Republicans drew some political blood Thursday from the Obama administration Thursday when the embattled head of a loan program at the Department of Energy that oversaw a loan to Solyndra stepped down from that position.

Jonathan Silver, the executive director of the Energy Department's Loan Programs Office, stepped down from that position amid scrutiny from congressional Republicans over loans granted to the now-bankrupt energy firm Solyndra. Energy Secretary Steve Chu told the Post that the departure had been planned.

"In early July, shortly after the fiscal year 2011 budget was completed by Congress and it became clear that no significant new funds were included for the loan program, Jonathan Silver informed me that he intended to return to the private sector shortly after September 30, the statutory end-date of the 1705 loan guarantee program," Chu said, adding that he had "absolute confidence" in Silver.

The loan program started under President George W. Bush's administration, but was expanded during President Obama's first few years in office. During Obama's tenure, he has made investment in green jobs a major political priority. Republicans are suspicious that the administration eased requirements for the company, despite its financial difficulties, in order to avoid embarrassment about the program.

"we knew from the start that the loan guarantee program was going to entail some risk, by definition.  If it was a risk-free proposition, then we wouldn’t have to worry about it," Obama said of the program at his news conference Thursday.

"There were going to be some companies that did not work out; Solyndra was one of them.  But the process by which the decision was made was on the merits.  It was straightforward.  And of course there were going to be debates internally when you’re dealing with something as complicated as this," Obama added. "But I have confidence that the decisions were made based on what would be good for the American economy and the American people and putting people back to work."

Republicans have sent no signal, though, that they itend to relent in their pursuit of the Solyndra investigation. Michigan Rep. Fred Upton, who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, wrote the White House Thursday requesting all communications by staff members regarding the Solyndra loan.

In 2010, we learned from Martha Coakley that a candidate for statewide office in Massachusetts can't swing and miss on knowing their Boston Red Sox.

But there's another rule in American politics: tread carefully when you're (likely) running against a female candidate.

In an interview on WZLX radio this morning, Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown (R) was asked about Elizabeth Warren's (D) answer to a debate question about how she paid for law school (when Brown paid for it, in part, by posing nude).

"I kept my clothes on" was Warren's retort at the Democratic debate.

And here was Brown's reply in his radio interview: "Thank God." That response produced laughs from Brown and the radio hosts. (The audio is here.)

(Hat tip: Greg Sargent.)

MANCHESTER, N.H. and CHARLESTON, S.C. -- The move by the Nevada GOP to hold its presidential nominating contest on Jan. 14 is thought to benefit Mitt Romney, who won the caucuses in 2008 and who has a base of support there, especially with the large number of Mormons who voted. 

The Las Vegas Review Journal reported this nugget: “Mitt Romney's campaign had pressed Nevada Republicans to move the caucuses into January so that he could maintain momentum coming out of New Hampshire, a state he expects to win.”

The sparked an attack today from rival Jon Huntsman’s campaign.

"It's unfortunate that the Romney campaign is trying to game the system for their own benefit and at the detriment of Granite Staters," senior Huntsman advisor Paul Collins said in a statement to NBC News. "Their move could harm the future of holding the first in the nation primary in New Hampshire. Granite Staters are looking for a chance to meet an alternative candidate who better represents their ideals and is truly authentic."

The Romney campaign had no comment on the specific charges. And Las Vegas Sun columnist and TV show host Jon Ralston reported on Twitter that the Romney campaign did not, in fact, push for the earlier date.

Huntsman is a fellow Mormon and who, unlike Romney, was governor of Utah, a state bordering Nevada. But despite that, Romney remains the most popular politician in Utah, according to polls.

Newt Gingrich today, however, said he didn’t begrudge the Romney campaign even if it did push for the earlier date.

“I assume the Romney forces are doing everything they can to help their candidate,” Gingrich said. “You’ve got to have a competitive system, you have to expect that everybody tries to do the best they can.”

He also added that the Nevada move was not so unusual as to arouse extra suspicion. Nevada was already an RNC-sanctioned “carve-out” state.

“If Perry got Texas to come in and be the first state for the primary that would probably be a different thing,” Gingrich said, referring to Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Gingrich made the comments after meeting privately with cadets and professors at the Citadel military college, even though the event was billed as open to the media, according to an advisory email sent by the campaign last night.

The advisory, which alerts members of the press to candidates’ events, stated, "Newt Gingrich will discuss his newly unveiled 21st Century Contract with America at 1:15 pm on Thursday at Mark Clark Hall on the campus of the Citadel in Charleston, S.C.”

Gingrich also dismissed President Obama’s press conference today in which Obama pushed for passage of his jobs bill, deriding it as “the same old baloney.”

“Nothing that he said in today’s press conference gives me any sense that he’s learned anything,” he added.

*** UPDATE *** The Romney campaign has the following response, from spokesman Ryan Williams:

"Governor Romney is firmly committed to preserving New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary and the critical role it plays in selecting our Republican nominee. Mitt is running a town-to-town, person-to-person campaign in town halls across the state that honors New Hampshire’s important political traditions.

“Governor Romney is also competing in every other nominating contest across the country -- whenever they are scheduled. It is up to each state to determine the date of their primary or caucus, and Gov. Romney has consistently supported Nevada’s status as an early nominating contest that follows New Hampshire.”

Republican presidential politics made a surprising and unexpected appearance in the House Chamber Thursday, when a Democratic congressman sought to force a vote on a resolution condemning Texas Gov. Rick Perry for having a rock on his hunting ranch that contained a racial epithet.

The House voted to set aside a privileged resolution aimed at condemning the stone on Perry's ranch offered earlier in the day by an impassioned Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL).

