime minister Salam Fayad. He is seeking advice on foreign policy matters, asking questions of foreign and US military leaders."

“Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has secured both a pollster and a political director for his near-certain presidential bid this coming cycle,” Real Clear Politics reports. “Rich Beeson, a Republican operative who has worked as a political director at the Republican National Committee and was most recently a partner at the voter contact firm FLS Connect, will be Romney's political director… And for polling, Romney is bringing on Neil Newhouse, a partner at the polling firm Public Opinion Strategies.”

TEXAS: Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R) released this statement after Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison announced she would not seek another term: "I fully intend to explore running for the United States Senate," he said. "And should I run, I will run with the intention of winning." Writes thehttp://bit.ly/gdL6wz: It was one of many rapid-fire signals Thursday as candidates and potential candidates – many who've been biding their time for Hutchison to step down – began the scramble for a rare Senate opening."

From NBC’s Domenico Montanaro
If Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty embarks on a 2012 White House bid, his speech today in Washington D.C. could provide a framework for the message he would deliver to primary state voters later this year.

Kicking off his book tour for his new memoir “Courage to Stand” with remarks at the National Press Club, Pawlenty offered a pitch that was two parts biography, one part contrast, and one part vision.

The former Minnesota governor spoke at length about his humble upbringing in a scrappy suburb outside St. Paul, MN, the blue-collar tableau that gave rise to his theory of “Sam’s Club Republicanism.”

When he was growing up in the 1960s in Minnesota, he recounted, someone who didn’t finish high school had options -- a “fallback” or “safety net” -- by working a blue-collar job. “But as we all painfully know, times have changed,” he said. “Those strong-back jobs have faded away.”

Pawlenty also leveled measured cases against the Obama administration on everything from health care and the economy to foreign policy, and he outlined a way forward for the country based on “commonsense values that can get us back on track.”

The generally mild-mannered former governor seemed energized by a largely friendly audience and a press section full of national political reporters, testing out applause lines and appearing pleased with the results.

“Just because we followed Greece into democracy, doesn’t mean we need to follow it into bankruptcy,” he told the crowd.

Touting his tenure as governor of Minnesota, Pawlenty laid the baseline for why he believes he could do a better job to grow the economy than President Obama. He noted that in the “state of McCarthy, Mondale, Ventura, and Al Franken,” he reduced spending.

“If you can do it there,” he said, echoing Frank Sinatra, “you can do it anywhere.”

The unemployment rate in the state is about 7 percent, below the national average of 9.4 percent.

Pawlenty laid out what he sees as “common-sense values”:

• Money: He proposed increasing job growth by talking to private sector business owners and considering what can be done for their taxes, regulations, permits, worker-compensation and energy costs to encourage hiring.
• ‘Can’t spend more than we have’: He criticized President Obama on health care for failing to deliver on his pledge to make the health care overhaul bipartisan and focused on cost containment. “He broke that promise,” Pawlenty said. “That is not what he delivered. It is not going to work.” He said state workers need more “skin in the game,” so they will migrate to lower-cost providers.
• The U.S. needs to be ‘smarter’: He said that if the U.S. isn’t the biggest or cheapest country, “then we better darn well be the smartest. … You cannot have a successful society and have a third” of students not completing high school. He laid out his vision for education, higher teacher standards, for example, but then went on to lionize former DC Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee. “Everyone’s waiting for Superman,” he said, referring to the documentary on school reform. “We had a Superwoman. And her name was Michelle Rhee,” who he described as “dismissed.” (Rhee not keeping her job, however, is more nuanced than that simple explanation. The incoming Mayor Vincent Gray retained her deputy, Kaya Henderson, but Rhee was criticized for her approach, described by some as a “bull in a china shop.”
• “Bullies respect strength not weakness,” said the "Minnesota Nice" former governor on national security, adding, “We need to do it with voices of strength.” He criticized the Obama administration, charging that there was a “troubling trend” developing on issues of foreign policy, including missile defense.

Pawlenty, who was on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart yesterday in New York, said he missed President Obama’s Tucson address because he was on a plane to Washington. But from the “excerpts” he read, he said, “From what I could see, he did a fine job.”

And he defended Sarah Palin, saying that some unfairly placed blame upon her politics in the aftermath of the shootings.

“In those early hours and early days, she was falsely accused,” he said.

Pawlenty was considered a front-runner to be John McCain’s vice-presidential nominee before he picked Sarah Palin. He reiterated today that he believes McCain’s choice of running mate didn’t especially impact the race. “I didn’t think it was going to matter who he picked as his vice president,” Pawlenty said. “Once the economy cratered, he or whoever the GOP candidate was, we would have ended up in the same spot.”

Pawlenty is thought to decide on a run sometime this spring, likely by around March. He said again today that he’s “seriously considering” a run.

Msnbc.com’s Carrie Dann contributed.

The Dallas Morning News is reporting that Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R) won't run for re-election in 2012. Kay Bailey Hutchison will not run for re-election to the U.S. Senate.

In a letter to supporters, Hutchison said she enjoyed serving Texas.

"I am announcing today that I will not be a candidate for re-election in 2012," she wrote to supporters. "That should give the people of Texas ample time to consider who my successor will be."

Hutchison challenged incumbent Rick Perry in the 2010 GOP gubernatorial primary, but she lost. It was thought at time that she would depart the U.S. Senate then, but she held on to her seat.

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell and Luke Russert
GOP aides tell NBC News that floor debate, on Tuesday, will resume on the House Republican efforts to repeal the health-care law.

Aides add the official detailed schedule will be released tomorrow.

“As the White House noted, it is important for Congress to get back to work, and to that end we will resume thoughtful consideration of the health care bill next week," said a spokesman for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. "Americans have legitimate concerns about the cost of the new health care law and its effect on the ability to grow jobs in our country. It is our expectation that the debate will continue to focus on those substantive policy differences surrounding the new law.”

Obama recaptures his 2004 voice…. He addressed the civility debate head-on… The Incredibly Shrinking Palin… Boehner’s statesman-like speech, then his unforced error… And Pawlenty’s big day.

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** Obama recaptures his 2004 voice: The past two years have made the 2004 convention speech that helped launch Barack Obama’s national profile -- “There's not a liberal America and a conservative America; there's the United States of America” -- seem like an eternity ago. Health care. “You lie.” The 2010 midterm campaign. And most recently, the partisan back-and-forth over Saturday’s shooting in Arizona. But in an address that was the Obama he sold himself as during the '08 campaign (hopeful, uplifting, focused on Americans’ better angels), the president last night recaptured that 2004 voice as he honored the dead, the wounded, and the heroes in Saturday’s shooting. “At a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized … it’s important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we’re talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds,” Obama said. He later added, “If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate -- as it should -- let’s make sure it’s worthy of those we have lost.”