Earlier in the day, Jackson read his resolution on the floor. It called on the House to:

“Condemn Texas Governor Rick Perry for using a secluded West Texas hunting camp as a place to host lawmakers, friends and supporters on hunting trips at a place known by the name painted in block letters across a large, flat rock standing upright at its gated entrance called 'N*****head.'"

The resolution came in reaction to a Washington Post report on Sunday that a hunting ranch leased by Perry and his family had, for some time, contained a stone displaying the racially-charged name of the grounds. Perry's campaign has insisted in response that the word on the stone had been painted over in the early 1980s.

While most resolutions like Jackson's are filed away to be dealt with at a later date, Jackson Jr. returned to the House floor around 1:45 p.m. to demand that his resolution be given a vote. The House chair, which is controlled by the ruling GOP, sought to table the resolution, which, in effect, would kill it and therefore not force members to have to take a vote.

In a stern a serious voice, Jackson Jr. refused to recant saying, “Mr. Speaker, N***** is offensive. 'N*****head' is offensive. And for a governor of one of the great states of our nation to hunt at 'N*****head' camp, it's offensive, and I think that I'm expressing the moral outrage of all Americans.”

Jackson them demanded a recorded vote on Republicans' move to table -- or set aside -- his measure; he sought, by doing that, to put fellow lawmakers on the record with a vote on the resolution.

The House voted to defeat Jackson's resolution, 231-173, in a largely strict party-lines vote. Just one Democrat, Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar, sided with Republicans in voting against bringing the measure to the floor.

A Democratic aide told NBC News that Jackson Jr., a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, spoke for many of the chamber’s Democratic members who had taken great offense that Perry allowed an insensitive word to appear on his property.

CHARLESTON, SC -- In advance of speech on defense and foreign policy that he will deliver on Friday, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney today released a list of the advisers who have shaped -- and will continue to guide -- his thinking on these issues.

On Romney’s list were bold-faced names who served in the Bush administration like former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and former CIA Director Michael Hayden, as well as Cofer Black, who once served as the vice chairman of the controversial private-security firm Blackwater.

“I am deeply honored to have the counsel of this extraordinary group of diplomats, experts, and statesmen,” Romney said in a statement announcing these advisers. Their remarkable experience, wisdom, and depth of knowledge will be critical to ensuring that the 21st century is another American Century.”

Chertoff, who is also advising Romney on judicial issues, was tapped by President George W. Bush to be the nation's second Homeland Security secretary. In that role, he was the target of a substantial amount of criticism for the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina. Prior to that job, Chertoff served as a federal appeals court judge and federal prosecutor.

Hayden, who along with Chertoff will co-chair Romney's working group on counter-terrorism and intelligence, also has a distinguished (but also controversial) background in national security. As director of the National Security Agency -- and then later the CIA -- he was embroiled in the debate over warranttless wiretapping following 9/11, which he later argued before Congress was a legal and necessary step to protect the United States against further terrorist strikes.

Black, another former member of the CIA, is listed as one of Romney's special advisers. He left government service in 2004 after a long CIA career and two years as the  State Department coordinator for counter-terrorism issues, and then became a vice chairman for the private security firm Blackwater -- a position is not mentioned in the short biography provided by the Romney campaign.

Romney’s team also includes some prominent voices in the neo-conservative movement, such as Brookings fellow and syndicated columnist Robert Kagan, and it lists former Iraq Coalition Provisional Authority spokesman Dan Senor.

Other members of Romney's team have been in the news lately for their continuing roles in global affairs. Special adviser Robert Joseph was one of the principal negotiators behind Libya's decision to give up their WMD earlier this decade, and has been interviewed in March by the New York Times on the ongoing conflict there. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/world/middleeast/02arms.html

A final observation: While on the campaign trail, Romney occasionally criticizes President Obama's thinking on foreign policy as being guided by too much time in the "Harvard Faculty lounge,” more than a third of the advisers listed today have Harvard connections -- either earning degrees at the school or serving as faculty there.

The full list:
SPECIAL ADVISERS
Cofer Black
Vice President of Blackbird Technologies; Director of the CIA Counter-Terrorism Center (1999-2002); United States Department of State Coordinator for Counter-Terrorism (2002-2004)

Christopher Burnham
Vice Chairman of Deutsche Bank Asset Management; United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Management (2005-2006); United States Under Secretary of State for Management (2001-2005)

Michael Chertoff
Chairman of the Chertoff Group; United States Secretary of Homeland Security (2005-2009); Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (2003-2005)

Eliot Cohen
Director of the Strategic Studies Program at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University; Counselor to the United States Department of State (2007-2009); Defense Policy Advisory Board Member (2001-2009)

Norm Coleman
Chairman of the Board, American Action Network; Adviser to the Republican Jewish Coalition; United States Senator (R-MN) (2003-2009)

John Danilovich
Member of the Trilantic European Advisory Council; CEO of Millennium Challenge Corporation (2005-2009); Ambassador to Brazil (2004-2005); Ambassador to Costa Rica (2001-2004)

Paula Dobriansky
Senior Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs (2001-2009)

Eric Edelman
Visiting Scholar at School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University; Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (2005-2009); Principal Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs (2001-2003)

Michael Hayden
Principal of the Chertoff Group; Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2006-2009); Director of the National Security Agency (1999-2005)

Kerry Healey
President, Friends of the Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan; Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts (2003-2007); Trustee, American University of Afghanistan

Kim Holmes
Vice President of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation; Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (2001-2005)

Robert Joseph           
Senior Scholar at the National Institute for Public Policy; Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security (2005-2007)

Robert Kagan
Syndicated Columnist; Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution in the Center on United States and Europe; Board Member of the Foreign Policy Initiative

John Lehman
Chairman and Founding Partner, J. F. Lehman & Co.; National Security Advisory Counsel for the Center for Security Policy; Secretary of the Navy (1981-1987); Member of the 9/11 Commission

Walid Phares
Professor of Global Strategies at the National Defense University in Washington; Member of the Advisory Board of the Task Force on Future Terrorism at the Department of Homeland Security (2006-2007)

Pierre Prosper
Partner at Arent Fox; United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues (2001-2005); Special Counsel and Policy Adviser to the Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues (1999-2001)

Mitchell Reiss
President of Washington College; Director of Policy Planning at State Department (2001-2005); Special Envoy for Northern Ireland (2005-2007)

Daniel Senor
Partner at Rosemont Capital; Coalition Provisional Authority Spokesman and Senior Advisor (2003-2004); Director and Co-Founder, Foreign Policy Initiative

Jim Talent
Distinguished Fellow at the Heritage Foundation; United States Senator (R-MO) (2002-2007)

Vin Weber
Managing Partner, Clark & Weinstock; Member of the United States House of Representatives (R-MN) (1981-1993)

Richard Williamson
Partner at Winston & Strawn; United States Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (2004); Special Envoy to Sudan (2008-2009); Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (1988-1989)

Dov Zakheim
Senior Advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) (2001-2004); Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Planning and Resources (1985-1987)

WORKING GROUP CHAIRS AND CO-CHAIRS
Afghanistan & Pakistan
James Shinn, Co-Chair
Lecturer at Princeton University; Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs (2007-2008)

Ashley Tellis, Co-Chair
Senior Associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; Senior Adviser to the Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs (2003)

Africa
Tibor Nagy, Chair
Vice Provost for International Affairs at Texas Tech University; Ambassador to Ethiopia (1999-2002); Ambassador to Guinea (1996-1999)

Asia-Pacific
Evan Feigenbaum, Co-Chair
Executive Director of the Paulson Institute; Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia (2006-2009); Member for East Asia, Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff (2001-2006)

Aaron Friedberg, Co-Chair
Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University; Deputy Assistant for National Security Affairs and Director of Policy Planning, Office of the Vice President (2003-2005)

Kent Lucken, Co-Chair
Director at Citigroup Private Bank in Boston; Former Foreign Service Officer; Board Member for the US-Asia Institute

Counter-Proliferation
Eric Edelman, Co-Chair
Visiting Scholar at School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University; Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (2005-2009); Principal Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs (2001-2003)

Robert Joseph, Co-Chair
Senior Scholar at the National Institute for Public Policy; Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security (2005-2007)

Stephen Rademaker, Co-Chair
Principal at Podesta Group; Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation (2002-2006); Policy Director for National Security Affairs and Senior Counsel to Senator Bill Frist (2006-2007)

Counterterrorism & Intelligence
Michael Chertoff, Co-Chair
Chairman of the Chertoff Group; Secretary of Homeland Security (2005-2009); Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (2003-2005)

Michael Hayden, Co-Chair
Principal of the Chertoff Group; Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2006-2009); Director of the National Security Agency (1999-2005)

Defense
John Lehman, Co-Chair
Chairman and Founding Partner, J.F. Lehman & Co.; National Security Advisory Council for the Center for Security Policy; Secretary of the Navy (1981-1987); Member of the 9/11 Commission

Roger Zakheim, Co-Chair
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (2008-2009)

Europe
Nile Gardiner, Co-Chair
Director of the Heritage Foundation's Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom; Foreign Policy Researcher for British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (2000-2002)

Kristen Silverberg, Co-Chair
Chief Operating Officer at Vorbeck Materials; Ambassador to the European Union (2008-2009); Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (2005-2008)

Human Rights
Pierre Prosper, Chair
Partner at Arent Fox; United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues (2001-2005); Special Counsel and Policy Adviser to the Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues (1999-2001)

International Assistance
Grant Aldonas, Co-Chair
Senior Adviser at Center for Strategic and International Studies; Under Secretary for International Trade at the Commerce Department (2001-2005); Member of the Board of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (2001-2005)

Daniel Runde, Co-Chair
Director of Prosperity and Development at Center for Strategic and International Studies; Former Director of the Office of Global Development Alliances at USAID (2005-2007); Head of Philanthropy Relations at the International Finance Corporation (2007-2010)

International Organizations
Christopher Burnham, Co-Chair
Vice Chairman Deutsche Bank Asset Management; United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Management (2005-2006); United States Under Secretary of State for Management (2001-2005)

Paula Dobriansky, Co-Chair
Senior Fellow at the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government; Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs (2001-2009)

Robert O’Brien, Co-Chair
Partner at Arent Fox; US Alternate Representative to the 60th session of the United Nations General Assembly (2005-2006); Former legal officer with the United Nations Security Council (Compensation Commission) (2006-2008)

Latin America
Clifford Sobel, Co-Chair
Ambassador to Brazil (2006-2009); Ambassador to the Netherlands (2001-2005); Member United States Holocaust Memorial Council (1994-1998)

Ray Walser, Co-Chair
Senior Policy Analyst at the Heritage Foundation; Director of the Foreign Service Institute's Western Hemisphere Area Studies program (2005-2007); 27-year Foreign Service Officer

Middle East & North Africa
Mary Beth Long, Co-Chair
Senior Vice President at Neural IQ Government Services; Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs (2007-2009)

Meghan O’Sullivan, Co-Chair
Lecturer at Kennedy School of Government; Special Assistant to President George W. Bush and Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan (2004-2007)

Walid Phares, Co-Chair
Professor of Global Strategies at the National Defense University in Washington; Member of the Advisory Board of the Task Force on Future Terrorism at the Department of Homeland Security (2006-2007)

Russia
Leon Aron, Co-Chair
Resident Scholar and Director of Russian Studies at the American Enterprise Institute; Author of Yeltsin: A Revolutionary Life and other noted works; Contributed to The New Russian Foreign Policy

William Martel, Co-Chair       
Associate Professor of International Security Studies at the Fletcher School, Tufts University      

Iowa's Republican Party chairman wouldn't rule out a possible December date for his state's caucuses, but indicated he would prefer to set a date for the contest in early January in reaction to Nevada's decision to schedule its nominating contest on Jan. 14.