*** Addressing civility head-on: Indeed, the most surprising part of last night’s speech -- beyond breaking the news that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ (D) eyes had opened -- was that Obama addressed the civility debate head-on, but with a twist. In the hours leading up to his address, we were convinced he was going to duck that debate, opting instead to eulogize the fallen and celebrate the heroes. But he must have realized that he couldn’t avoid it, especially after all the attention from Sarah Palin’s “blood libel” Web video. At the end of his remarks, he focused on the 9-year-old girl who died in Saturday’s shooting, Christina Taylor Green. (Being a father of young girls, that was something in Obama’s wheelhouse.) “I want to live up to her expectations,” he said. “I want our democracy to be as good as Christina imagined it. I want America to be as good as she imagined it. All of us, we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children’s expectations.” Atlantic Monthly writer (and former Carter speechwriter) Jim Fallows ranked Obama's speech last night in Obama's top-three addresses, joining the 2004 Dem convention and the 2008 Philly race speeches. It's hard to disagree.

*** The Incredibly Shrinking Palin? The president’s speech made Palin’s response look very small by comparison. While Obama tried to uplift, Palin tried to settle scores. While the president called for more civility, the former Alaska governor talked about duels and “blood libel.” And while Obama’s message was, well, presidential, Palin’s was not. We’ll say this: If Palin has ambitions for the White House -- and we’re still not sure she does -- then her tone, message, and timing from her eight-minute video was a serious miscalculation. Is this what happens when you live in a bubble? Is this what happens when you don't have advisers you trust that live outside her bubble? Palin's speech struck as a natural response only if she spent the last three days reading every nasty email and Tweet she received, and didn't extract herself from the story.

*** Boehner’s unforced error: While Obama was in the spotlight in Arizona, newly minted Speaker John Boehner was in the spotlight back on Capitol Hill. And he delivered, with what is now becoming a trademark emotion, in his address honoring Giffords and the other victims of Saturday’s shooting. Roll Call writes, “Instead of playing the role of a partisan, Boehner found himself practicing the art of a statesman. ‘Our hearts are broken, but our spirit is not,’ Boehner said Wednesday in floor remarks on the tragedy. ‘This is a time for the House to lock arms, in prayer for those fallen and wounded, and in resolve to carry on the dialogue of democracy.’” A strong moment. Yet Boehner committed an unforced error a few hours later when the news came out -- also from Roll Call -- that he hosted an RNC cocktail party last night at the same time as the Tucson memorial. As one Boehner fan put it to us: it was a bit "tone deaf."

*** Pawlenty’s big day: Because of what happened in Arizona, this might not have turned out to be the best week to grab the 2012 spotlight. But former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) has been able to make some news surrounding the release of his new book, “Courage to Stand.” First, he took a subtle jab at Palin’s crosshair/target map. Last night, he was on the “Daily Show,” where he addressed the civility debate. “We got to be really careful here because if you start saying, ‘You can say this, you can’t say that; You can use that tone, you can’t use that tone,’ then pretty soon you know you start to discourage, maybe chill, intimidate.” Today, Pawlenty gives a speech at 12:30 pm ET at the National Press Club. He also attends a book signing in DC and meets with College Republicans at George Washington University. Pawlenty's had a hard time breaking out recently, but is it possible that his less combative personality actually helps him stand out? Something to ponder.

Countdown to the RNC chair election: 1 day
Countdown Chicago’s mayoral election: 40 days
Countdown to Election Day 2011: 299 days
Countdown to the Iowa caucuses: 389 days
* Note: When the IA caucuses take place depends on whether other states move up

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The Washington Post writes, “President Obama comforted a community suffused with grief and summoned the nation to recommit to a more civil public discourse as he delivered a eulogy Wednesday evening urging Americans to talk with each other ‘in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds.’”

The Boston Globe’s front page: “Obama’s message is heal, unite, ‘be better.’”

The Wall Street Journal: "The president chose to dwell on the heroes of Saturday, and the victims of the violence -- especially nine-year-old Christina Taylor Green -- as he urged the nation to rise above ugly political debates and see civic life 'through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol' of adults."

"The president directly confronted the political debate that erupted after the rampage, urging people of all beliefs not to use the tragedy to turn on one another. He did not cast blame on Republicans or Democrats, but asked people to 'sharpen our instincts for empathy,'" the New York Times adds. 'It was one of the more powerful addresses that Mr. Obama has delivered as president, harnessing the emotion generated by the shock and loss from Saturday’s shootings to urge Americans 'to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully’ and to “remind ourselves of all the ways that our hopes and dreams are bound together.'"

The New York Times' Nagourney observes that last night's speech presented Obama this challenge that Bill Clinton didn't have with the Oklahoma City bombing or George W. Bush with 9/11: that the Arizona shootings had actually inflamed some political passions. "It was a political reality Mr. Obama seemed to recognize the moment he took the stage. And it was one he seemed determine to address, with language that recalled a central part of Mr. Obama’s appeal as a presidential candidate in 2008."

Politico’s Martin: "In the span of a single news cycle, Republicans got a jarring reminder of two forces that could prevent them from retaking the presidency next year. At sunrise in the east on Wednesday, Sarah Palin demonstrated that she has little interest -- or capacity -- in moving beyond her brand of grievance-based politics. And at sundown in the west, Barack Obama reminded even his critics of his ability to rally disparate Americans around a message of reconciliation."

The New York Post’s cover: “Gabby opens eyes.” The Post’s story called it a “stirring plea for national unity.”

The New York Daily News’ cover: “Hope amid tears” with a photo of First Lady Michelle Obama holding hands with Congresswoman Giffords’ husband Mike Kelly.

The Hill: “The White House has disappointed gun-control advocates on and off Capitol Hill with its silence on the issue.”

“Americans gave higher marks to President Obama and congressional Republicans after a holiday season of compromise paid dividends for both, according to the latest Associated Press-GfK poll,” AP reports. “At the start of the divided government era, the survey found 53 percent of Americans approve of how Obama is doing his job, up 6 percentage points from just after the November elections. The rating is his best since the divisive health care vote 10 months ago. Republicans in Congress got a slight bump too, with 36 percent giving them high marks, compared with 29 percent last fall. … But a majority also now view the Democrats favorably, an oddity just two months after voters dealt Obama’s party what he called ‘a shellacking’ in congressional elections. Democrats generally viewed by 53 percent of those polled, with 45 percent holding an unfavorable view.”

“The federal budget deficit narrowed slightly in December compared with a year ago, but the deficit for the entire fiscal year is still on pace to exceed $1 trillion,” AP writes. But, “Private economists expect that the tax-cut package signed into law last month will lead to a much larger deficit while helping to boost economic growth.”

The Atlantic’s Jim Fallows: “The standard comparisons of the past four days have been to Ronald Reagan after the Challenger disaster and Bill Clinton after Oklahoma City. Tonight's speech matched those as a demonstration of ‘head of state’ presence, and far exceeded them as oratory -- while being completely different in tone and nature.” More: “[A] performance to remember -- this will be, along with his 2004 Convention speech and his March, 2008 ‘meaning of race’ speech in Philadelphia, one of the speeches he is lastingly known for.”