Iowa GOP Chairman Matt Strawn and New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner, who's set the date of the New Hampshire primary since 1976, are considering Thursday how to react to Nevada's decision, a result of the cascade of earlier-than-planned primaries set in motion by Florida's decision to ignore Republican National Committee (RNC) rules and schedule its primary for Jan. 31, could threaten to push Iowa's contest into January.

Last night, Nevada's GOP jumped ahead of the pack and set their caucus for Jan. 14, but the remainder of the presidential primary calendar may not be cemented for another two weeks.

Strawn, asked whether he could rule out a December primary on MSNBC's Daily Rundown, replied: "Not today, because I'm still having those conversations, but I certainly think that having a January start would serve the voters well and the candidates well."

The original calendar set by the RNC called for the four traditional primary states -- Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina -- to hold their contests, in that order, starting in early February. But Florida's move to try and leapfrog those states prompted the group of four to move up the dates of their respective primaries in order to maintain the traditional order of the primary process. South Carolina scheduled its primary for Jan. 21.

"I am not setting the primary date today and I'm not setting it tomorrow. There's no need for me to do it now," New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner said Thursday first to NBC News, adding that he's unlikely to set a date until after the Oct. 17 deadline. "There's no need for me to do it at this point. I don't feel I know enough about potential dates in other states at this point, and I don't want to rush to set the date."

This early primary calendar could benefit Mitt Romney, who leads the GOP field in New Hampshire state polls by 30 points. In reaction to Nevada and an earlier New Hampshire date, Romney's spokesman Ryan Williams told NBC News: "Governor Romney is running a national campaign and is prepared to compete in every state. He believes that New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary should be preserved, and he looks forward to competing in every other nominating contest - whenever they are scheduled."

Strawn said on MSNBC that he wouldn't necessarily wait for Gardner to make his decision before Iowa schedules its own primary.

"What I'm hearing from Iowa Republicans last night and this morning is that we may have to go ahead and set a date very soon," Strawn said. "Iowa cannot necessarily wait now for New Hampshire to set a date."

NBC's Jo Ling Kent reported from Concord, N.H.

GOP aides say the Senate will vote today on the president's jobs bill -- the original one that does not include the millionaire surtax and includes the "pay-fors" originally proposed by the White House.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) agreed to let Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) insert an amendment to the China currency bill.

This does not impact plans for the Senate to take up the amended bill next week with the millionaire's surtax. That goes forward.

*** UPDATE *** According to Senate Democrats, Republicans will not get their vote on the president's jobs bill as Reid had earlier indicated.

Reid had said on the floor that he was giving McConnell the option to hold the vote as an amendment to the China currency bill, but Democrats say that will not happen now.

McConnell could still do a procedural vote to try to call up the president's jobs bill - but that's not expected to pass.

MARK MURRAY: Domenico, we have a question from Frank “Grimey” Grimes, one of our--from the great place in Springfield, USA. Grimey’s question: "The GOP Primary field appears to be set with Gov. Christie’s announcement that he won’t be running. How do you see the race playing out as the calendar goes on?"

DOMENICO MONTANARO: Well, I think our field is pretty much set. The one last person people may be looking at may be Sarah Palin, but, you know I think the ship is kind of started to move past her. You know, Herman Cain has gotten a little bit of a surge in the past-- maybe two weeks as Rick Perry’s numbers have sort of come down a bit, and we’ve seen Mitt Romney sort of level. Twenty-three, twenty-five percent, really not much higher or lower than that in a lot of polling, which indicates that-- that Herman Cain vote right now is really an ideological vote, right? So, everybody who was with Perry is sort of shifting to Cain and there’s a lot of people who are going to have to finally say that THIS is our field, THIS who I’m going to go with. I think eventually, after this Cain boomlet sort of dies itself -- I just have a hard time seeing Herman Cain being a legitimate candidate when he’s taking a month off essentially. He’s doing a book tour, taking him to some early states, but he’s not going to be in Iowa until like mid-November. You know, that’s not something a serious candidate would do, especially given that’s a place that he could do pretty well. Maybe not capitalizing on the opportunities. The thing is, it looks like it’ll come down again to a Romney-Perry race.  So, as much as people, some people want to count out Rick Perry, as we’ve written in First Read, you know, you can’t count the guy out. There are a myriad of reasons for this. But, what it looks like is, we COULD, could be headed to a longer, another lengthy primary campaign.

MARK MURRAY: I agree on your analysis on Rick Perry versus Mitt Romney. And there are a couple of ways it could shake out. One, you end up having the establishment start types coalescing about Mitt Romney, that Romney in a way just kind of momentum he starts gaining more and more and more. The other scenario is that somehow that conservative vote as you mentioned all the polls, where you basically take the Rick Perry versus Herman Cain percentage which is GREATER than the percentage that Mitt Romney’s getting. And somehow that coalesces around one person and if that is Rick Perry, maybe someone else, but probably Rick Perry, then there is really, then Mitt Romney’s in trouble. What would be really good for Mitt Romney is if he’s able to, that that conservative vote gets divided. So when you basically have Herman Cain at 10%, Rick Perry at 15%, maybe Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, elsewhere and if you’re Mitt Romney you can maybe even win Iowa, you can win South Carolina, with 25-30% of the vote.

DOMENICO MONTANARO: That’s the other thing we're talking about, that maybe this thing is going long, but the scenario that we’ve talked about that could be short is if, you know Romney realizes, “Oh, you know Iowa might be up for grabs here.  You know, it’s not quite as anti-Romney as South Carolina seems to be. Where Iowa, remember he spent a lot -- he had a lot of infrastructure built up there from the 2008 campaign, even though he lost the race, but there is an avenue for him to go in there and with the 15% threshold that makes is difficult a little. If you could have Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, get 6, 5, 8, 10%,  Mitt Romney could win the thing with 23-24%, but with the 15% threshold it makes it a little bit tougher because those people are cancelled out if they don’t get at least 15%.

MARK MURRAY: If you’re the folks in Austin, Texas what makes you feel pretty good is that fundraising number. They raised $17 million for the quarter, it was really only half the quarter. It shows they have the potential to stay in this for the long haul. The question for Rick Perry right now is he is going to need some breaks and a better debate performance.

DOMENICO MONTANARO: Yeah, but the debate bar is pretty low right now, we’ll see.

MARK MURRAY: It is low, he’s gotta deliver. Thanks for the question Grimey.

Christmas in Des Moines? It’s possible with Nevada going on Jan. 14… Sarah Palin, unshackled… Focusing on “Walmart Moms” in Orlando, FL and Manchester, NH… Mourning Steve Jobs… A re-shuffling at the White House… And Obama to hold news conference at 11:00 am ET.

*** Christmas in Des Moines? With Nevada’s decision to hold its caucuses on Jan. 14, it’s possible that the presidential primary season could begin immediately after Christmas -- with New Hampshire settling on Jan. 7, and Iowa going either Dec. 28 or 29. If that happens, it could be the straw that finally breaks the camel’s back on Iowa’s and New Hampshire’s dominance of the primary calendar. Why? You could see a full-fledged rebellion -- maybe not this cycle, but certainly the next -- if candidates are forced to campaign and the news media is forced to descend upon Des Moines over the Christmas holiday. New Year’s Eve in Des Moines four years ago was one thing; Christmas Eve is another. The reason New Hampshire would pick Jan. 7 is to give it a full week of separation between Nevada’s contest. But it all depends on how seriously New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner takes the Nevada contest. If he doesn’t take it seriously and decides Nevada is not too similar to New Hampshire’s primary, the Granite State could stick with Jan. 10, allowing Iowa to go on Jan. 5, which at least keeps the start of the voting in the 2012 calendar year. But if he takes it seriously, it’s Christmas in Des Moines. And, folks, even for diehard defenders of the Iowa/New Hampshire start, that’ll be ridiculous.

*** Sarah Palin, unshackled: The news that Sarah Palin won't be running for president in 2012 shouldn't have surprised anyone. She wasn't making phone calls to key elected officials in Iowa or New Hampshire, she didn't build a network of fundraisers and bundlers or begin to put together a top-shelf staff, and she never quit her FOX contract. But the most important sign was the trajectory of her political career. When John McCain picked her as his VP pick, she instantly became the GOP's biggest star. But then she made numerous missteps and found herself knee-deep in controversies on the campaign trail; she quit her job as Alaska governor; and she uttered that “blood libel” phrase in the wake of Gabby Giffords’ shooting. Per the new Washington Post/ABC poll, two-thirds of Republicans -- yes, Republicans -- said they didn’t want her in the GOP presidential race. In the end, Palin preferred being a celebrity politician and political pundit rather than a political leader. “Not being a candidate, really you're unshackled and you are allowed to be even more active,” she told conservative radio host Mark Levin yesterday.   

*** Focusing on “Walmart Moms” in Orlando: Last night, First Read had the opportunity, via video, to observe focus groups of so-called "Walmart Moms" in Orlando, FL and Manchester, NH. These Walmart Moms -- identified by GOP pollsters Neil Newhouse and Alex Bratty and Dem pollster Margie Omero -- are women with children under 18 living at home, who collectively broke for Obama (just barely) in '08 and swung for Republicans in '10. The findings from the group of 10 in Orlando provided some bad news and not-so-bad news for President Obama. The bad news: They overwhelmingly see the country on the wrong track. "Depressing," "Disappointing," "Bad," "Sour," and "Not good" were the words they used. The not-so-bad news: They really didn't blame Obama, mentioning instead the banks and individuals who spent too much and bought homes they couldn't really afford. Some of the views on Obama: "Disappointing," "Indifferent," "Indifferent," and "Great speaker."

*** And in Manchester: The findings were similar from the 10 women in Manchester. They described the direction of the country as "Terrible," "Disheartening," "Disappointing," and "Scary." Their views of Obama: "I like he's trying," "Mediocre," "Brilliant," "Potential," and Show-off." Interestingly, few in either Orlando or Manchester were paying attention to the GOP race, few had strong opinions about Speaker John Boehner (although one woman in Manchester called him "very emotional"), and they didn't have a strong reaction or passion about the debt-ceiling debate. That said, they didn't hold high opinions of Congress: "Frustrating" and "No clue" were some of the comments they used to describe the legislative branch.

AP

Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs demonstrating the new iPhone, September 2007.