The New York Times’ Gail Collins: “For me, Obama’s best moment came when he warned that ‘what we can’t do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on one another.’ In his honor, I am not saying a word about Sarah Palin’s video.”

Conservative John Podhoretz said, “The sentences and paragraphs of President Obama's speech last night were beautiful and moving and powerful. But for the most part they didn't quite transcend the wildly inappropriate setting in which he delivered them.”

Politics Daily's Jill Lawrence: "President Obama's Tucson memorial speech was as much about being a father as it was about being a president. He melded the personal and the political into a call for renewal and a road map to a healthier civic life – all of it powered by memories of the dead, in particular a murdered little girl who expected great things of her country."

Lawrence adds, "Obama did not take the easy way out at the University of Arizona. He could have simply eulogized those lost in the eruption of violence last Saturday, and raised up the heroes. And he did do all that in a moving way. But he also went much further. He confronted the sore points and flash points of the rampage and its aftermath. He urged Americans to take stock of themselves, their relationships and their responsibilities as citizens, and to make sure that we 'align our values with our actions.'"

Here’s conservative Andrea Tantaros’ lead, ripe with criticism of the left, but leaving the president alone: “Despite the pressure from some on the left to capitalize on the Tucson killings for political gain, and amid occasional inappropriate cheering from the audience, President Obama acutely understood our collective need to heal when he addressed the nation on Wednesday night.”

Roll Call: “Republicans and Democrats alike said Boehner has had a calming influence in a time of crisis.” Behind closed doors at bipartisan prayer service, he said, “Our nation mourns for the victims. It yearns for peace. And it thirsts for answers.”

Last night, however, Boehner hosted a cocktail party of the RNC at the same time as the memorial in Tucson. “Boehner turned down a Tuesday invitation from Obama to fly to Tucson with him, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other lawmakers for the Wednesday night memorial service,” Roll Call reported. http://bit.ly/fHeWKb

Starting over: “House Republicans gather today in Baltimore to plot the path forward for their hard-fought new majority under the inevitable shadow of the shootings in Tucson, Ariz., which essentially put the GOP agenda on hold this week,” Roll Call writes. “But Members insist they don’t plan to forestall their agenda for long and see no reason to alter their strategy for implementing it, even if they get a later start than they hoped.”

More on speakers: “Conservative commentator Dennis Prager will keynote today’s dinner, while columnist George Will be Friday’s dinner keynote. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.), who engineered the 1994 Republican revolution, and former Sen. Phil Gramm (Texas) will speak to Members at a Friday breakfast. Also Friday, conservative economists Larry Kudlow and Arthur Laffer, the economic adviser to President Ronald Reagan for whom the “Laffer curve” is named, will lead a session on creating jobs and growing the economy. And GOP Govs. Haley Barbour of Mississippi, Bob McDonnell of Virginia and Rick Perry of Texas will brief Republican lawmakers on innovative policies that they are pursuing in the states.”

Bloomberg News: Representative Darrell Issa, House Republicans’ new chief investigator, is expanding his oversight committee to focus on the heart of President Barack Obama’s legislative achievements. The California Republican, who has called Obama’s administration 'corrupt,' says he will hold hundreds of hearings as chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform." More: "He has created two subcommittees to scrutinize policies defining Obama’s first two years in office: the $814 billion economic-stimulus plan and the bailouts of banks and automakers. A third panel will oversee Obama’s health-care overhaul."

BARBOUR: After South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s swearing-in ceremony, Haley Barbour “convened something of a meet-and-greet with a handful of Republican legislators at the Palmetto Club in downtown Columbia,” CNN reports. “Among those planning to attend the closed-door meeting: David Wilkins, a former U.S. Ambassador and South Carolina House Speaker who remains a power broker in state GOP politics. Wilkins was also the chief of Haley's transition team.”

The New York Times profiles Haley’s nephew Henry Barbour, a lobbyist and RNC member who is leading the campaign to oust Michael Steele. Governor Barbour, the Times writes, “has become synonymous with an old-fashioned approach to politics, driven by force of personality and conducted over Maker’s Mark. He has also, however, been dogged by statements that suggest a considerably old-fashioned, even blinkered, view of history… Henry Barbour, 46, came of age in the Reagan era, when Republicans were not only newly viable in the South but also increasingly dominant, and when the art of politics shifted from the handshake to the database.”

CAIN: Mark it down. We have our first presidential exploratory committee, and it’s Herman Cain, a conservative talk show host and former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza.

CHRISTIE: The New Jersey governor recommended that Sarah Palin go unscripted, The State Column writes. “The New Jersey Republican added that Ms. Palin’s avoidance of reporters will hinder her ability to run for president. ‘And I would contend to you that if Governor Palin never does any of those things, she’ll never be president, because people in America won’t countenance that. They just won’t,’ Mr. Christie added.”

“The verbal spat between political pals Rudy Giuliani and NJ Gov. Chris Christie over the recent blizzard intensified Wednesday as Christie accused his former mentor of ‘shooting from the peanut gallery,’” The New York Post writes. Giuliani had said of Christie: "Chris should've come back … They elected you governor, they've got an emergency, they expect you to be there.”

GINGRICH: A day before speaking to a group of South Carolina business leaders, Newt Gingrich “readily acknowledges the state's historic importance in backing GOP presidential nominees - and his interest in becoming a White House candidate. "’South Carolina has picked the last five Republican presidential nominees,’ Gingrich told McClatchy Newspapers. ‘So it's clear that along with Iowa and New Hampshire, it's a key state in the presidential nominating process. There's no question it will retain that importance in 2012.’”

PALIN: The New York Daily News writes, Palin’s “evocation of the slur on Jews [‘blood libel’] in connection with the shooting of Arizona's first Jewish representative did not sit well with many.”

The Hill says Palin “set off a firestorm” after using the phrase and that it “arguably overshadow[ed] her counterattack to the left’s salvos.”

“Former Bush White House press secretary Ari Fleischer, a member of the Republican Jewish Coalition's board of directors, did not address Palin's use of the phrase ‘blood libel’ but said she would have been better served by focusing on a more positive message,” The Hill writes. He said, "I liked much of what she said, but it would have been even better if she simply rose above the accusations about her map and focused entirely on the bigger message of loss, tragedy and the greatness of our country and the strength of our people. The better way to repudiate the nonsensical charges against her would have been to rise above them."

PAWLENTY: “Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty took his ubiquitous book launch to the Daliy Show today where he expressed skepticism at calls on political figures to watch what they say,” Politico writes. "’We've got to be really careful here,’ he said, warning about the consequences for speech ‘if you start saying, 'You can't say this, you can't say that.'" http://politi.co/he1lmM

Pawlenty also listed what he believed to be the most important qualities for a GOP candidate in order to defeat President Obama in 2010: “I think the next president is going to have an unusual, really historic amount of fortitude. And I think there’s going to be a lot of similarities on various issues that Republican candidates are espousing. But I think the question people should ask is based on their life experiences, based on their record, not just who gives a pretty speech or who offered a failed amendment,” he said on the Hugh Hewitt radio show.