*** Mourning Steve Jobs: Given the disappointment with the nation’s direction that we saw from the “Walmart Moms,” given the protests on Wall Street, and given the anger at corporate America, it’s pretty remarkable how the country is collectively mourning the passing of Apple’s Steve Jobs -- and celebrating the products he created. It’s doubtful you’d see this reaction to any other CEO in the country. It’s a tribute to his technology -- and how a part of our everyday lives Apple's become.

*** White House re-shuffling: Turning to the Obama White House, Bloomberg News reports -- and First Read can confirm -- that White House senior adviser Pete Rouse is now re-engaging into a more daily role in the running of the West Wing, especially as it relates to Congress and the interest groups in Washington. This doesn’t mean Chief of Staff Bill Daley and senior adviser David Plouffe still aren’t running things, but considering how poor congressional relations are now, the decision was made to re-engage the guy who had the most Capitol Hill experience on the senior staff. And that’s Rouse…

AP

President Obama speaks about the American Jobs Act in Columbus, Ohio, Sept. 13, 2011.

*** Obama news conference: This was just announced: President Obama is holding a news conference at the White House at 11:00 am ET.

*** On the 2012 trail: Romney’s in South Carolina, where he speaks to veterans and raises money… Cain remains on his book tour… Gary Johnson’s still in New Hampshire… And Ann Romney continues to stump for her husband in Iowa, attending a fundraiser for an Iowa state representative.

*** Thursday’s “Daily Rundown” line-up: The latest on the political world’s reaction to the passing of Steve Jobs… Iowa Republican Party Chairman Matt Strawn on Nevada’s calendar move and what it means for other states… Former Gov. Christine Todd Whitman (R-NJ) on the Republican presidential field… And more 2012 news with syndicated columnist Cynthia Tucker, the Washington Post’s Nia-Malika Henderson and Republican strategist Kevin Madden.

*** Thursday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell will have complete coverage of Steve Jobs’ life and death, as well as interview Sen. Bob Casey, Rep. John Lewis, the Romney campaign’s Richard Williamson, the Economist’s Greg Ip, Politico’s Roger Simon, and the Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza.

*** Sunday’s “Meet the Press” line-up: And “Meet the Press” has announced its line-up for this weekend. In a special live edition from Chicago, NBC’s David Gregory will interview Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, as well as House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan. For his weekly “Press Pass” video, Gregory interviewed filmmaker Ken Burns.

Countdown to Election Day 2011: 33 days

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CAIN: “Like a Hurri-Cain, Herman Cain’s presidential campaign has been gathering strength and rocking his opponents -- while causing political pros to scrap some of their early forecasts for the GOP field,” the New York Post writes.

The Club for Growth’s president also spoke favorably of Cain.

But channeling First Read, the New York Times observes that Cain is currently interested in selling books, not shaking hands in Iowa. “On a whirlwind trip through New York City this week that marked the beginning of a nearly monthlong book tour, Herman Cain chatted with the hosts of ABC’s ‘The View,’ promoted his new memoir on Fox News, met local titans like Donald Trump, shared ideas with former Mayor Edward I. Koch and enjoyed power lunching in Midtown. Mr. Cain, a contender for the Republican presidential nomination, did all but one thing — campaign. Not in the traditional meet-the-public and kiss-the-babies sense, anyway.”

Cain on the Occupy Wall Street movement, per the Wall Street Journal (via the New York Daily News): "Don't blame Wall Street, don't blame the big banks, if you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself. It is not someone's fault if they succeeded, it is someone's fault if they failed.” He also said: "I don't have the facts to back this up, but I happen to believe that these demonstrations are planned and orchestrated to distract from the failed policies of the Obama Administration.”

JOHNSON: At a town hall with no attendees, GOP presidential candidate Gary Johnson told NBC’s Jo Ling Kent last night he will either be president or "nothing" if he loses. "I'll be president or nothing. If I'm not successful, you're never going to hear from me again."Johnson was supposed to hold a town hall, Kent notes, but nobody showed up -- except for NBC, Time and two local papers. His communications team said they forgot to set up the robo-call alerting voters to show up.

PALIN: The Boston Globe’s lead on Palin not running: “Sarah Palin, whose summer bus tour raised speculation that she would seek the Republican presidential nomination, said last night she will not run, settling the GOP field one day after Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey said he would not enter the race.”

She also said she would not run as a third-party candidate: "I would assume a third party would just guarantee Obama's re-election."

The Anchorage Daily News: “Palin never made any real moves toward establishing a political campaign, focusing on her role as a highly paid speaker and commentator on Fox News. But there has been months of intense media speculation about whether she might run and her core group of die-hard supporters had continued to insist there was still time and that she had a chance to win.” On her popularity: “Her poll numbers in Alaska have not been good, and a late June poll suggested Obama would beat Palin among Alaskans in a head-to-head race.” And nationally, in one poll: “Even among tea party supporters, 68 percent did not want her to run.”

Palin’s PAC posted this video, in which she says, “You don’t need an office or a title to make a difference.”

The New York Daily News’ DeFrank: “Republican Party officials have predicted for months Palin wasn't running because she'd be forced to give up a lucrative speechmaking business earning her millions of dollars a year.”

She also took a shot at Chris Christie: "I wanted to, you know, just kind of put the marker down and say, No, I'm not running, not have a big press conference about it, not make a big darn deal about it because this isn't about me. And it's not about Chris Christie. This isn't about one potential candidate or candidates who is going to jump in there."

ROMNEY: “Paul Singer, the financier who’s one of the biggest “gets” in the Republican bundler community and was among those hoping for a Chris Christie campaign, has committed to Mitt Romney — promising to tap his vast donor network and move to get others off the sidelines,” Politico’s Haberman reports, adding, “In a note explaining his decision, according to a source who was updated by him, Singer wrote, “I have held back as the presidential election landscape has taken shape over a period of months. At this time, however, the field is set. We know the pool of candidates from which the Republican nominee will emerge. And in my judgment the best choice is Mitt Romney.”

Stu Rothenberg on the electoral math of Obama vs. Romney and says “Romney has a slight electoral advantage over the president.”

The Boston Globe profiles strategist Eric Fehrnstrom: “In January 2010, he was the golden boy, the political operative who helped Scott Brown pull off what many had thought impossible: wresting Edward M. Kennedy’s old US Senate seat from the Democrats. Since then, however, victories have been elusive for Republican strategist Eric Fehrnstrom, whose consulting group has lost its last six races.” 

More: “Fehrnstrom, 50, who declined to be interviewed, is the iron hand behind his candidates’ standoffish relationships with reporters. He enforces tight discipline on the campaign to never stray from message, while limiting unscripted encounters between the candidate and the press. He is known to lash out personally at reporters he feels are too critical of his clients. He is also known for breaking the golden rule of political operatives: never let the story be about you.”

TRUMP: Trump backed away from a potential independent bid. "Well, I think the field is starting to look pretty interesting and pretty good. And, look, the key is that Obama be beaten,” he said on FOX, per Taegan Goddard.

Nevada moved up the date of its caucuses to Jan. 14.

Here’s the Des Moines Register’s headline: “Nevada moves forward. Could Iowa caucuses be in December?” It writes that Nevada’s move “would push Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucuses into December, barring waivers to Republican Party rules and states’ laws.” More: “[A] New Hampshire law stipulates that the state’s primary must take place at least seven days before any similar election in any other state. And an Iowa law mandates its caucuses be held eight days before any other caucus or primary. It’s not unprecedented, however, to bend the rules. Four years ago, Iowa held its caucuses Jan. 3, while New Hampshire’s primary was on Jan. 8.”

“Mitt Romney's campaign had pressed Nevada Republicans to move the caucuses into January so that he could maintain momentum coming out of New Hampshire, a state he expects to win. Romney also is counting on winning Nevada, where he finished first in 2008,” The Las Vegas Review Journal writes.

“In proposing a 5 percent surtax on incomes of more than $1 million a year to pay for job-creation measures sought by President Obama, Senate Democratic leaders on Wednesday escalated efforts to strike a more populist tone and to draw Republicans into a confrontation over how much affluent Americans should pay to help others cope with a struggling economy,” the New York Times says. “The White House, after dismissing a similar proposal late last year, left the door open to backing the plan. ‘We are open to different ways of paying for the very important broadly supported measures in the American Jobs Act that would grow the economy and create jobs,’ said the press secretary, Jay Carney.”

President Obama’s approval rating is 41%/55%, according to a Quinnipiac poll.

“Criticism of the president has long been a staple of politics, but experts say lawmakers are becoming more extreme in their rebukes of the commander in chief,” The Hill writes. “White House scholars say that although every president has suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous barbs, it has not historically been members of Congress hurling them. But more lawmakers are now doing so, and that has diminished the office of the presidency, historians say… H.W. Brands, professor of history at the University of Texas-Austin and the author of books on several presidents, said he is not aware of ‘mockery of the president by elected officials at the frequency that Obama has been getting it.”

Nevada will hold its presidential nominating contest Jan. 14, the Nevada GOP caucus director confirms to NBC News.

The primary calendar continues to take shape, moving into early January. Florida started the chain reaction, when it defied Republican National Committee rules and set its primary for Jan. 31. Following that, South Carolina moved its primary to Jan. 21.

New Hampshire and Iowa are left now to set their dates. New Hampshire, the traditional first-in-the-nation primary, will likely move next.

Here's the Nevada GOP's press release:

Nevada’s First in the West Presidential Caucus has officially been moved to January 14th, 2012, Nevada Republican Party Chairwoman Amy Tarkanian announced today.

“I’m extremely pleased to finally have a firm date for a caucus that will greatly improve Nevada’s standing and relevance in terms of national politics,” Tarkanian said.  “By establishing this date, we maintain Nevada’s standing as one of the first four ‘carve-out’ states and as the very first in the west.”

The date of Nevada’s caucus was thrown into turmoil when Florida, in violation of agreed-upon rules, moved its primary to January, causing the four carve-out early states, Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada to scramble to find new dates to maintain the agreed-upon order.

“This is absolutely in the best interest of our state,” Tarkanian said.  “We are in the process of creating a caucus that will energize Republicans throughout Nevada and the west, and allow us to play a major role in deciding who will carry the fight to unseat Barack Obama and his destructive policies.”

*** CORRECTION *** An earlier version of this post incorrectly noted the date of the South Carolina primary as Jan. 24. It is Jan. 21.

GRINNELL, Iowa -- Michele Bachmann’s planned stop at a local farm for a speech and fundraiser Tuesday night seemed to stop just short of the plan.

Bachmann toured Carroll's Pumpkin Farm with owner -- and former state representative -- Danny Carroll and his wife, Joy, but did not make scheduled remarks inside a hay loft, which had been outfitted with banners and equipped for television media coverage.

The reason apparently had to do with a group of about 50 students from nearby Grinnell College -- and at least one from the University of Iowa -- who showed up unannounced. They were alerted to the event by an email from campus Democrats, students said. One carried a sign with the word "My" written large enough to encompass two lines followed by "Body" and "Choice," or "My body, my choice" -- a clear counter to Bachmann’s anti-abortion-rights views.

“We had some very special friends and guests, who were invited specifically for this fundraiser," Carroll said, "and we wanted, out of consideration for those guests, that they had the opportunity to spend some quality time with Congresswoman Bachmann.”