ROMNEY: “Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has stepped down from the board of directors for hotel chain Marriott International Inc. for the second time in eight years,” Bloomberg reports. “Romney served as a director from 1993 to 2002 before stepping down at the start of his run for governor. He rejoined the board in January 2009.”

SANTORUM: “Rick Santorum will make his eighth trip to South Carolina on Saturday as the Pennsylvania Republican continues his courtship of conservatives while exploring a potential presidential bid,” The Hill writes. “Santorum will address an anti-abortion rally in Columbia on Saturday before traveling to Aiken to speak at a county GOP lunch on Monday.”

The New York Times: "As Republican officials from across the country gather for their winter meeting, five candidates are competing for those votes. The arm-twisting that has been under way for weeks has given way to last-ditch persuasion, with the voting by secret ballot to begin on Friday."

Roll Call’s table-setter: “When the Republican National Committee met in Washington, D.C., two years ago, the party was coming off two brutal election cycles and looking for a road map out of the political wilderness. After a highly successful midterm cycle, the circumstances have changed heading into 2012. As the RNC meets in the Washington area again this week, its goal is to begin preparations for a well-funded and organized presidential election cycle. That groundwork starts in earnest Friday with the selection of a chairman to lead the party through the presidential nomination.”

Rothenberg Political Report’s Nathan Gonzales warns, “Republicans are in danger of entering the next stage of redistricting at a significant financial disadvantage thanks to a cash-strapped Republican National Committee and a high-profile outside group that never got off the ground.”

Speaker John Boehner endorsed former Bush official Maria Cino officially for RNC chair. But influence from outside the committee’s 168 members is limited. Case in point, Boehner placed a call last week to a Connecticut committeeman on behalf of Cino, and that committeeman came out for someone else instead.

From NBC's Michael Isikoff
A leading gun-rights advocate says there is no constitutional barrier to restricting the sale of high capacity gun magazines such as the one used by accused Tucson shooter Jared Loughner and that such proposals are justified to prevent "looney tunes" from committing more gun massacres.

Robert A. Levy, who served as co-counsel in the landmark Supreme Court case that established a Second Amendment right to bear arms, said there was no reason the court's decision in that case should apply to the purchase of high-capacity gun magazines.

"I don't see any constitutional bar to regulating high-capacity magazines," Levy said in an interview with NBC. "Justice [Antonin] Scalia made it quite clear some regulations are permitted. The Second Amendment is not absolute."

The comments by Levy, chairman of the board of the libertarian Cato Institute, come as Democratic Rep. Carolyn McCarthy of New York is preparing to circulate a bill tomorrow that would ban the sale or transfer of high-capacity magazines. Supporters took Levy's comments as a sign that at least some gun-rights advocates might be open to the idea.

"For somebody like him to say this is significant," said Kristen Rand, legislative director of the Violence Policy Project, a leading gun control group. (Levy was one of the lead lawyers for gun rights in D.C. v. Heller, the 2008 Supreme Court case that overturned Washington D.C.'s ban on handgun ownership and affirmed that the Second Amendment encompassed an individual right to own firearms.)

There is little doubt that any gun-control proposal will face tough sledding in the Congress. A spokesman said today House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is against the idea. One leading gun-rights group, Gun Owners of America, posted a statement on its Web site this week denouncing "liberal politicians flocking like vultures" to gain political advantage from the Tucson tragedy by proposing new gun control measures.

But gun-control groups argue that measures like the one being proposed by McCarthy in the House (and Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), who is sponsoring a similar bill in the Senate) are so modest and reasonable that they could gain traction. Law-enforcement officials have noted that Loughner's high-capacity round magazine substantially increased the lethality of his rampage; he was able to get off at least 31 shots without reloading and was only wrestled to the ground when he tried to reload with another high-capacity magazine.

The manufacture of such magazines were prohibited under the 1994 federal assault weapons ban, but that law lapsed in 2004 and gun experts say the sale of such magazines have since proliferated.

President Obama, during his 2008 campaign, had supported reinstating the assault weapons ban, but soon abandoned the idea as politically impractical after taking office. This week, the White House has declined to respond to requests for comment on whether the president would support a restriction on high-capacity magazines.

Although he is strongly opposed to most gun-control measures, Levy said in this case, "as a policy matter," restricting access to high-capacity magazines such as the 33-round ones used by Loughner makes sense.

"It may stop a few of these looney tunes," Levy said. While saying that he saw it as a "close call, he said that that a restriction of "10 to 15 rounds makes sense."

From NBC's Pete Williams
A Palm Springs, California man was arrested today and charged with making telephone threats last month against Congressman Jim McDermott of Washington state.

Investigators say Charles Habermann left two messages on voice mail at the congressman's Seattle office December 9th, saying he was upset about votes on tax legislation. A transcript shows that he left his name and number and, after a profanity-laced tirade, said, "If he ever f----s around with my money ... I'll ... kill him. I'll kill his family."

In the second voicemail, he says much the same, adding, "I ... will hunt that guy down."

The next day, Habermann admitted making the calls but said he had been drinking before he made them and told the FBI agents who questioned him, "he was trying to scare them before they spent money that didn't belong to them," according to court documents.

The documents also say Habermann was escorted out of the office of a member of the California legislature in March, after he went there to rant about the health care bill. He told California police at the time that he was drunk and under the influence of marijuana. He was warned then not to do it again.

Federal prosecutors say they had been working on the case for several weeks and that their decision to file charges today was not influenced by the shooting in Tucson.

In a statement, McDermott confirmed the threat against him.

"I can confirm that a death threat was made against me and that the FBI, working with the Capitol Police, has arrested the individual responsible for the threat. ... I have full confidence in the law enforcement agencies handling the case and remain focused on serving my constituents," he said.

NBC's Shawna Thomas contributed.

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) and the Conservative Political Action Conference have been targeted by the American Principles Project, specifically Andy Blom, the group’s executive director. Blom is upset over CPAC’s invitation of Daniels to give a keynote speech at the conference honoring Ronald Reagan, because of Daniels’ call for a “truce” on social issues.

Daniels, who describes himself as a “pro-life conservative,” has said it’s a matter of prioritization, which I wrote about yesterday.

Blom chatted briefly in a telephone interview with First Read yesterday afternoon, talking about his misgivings with both CPAC and Daniels.

“We’ve gotten involved because the social conservative movement and social conservative issues are a critical part of the conservative movement,” Blom said.

He added that the invitation of Daniels was a “sign” that the group is “out of line” and “trying to abandon core values. We cannot be a movement without morals and values.”

Blom charged that Daniels shouldn’t be speaking about Reagan, because he’d heard that he didn’t support Reagan for president, that he wanted it to be Richard Lugar (R-IN) instead.

When it was pointed out to him that Daniels worked for Reagan, Blom said he didn’t know that, but that he didn’t feel Daniels was recognizing Reagan’s three-legged stool of conservatism -- fiscal, national security, and social.

(For the record, Daniels eventually became Reagan’s chief political adviser in the White House.)

“The core issue here is there is not a truce on social issues,” Blom said. “The other side does not have a truce. We cannot take this position.”

Responding to Daniels’ point that the economy and long-term debt and deficits should be the top priority, Blom said, “It is certainly true that the economy is a very serious consideration, but that does not allow us to abandon social issues.

“When one side adopts a truce, and the other side doesn’t, that’s called surrender.”

He said he doesn’t yet have a preferred 2012 Republican presidential candidate, but stressed that social issues are key in GOP primaries in Iowa and South Carolina, and that no Republican in the modern era has won the nomination without winning two of those three.

“We have an abundance of candidates who stand not just for very intelligent economic positions,” he said, “but also the complete range of core conservative values. No candidate is going to win the nomination without the social values. … The candidate is going to have to meet the approval of social conservatives.”

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell and Domenico Montanaro
During the first speeches in Congress since the mass shooting in Arizona, gun control, the role of rhetoric, and individual responsibility were brought up.

Members, introducing a resolution honoring Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), largely stuck to honoring the victims. But there were some notable moments of speeches that strayed from that.

California Democrat and veteran Member, Jane Harman, after praising Giffords and recognizing the victims, was the first to bring up gun control.

"Finally, we should revisit sensible federal laws to control access to guns and ammunition," Harman said. "At a minimum I believe we must promptly restore the expired federal ban on extended magazine clips. I personally would urge us also to re-enact the 1994 ban on assault weapons which I was proud to support and bar sales of Saturday night specials."

Indiana Republican Mike Pence, who is considering a presidential run, talked about the political blame game. He and others referred to the suspected shooter as a "single, deranged gunman"

"We must refrain from personal attacks... resist in moments of heartache temptation to assign blame to those we disagree with," Pence said, adding, "No opinion expressed by left or right was to blame for Saturday's attack.... We must resist efforts to suggest otherwise."

That was echoed by Louie Gohmert, a bombastic Texas Republican. "This is no time for assigning blame to anyone but the gunman," he said.

But House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) urged members of Congress to reflect on the role of rhetoric.

"We do not know the specific motive which led the perpetrator of this crime to act," Hoyer said. "Nor can we draw conclusions as to specific causes. But it is a time for us to reflect on the heightened anger being projected in our public debate and the daily denigration of those with whom we disagree. And it is appropriate that the wrenching, shocking, senseless violence of that day compel us all to reflect on our own responsibility to temper our words and respect those with whom we disagree, lest the failure to do so give incitement to the angriest and most unstable among us."

Arizona Republican Ben Quayle, who attracted much attention as a candidate last summer calling Mr. Obama "the worst president in history," gave his first floor speech as a Member of Congress.

"That, Mr. Speaker, peaceful discourse and participation, is a precious part of our society and one of the things that makes our country great," Quayle said, but then added a line that some will see as a subtle defense of the right to hot rhetoric: "We must not allow an act of violence to inhibit the free exchange of thoughts and concerns -- free exchange of thoughts and concerns. The six that lost their lives died because they loved America. They wanted to be involved in the process."

Remember, Quayle's primary saw a lot of hot rhetoric. In addition to his declaration about the president, one of his opponents was Pamela Gorman, who ran a provocative Web ad in which she fires an automatic weapon multiple times.

From NBC's Pete Williams
At a time when some members of Congress are advocating new gun laws and raising questions about the eligibility of the Tucson shooting suspect to buy a gun, it's worth noting that the agency responsible for enforcing federal gun laws has been without a director for more than four years.

Congress changed the law in 2006 to require that directors of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives receive Senate confirmation. Since then, there has been no confirmed director. All have been acting. During the George W. Bush administration, ATF's acting director was a commuter: Michael Sullivan was trying to run the agency, while also serving as the U.S. attorney in Boston.

The Obama White House did not nominate a director, Andrew Traver, until 23 months into the administration. Officials say a major problem was finding someone who would take the job. Several people, who were approached, said they did not want to get caught up in a confirmation process that would be long and tortured, these officials say. Others said even if they could get confirmed, they thought being ATF director would be a career-killer, given that the agency's powers are constantly in danger of being reduced in the face of aggressive lobbying by the National Rifle Association, administration officials say.

Traver, a career agent and chief of the agency's Chicago office, was quickly opposed by the NRA, dooming his prospects for confirmation.

Within minutes of the release of Sarah Palin’s video response to the Tucson shootings, the Web ignited with furious debate about the former Alaska governor’s use of the phrase “blood libel” to describe connections drawn between Arizona shooter Jared Loughner and conservatives who have used guns and violence as metaphors for political activism.

In a nearly eight-minute long message, Palin said that “journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn.”

The intensely controversial nature of the term stems from its origins in hundreds of years of anti-Semitic rhetoric – a detail made no less striking by the fact that Loughner’s target, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, is her state’s first Jewish congresswoman.

According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, the term refers to:

The accusation that Jews murder non-Jews to obtain blood for Passover rituals. This accusation was repeated in many places in the Middle Ages and was the cause of anti-Jewish riots and massacres. It was a regular motif in anti-Semitic propaganda until the Second World War.

The first recorded accusation of Jews murdering Christian children appears to have been in 1144 A.D., when -- according to Thomas of Monmouth, a monk – a English boy’s murder by crucifixion was blamed on Jews in Norwich.

The myth – which became pervasive in medieval times and beyond – evolved into a popular superstition that Jews harvest the blood of Christian children to make Passover matzoh or to use for other ceremonies.

Less than 4 hours after the release of the video, Wikipedia.org's entry on “blood libel” had been updated to note Palin's application of the phrase to the aftermath of the Tucson shootings.

Despite the bright spotlight pointed at Palin’s uttering of the flashpoint expression, hers was not the first usage of the phrase by a conservative in the wake of the Arizona shootings. Several other commentators -- all political conservatives -- invoked “blood libel” in print yesterday.

In an op-ed about the shootings in the Wall Street Journal on January 11, University of Tennessee law professor Glenn Harlan Reynolds asked “Where is the decency in blood libel?” Human Events staff writer John Hayward urged the “Right to fight back” against blame for the attacks in a piece titled “The Giffords Blood Libel Will Fail; The Left rides a horse that is dying beneath them.”

And, on the same day, the editorial page of the Washington Examiner slammed New York Times columnist Paul Krugman for placing “the blood libel of blame for the Tucson murders squarely on the shoulders of the crowds at the McCain-Palin rallies and right-wing extremism."

*** UPDATE *** Several national Jewish organizations have responded to Palin's use of the phrase.

Abe Foxman, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League, said that it was "inappropriate at the outset to blame Sarah Palin and others for causing this tragedy," but added that "we wish that Palin had not invoked the phrase 'blood libel' in reference to the actions of journalists and pundits in placing blame for the shooting in Tucson on others."

"While the term 'blood libel' has become part of the English parlance to refer to someone being falsely accused, we wish that Palin had used another phrase, instead of one so fraught with pain in Jewish history," he said.

And Simon Greer, the president of Jewish Funds for Justice, called Palin's use of the term "totally out-of-line."

"The term “blood libel” is not a synonym for 'false accusation,' he said. "It refers to a specific falsehood perpetuated by Christians about Jews for centuries, a falsehood that motivated a good deal of anti-Jewish violence and discrimination."

From NBC's Pete Williams
All federal judges in Tucson have taken themselves off the case of Jared Loughner.

A brief order filed late Wednesday by Judge Raner Collins, on behalf of the other Tucson federal judges and magistrate judges, said, "[I]n order to avoid the appearance of impropriety, and because a judge has a duty to disqualify him or herself if his or her impartiality could be reasonably questioned, whether or not such impartiality actually exists, this Court must recuse itself."

Judy Clarke, Loughner's defense lawyer, has been notified by a court clerk that if she wants to claim that every federal judge in Arizona should also be disqualified, she must file a motion promptly.

By now, many have already digested and analyzed Sarah Palin's video response to Saturday's shooting in Arizona.

What's particularly striking about Palin's response is how it contrasts with President Obama's view on civility in politics.

There are those who claim political rhetoric is to blame for the despicable act of this deranged, apparently apolitical criminal. And they claim political debate has somehow gotten more heated just recently. But when was it less heated? Back in those ‘calm days’ when political figures literally settled their differences with dueling pistols? In an ideal world all discourse would be civil and all disagreements cordial. But our Founding Fathers knew they weren't designing a system for perfect men and women. If men and women were angels, there would be no need for government. Our Founders' genius was to design a system that helped settle the inevitable conflicts caused by our imperfect passions in civil ways. So, we must condemn violence if our Republic is to endure.

Yet here's Obama's view, articulated in his University of Michigan commencement address last spring:

But we can’t expect to solve our problems if all we do is tear each other down. You can disagree with a certain policy without demonizing the person who espouses it. You can question somebody’s views and their judgment without questioning their motives or their patriotism... Now, we’ve seen this kind of politics in the past. It’s been practiced by both fringes of the ideological spectrum, by the left and the right, since our nation’s birth. But it’s starting to creep into the center of our discourse. And the problem with it is not the hurt feelings or the bruised egos of the public officials who are criticized. Remember, they signed up for it... The problem is that this kind of vilification and over-the-top rhetoric closes the door to the possibility of compromise. It undermines democratic deliberation. It prevents learning -- since, after all, why should we listen to a ‘fascist,’ or a ‘socialist,’ or a ‘right-wing nut,’ or a left-wing nut’?"

What Obama might say tonight, per his past speeches and his predecessors’… Does he talk about civility or save it for his State of the Union?... Obama’s speech in Arizona is at 8:00 pm ET… Palin breaks her silence… Bottom line: In her video on Saturday's tragedy, she expresses sadness but doesn’t apologize for her map or her rhetoric… Contrasting Palin and Obama on civility in American politics… And House to consider resolution honoring Giffords and the other victims.

From NBC's Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** What Obama might say tonight: From his past speeches on tragedy and unprovoked violence, from the guidance we’ve received from the White House, and from the addresses by his predecessors, we have a pretty good idea what President Obama will probably say in tonight’s speech on Saturday’s shooting in Arizona. As he did in his 2009 address at Fort Hood, he will honor the fallen, the injured and the heroes, and will share anecdotes he's heard in his personal calls to the families of victims. “We pay tribute to 13 men and women who were not able to escape the horror of war, even in the comfort of home... So we say goodbye to those who now belong to eternity. We press ahead in pursuit of the peace that guided their service.” He also surely will condemn the violence, as he did at Ft. Hood. “It may be hard to comprehend the twisted logic that led to this tragedy. But this much we do know -- no faith justifies these murderous and craven acts; no just and loving God looks upon them with favor. For what he has done, we know that the killer will be met with justice -- in this world, and the next.”

*** Channeling Clinton? In addition, Obama might draw upon what Bill Clinton said memorializing those killed in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing: to ensure that good overcomes evil. “Let us let our own children know that we will stand against the forces of fear. When there is talk of hatred, let us stand up and talk against it,” Clinton said. “When there is talk of violence, let us stand up and talk against it. In the face of death, let us honor life. As St. Paul admonished us, let us not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” And he might echo Clinton’s call in ’95 for healing. “My fellow Americans, a tree takes a long time to grow, and wounds take a long time to heal. But we must begin. Those who are lost now belong to God. Some day we will be with them. But until that happens, their legacy must be our lives.”

*** What about civility? But will Obama discuss the current state of American political discourse (before and after Saturday’s violence)? That’s the big question we have heading into tonight’s speech. If he does, he might draw upon words he uttered in his University of Michigan commencement address last spring. “These arguments we’re having over government and health care and war and taxes -- these are serious arguments. They should arouse people’s passions... But we can’t expect to solve our problems if all we do is tear each other down. You can disagree with a certain policy without demonizing the person who espouses it. You can question somebody’s views and their judgment without questioning their motives or their patriotism." More: “The problem is that this kind of vilification and over-the-top rhetoric closes the door to the possibility of compromise. It undermines democratic deliberation. It prevents learning –- since, after all, why should we listen to a ‘fascist,’ or a ‘socialist,’ or a ‘right-wing nut,’ or a ‘left-wing nut’?” It’s also possible that Obama saves his “civility” talk for his State of the Union address on Jan. 25. Remember, he gets two bites at this apple in two VERY big speeches.

*** The skinny on the speech: Obama will deliver his speech at 8:00 pm ET at a memorial service at the University of Arizona entitled, “Together We Thrive: Tucson and America.” Others attending the event include First Lady Michelle Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder, Homeland Secretary Janet Napolitano, and Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy.

*** Palin breaks her silence: After calls by both supporters and opponents to break her silence after the shooting in Arizona, Sarah Palin has released a nearly eight-minute-long video. Bottom line: She expresses sadness about the events on Saturday, but doesn’t apologize for her target/bullseye map or her “don’t retreat, instead reload” rhetoric. “Like millions of Americans I learned of the tragic events in Arizona on Saturday, and my heart broke for the innocent victims,” Palin says. “No words can fill the hole left by the death of an innocent, but we do mourn for the victims' families as we express our sympathy.” Palin adds, “Acts of monstrous criminality stand on their own. They begin and end with the criminals who commit them, not collectively with all the citizens of a state, not with those who listen to talk radio, not with maps of swing districts used by both sides of the aisle.”

*** Contrasting Obama and Palin on civility: What's fascinating about this Palin video is how she and Obama have completely different worldviews on the issue of political discourse. Here’s Palin: “There are those who claim political rhetoric is to blame for the despicable act of this deranged, apparently apolitical criminal. And they claim political debate has somehow gotten more heated just recently. But when was it less heated? Back in those ‘calm days’ when political figures literally settled their differences with dueling pistols? In an ideal world all discourse would be civil and all disagreements cordial. But our Founding Fathers knew they weren't designing a system for perfect men and women. If men and women were angels, there would be no need for government. Our Founders' genius was to design a system that helped settle the inevitable conflicts caused by our imperfect passions in civil ways. So, we must condemn violence if our Republic is to endure.”

*** And here was Obama at the University of Michigan: "But we can’t expect to solve our problems if all we do is tear each other down. You can disagree with a certain policy without demonizing the person who espouses it. You can question somebody’s views and their judgment without questioning their motives or their patriotism… Now, we’ve seen this kind of politics in the past. It’s been practiced by both fringes of the ideological spectrum, by the left and the right, since our nation’s birth. But it’s starting to creep into the center of our discourse. And the problem with it is not the hurt feelings or the bruised egos of the public officials who are criticized. Remember, they signed up for it. … The problem is that this kind of vilification and over-the-top rhetoric closes the door to the possibility of compromise. It undermines democratic deliberation. It prevents learning -- since, after all, why should we listen to a ‘fascist,’ or a ‘socialist,’ or a ‘right-wing nut,’ or a left-wing nut’?"

*** Palin's timing: By releasing this video a full 15 hours before tonight's memorial service -- and thanks to the relatively slow day in the political world before tonight -- her video will get plenty of attention. And whether she meant to or not, there will likely be a stark contrast drawn between her words and what the president says tonight. And that leads us to a few questions for folks to ponder: Should she have released this via Web video? Why not do this via interview? Should she have released this video BEFORE today's memorial service or waited until tomorrow? Is it fair to use this video to judge her ability to be presidential at a time of crisis or national tragedy? If so, was this a presidential-caliber speech? There's been a lot of finger-pointing by the very loud base voices on both sides of the political spectrum, most of it playing out on the internet/Twitter/prime-time cable. This video is only going to serve to feed that beast.

*** Tick-tock on today’s House resolution: In yet another example of how American politics can change in the blink of an eye, today was supposed to be the day that the House voted to repeal the health-care law. Instead, it’s taking up a resolution honoring Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D) and the other victims in Saturday’s shooting, NBC’s Luke Russert and Shawna Thomas report. The House convenes at 10:00 am ET, and Speaker Boehner will call up the resolution 10 minutes later. Then Boehner -- followed by House Minority Leader Pelosi, House Majority Leader Cantor, and House Minority Whip Hoyer -- will speak, and then so will rank-and-file members. Between 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm, there will be a recess for a bipartisan prayer service. And after that, members will come back to the House floor to finish remarks. Once everyone speaks (who wants to), the House will vote on the resolution.

*** Programming note: “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” tonight will interview veteran journalist Bob Woodruff to share his experience of suffering an injury to the brain. On Thursday, O’Donnell will interview Tom DeLay, the former GOP congressional leader who was just sentenced to three years in prison.

Countdown to the RNC chair election: 2 days
Countdown Chicago’s mayoral election: 41 days
Countdown to Election Day 2011: 300 days
Countdown to the Iowa caucuses: 390 days
* Note: When the IA caucuses take place depends on whether other states move up

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“President Obama will focus his speech at a memorial service in Tucson on Wednesday evening on the victims of the attack and on the idea of service to the country, avoiding any overt commentary on the debate over violence and the nation’s political culture,” the New York Times says. “Instead, Mr. Obama, who was still working with his speechwriters on his remarks on Tuesday, will call for unity among Americans, while trying to honor the victims, including their service to government, as an example to all Americans. He will share the anecdotes about the victims that he has learned during private phone calls to the families, aides said.

The Washington Post: “The president is expected to focus on the victims and what he has learned about them from family members over the past few days, White House officials said. The president will also pay special tribute to Giffords, who doctors said Tuesday was showing signs of improvement.”

Um, isn’t this a lot to ask for in a speech? Roll Call has this lead: “President Barack Obama will do more than try to heal the nation with his speech in Tucson, Ariz., tonight: He'll try to recast his presidency and regain the trust of Americans who have lost faith in him over the past two years.” And there are a host of Democrats setting the bar. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) saying he needs to be more “visceral” and less “cerebral” and that he “needs to give us a Bill Clinton moment.” Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz said, "He needs to not miss this opportunity” and that “he needs to use the moment as a turning point." Another Dem (blind quote): “To some degree, this is his 'standing on the rubble at ground zero' moment."

The Hill: “The address could be a key moment in Obama’s presidency, as the nation stops to hear what the president has to say about a shooting that has shaken Capitol Hill and raised questions about the heated rhetoric of today’s politics and the security provided for members of Congress.”

“The president of the US Chamber of Commerce straddled the Democratic and Republican divide yesterday, endorsing the GOP drive to repeal President Obama’s signature health care law, yet supporting the White House on immigration and new spending to spur the economy,” the AP says. And there was this quote: “When it comes to the nation’s economy, we begin 2011 in better shape than we found ourselves last year,” Chamber President Tom Donohue said. “The state of American business is improving.”

“Justice Elena Kagan, hailed last year by President Obama as a defender of ‘ordinary citizens,’ sided with a Bank of America Corp. unit against an indebted consumer in her first US Supreme Court ruling,” per the AP. Ironically, Justice Scalia, usually pro-business, was the lone dissenter arguing the other justices had misread the bankruptcy law.

Roll Call notes that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) and Tea Party Express sent out fundraising e-mails off of the shooting in Arizona. In part, Sanders wrote, “In light of all of this violence ­­— both actual and threatened — is Arizona a state in which people who are not Republicans are able to participate freely and fully in the democratic process?” And: “On Monday, the Tea Party Express began a fundraising effort to ask supporters to help it fight ‘liberals’ who are attempting to link their movement to the events in Arizona. Tuesday, it followed that up with a new appeal to ‘stand with Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh + Tea Party.’ Tea Party Express officials asked supporters to give as little as $5 to ‘fight back.’ ‘We want to have our largest fundraising day in the history of our organization and we need your help to achieve this success,’ they wrote.”

Sanders spokesman’s response to First Read: “This was an e-mail letter that the senator’s campaign sends out, and will continue to send out, to supporters in Vermont and around the country on a regular basis. This quite long newsletter gives the senator’s views on the major issues facing our country. Most of the space in this newsletter dealt with the senator’s views on the economic implications of what will be happening in the new Congress. Given the enormity of the tragedy in Arizona, however, it would have been absurd not to comment on what happened there.

And so much for staying away from apocalyptic rhetoric: Tea Party Nation sent out an e-mail criticizing Rep. Pete King (R-NY) for wanting to outlaw guns within 1,000 feet of elected officials calling him, the “Republican Idiot of the Day.” From the e-mail: “As we say in the South, Congressman Peter King (R-NY) is a few fries shy of a Happy Meal. Idiocy by members of Congress is nothing new. This idiocy threatens not only our Constitutional rights but our very liberty.”

Boehner’s spokesman said the speaker would not support King’s bill. Eric Cantor’s spokesman, however, said it is important to read the bill before forming an opinion.

The death of the energy lobbyist, former Hill staffer and wife of a White House aide is still being investigated. “Although homicide detectives were called to the scene, a Metropolitan Police Department news release on Monday said a low-speed crash probably caused the fire,” Roll Call writes. “It’s quite possible that the victim was maneuvering the car and came in contact with some kind of flammable chemical materials,” D.C. Fire Department spokesman Pete Piringer told Roll Call on Monday.

Roll Call says get used to seeing New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte in the spotlight. She’s a woman, a quarter-century younger than the GOP leadership, and the only one born North of Kentucky.

The Washington Post front-pages, "Three days after their son allegedly killed six people and left a congresswoman critically wounded, Jared Lee Loughner's parents issued their first public comments Tuesday night, saying that they, too, cannot comprehend what had motivated the shootings. 'There are no words that can possibly express how we feel. We wish that there were, so we could make you feel better. We don't understand why this happened,' said their statement, signed "the Loughner family." The parents made no mention of their son."

The New York Times: “The account by Mr. Loughner’s friend, a rare extended interview with someone close to Mr. Loughner in recent years, added some details to the emerging portrait of the suspect and his family. ‘He was a nihilist and loves causing chaos, and that is probably why he did the shooting, along with the fact he was sick in the head,’ said Zane Gutierrez, 21, who was living in a trailer outside Tucson and met Mr. Loughner sometimes to shoot at cans for target practice.”

“New Hampshire “voted last week to overturn a ban on weapons in the State House and permit concealed weapons on the House floor and in the visitors’ gallery,” the Boston Globe reports, adding, “In the aftermath of a shooting rampage in Arizona over the weekend that left a congresswoman in critical condition and six others dead, they have taken on a grim practicality for some lawmakers who say threats of violence have become a fact of elected office. Republicans said the shootings underscored the need for self-protection.”

More: “New Hampshire is now one of seven states that allow weapons in a capitol, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The vote to permit guns in the State House follows a sweep of office in November that left Republicans holding majorities in both houses of the Legislature. Only the governorship remains in Democratic control.”

The Boston Globe’s editorial page says extended ammo clips should be outlawed, as they were prior to 2004. “Under the Second Amendment, Americans are entitled to own firearms,” it writes. “But that does not answer the separate question of whether certain types of weapons are too dangerous for purposes other than the military or law enforcement. With its extended clip, Loughner’s weapon fell in this category.”

Gun sales of the weapon Jared Lee Loughner used doubled, according to one gun store owner in Arizona.

“Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R) are among a handful of Republicans set to address House GOP lawmakers at their annual retreat this weekend,” The Hill reports.

CHRISTIE: “New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie laid the foundation for the coming year on Tuesday, outlining his proposals for eliminating teacher tenure, stabilizing the public pension system by making public employees work longer and pay more for health benefits and continuing to say no to expensive new projects like a rail tunnel into Manhattan that he scrapped,” Bloomberg writes.

DANIELS: The Indiana governor “used about half of his 30-minute State of the State speech to promote his education proposals, saying he believed there was no time for delay,” the Columbus Republic writes of Daniels’ speech last night.

PALIN: She finally put out a lengthier statement on the Arizona shootings -- in a video. She said, in part: “I listened at first puzzled, then with concern, and now with sadness, to the irresponsible statements from people attempting to apportion blame for this terrible event.” She added, “Acts of monstrous criminality stand on their own. They begin and end with the criminals who commit them, not collectively with all the citizens of a state, not with those who listen to talk radio, not with maps of swing districts used by both sides of the aisle, not with law-abiding citizens who respectfully exercise their First Amendment rights at campaign rallies, not with those who proudly voted in the last election.” http://vimeo.com/18698532

Then she goes on to accuse the media of “blood libel:” “[E]specially within hours of a tragedy unfolding, journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn. That is reprehensible.”

More: “There are those who claim political rhetoric is to blame for the despicable act of this deranged, apparently apolitical criminal. And they claim political debate has somehow gotten more heated just recently. But when was it less heated? Back in those ‘calm days’ when political figures literally settled their differences with dueling pistols? … [W]e must condemn violence if our Republic is to endure. … [W]e will not be stopped from celebrating the greatness of our country and our foundational freedoms by those who mock its greatness by being intolerant of differing opinion and seeking to muzzle dissent with shrill cries of imagined insults.”

PAWLENTY: “Wearing a gray suit and black cowboy boots -- like a regular guy running for president -- former Gov. Tim Pawlenty rode the freight elevator on Tuesday to ‘Good Morning America's’ second-floor studio,” the Star Tribune wrote of Pawlenty’s New York media blitz. "’I'm not going to be cute about it. I'm seriously considering running for president,’ Pawlenty said as he walked down 44th Street between appointments with Fox News' Sean Hannity, the New York Times, ‘The Daily Show’ with Jon Stewart, Neil Cavuto, ‘Good Morning America,’ CNN and ‘The View’ (where he playfully anointed Whoopi Goldberg as his running mate).”

“Asked whether he is too nice to run for president (a sentiment Minnesota Democrats might scoff at), Pawlenty said there is nothing wrong with being civil, invoking Ronald Reagan,” the Pioneer Press writes. “‘People shouldn't confuse being nice or thoughtful or civil with being strong,’ Pawlenty said during his interview on The View.

SANTORUM: Rick Santorum's in New Hampshire.

IOWA: “Three Republicans openly mulling presidential runs will visit the Hawkeye State later this month -- U.S. Rep Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty,” the Iowa Independent writes. Bachmann will speak at an Iowans for Tax Relief event on Jan. 21, Gingrich at the Iowa Renewable Fuel Association’s annual summit on Jan. 25, and Pawlenty while on his book tour, on Jan. 30 and 31.

MASSACHUSETTS: Vicky Kennedy, Ted Kennedy’s widow, says she will not run for the U.S. Senate in 2012 against Scott Brown (R). “There’s no elective office for me,” Kennedy told the Boston Globe’s Scott Lehigh. “There will not be a yes. The Senate is not where I see my future. I can’t imagine running for elective office without Teddy at my side, and that really is what it all comes down to. I hope people respect that.” She added that her husband suggested she run, however. “We had more than one discussion about it,” she said, before amending her comment slightly. “Discussion is probably too long of a word. He raised it with me a few times, before he got sick and after he got sick, and every time I said, ‘You’re Senator Kennedy, and that’s it.’”