The campaign event was billed as a fundraiser for a Christian advocacy group called, The Family Leader, which is affiliated with the Colorado-based organization Focus on the Family, and issued a controversial anti-gay marriage pledge -- among other things -- earlier this year.

The congresswoman met privately with about 35 supporters inside the farm’s main house.

The Grinnell students milled outside the main house as at least two local policemen and two Poweshiek County deputies arrived and cordoned the group with yellow tape. When Bachmann emerged from the house, she took a brief tour of the farm and stopped to admire baby goats before holding a press conference.

Asked by reporters why she did not visit the hay loft and meet with the students, Bachmann insisted the event was private and held at the discretion of her hosts.

"I think, if I understood correctly, that the college students just came on their own and asked if they could come on the property,” Bachmann said, “and it would be up to the Carrolls to say.” She added, “They said that they welcomed them on their farm and allowed them on. But this was never intended to be a big, public event.”

Some of the students, in order to get in, said they purchased tickets to hear Bachmann's speech. At least four students held signs. Some read: "Female Gay Student 99%. Where's My Future?” (99% is in reference to the “Occupy Wall St. Movement,” which refers to itself as the 99% of the population without a say); "John Wayne Quincy Adams --- Our Greatest Forefather"; and "Pray BACK The Gay.”

"I think everyone came in with an open mind and were willing to be pretty civil," said Abby Stevens, one of the Grinnell students.

Jillian Johnson, another student, said, “I was just hoping to hear her speak, and just sort of hear a lot of her positions.” She added, “It’s just frustrating that a group of college students could drive away someone who’s running for president. I don’t really know what outcome they were expecting. Grinnell’s known for being an extremely liberal, politically active, although very peaceful school.”

As Bachmann walked to her van, she looked over at the students assembled behind the cordon.

“Bye!” she shouted, with a wave and a smile.

AP

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) announced she will not run for president.

Sarah Palin is not running for president, a source confirms to NBC News.

Conservative radio talk-show host Mark Levin read her statement on his radio show.

*** UPDATE *** Here's Palin's letter, which was also read on the radio show:

October 5, 2011

Wasilla, Alaska

After much prayer and serious consideration, I have decided that I will not be seeking the 2012 GOP nomination for President of the United States. As always, my family comes first and obviously Todd and I put great consideration into family life before making this decision. When we serve, we devote ourselves to God, family and country. My decision maintains this order.

My decision is based upon a review of what common sense Conservatives and Independents have accomplished, especially over the last year. I believe that at this time I can be more effective in a decisive role to help elect other true public servants to office – from the nation’s governors to Congressional seats and the Presidency. We need to continue to actively and aggressively help those who will stop the “fundamental transformation” of our nation and instead seek the restoration of our greatness, our goodness and our constitutional republic based on the rule of law.

From the bottom of my heart I thank those who have supported me and defended my record throughout the years, and encouraged me to run for President. Know that by working together we can bring this country back – and as I’ve always said, one doesn’t need a title to help do it. 

I will continue driving the discussion for freedom and free markets, including in the race for President where our candidates must embrace immediate action toward energy independence through domestic resource developments of conventional energy sources, along with renewables. We must reduce tax burdens and onerous regulations that kill American industry, and our candidates must always push to minimize government to strengthen the economy and allow the private sector to create jobs. 

Those will be our priorities so Americans can be confident that a smaller, smarter government that is truly of the people, by the people, and for the people can better serve this most exceptional nation. 

In the coming weeks I will help coordinate strategies to assist in replacing the President, re-taking the Senate, and maintaining the House.

Thank you again for all your support. Let’s unite to restore this country! 

God bless America.

– Sarah Palin

BLUFFTON, S.C. -- Newt Gingrich said that the “Occupy Wall Street” demonstrations that are appearing around the country are a reaction to President Obama’s failed leadership.  

“These are the Obama demonstrations,” Gingrich said during a town hall meeting with at least 500 members of the Sun City retirement community here.

While he said the protests were being “organized by the left” and the “Michael Moore types,” he said Republican candidates should try to channel demonstrators’ anger to their advantage. 

“The challenge to Republicans is simple,” Gingrich said. “We have to remind them that in America, you get to create a revolution every two years. It’s called an election,” he said as the audience, packed to overflow capacity, cheered.

Gingrich touched on some of the groups’ frustrations, with bank bailouts and the Federal Reserve, that dovetail with those of Tea Party groups – which typically don’t claim a party but are generally associated with conservative ideas.

“If you're a 22 or 23 year old kid, and you're sitting out there with no job you're looking at these things and you're saying ‘let me get this straight.’

How much did Goldman Sachs get? How much did the Paris bank get? How much did the bank of Libya get? And I'm supposed to pay off my student loan?”

“Look at [Fed chairman Ben] Bernanke, who has dealt with hundreds of billions of dollars in secret,” Gingrich said.

Gingrich urged the Occupy Wall Street groups to stay peaceful. “You didn't see tea parties trashing anything,” he said.

When asked whether he would reach out to the Occupy Wall Street groups in support, Gingrich said "absolutely." 

"I think they have a lot of good reasons to be unhappy and I think we ought to indicate that their unhappiness should be aimed at the government. Because its the government's that's failed them." 

Gingrich also voiced his own gripes with Washington, D.C. as he explained how he would change the health care system. He told the audience that Medicare fraud is so high because of “crooks like a dentist who filed 982 procedures a day,” and that those cases are too much for a “9 to 5 bureaucrat” to deal with. 

“Is the current system in Washington too obtuse to understand anything I just said? Yes,” he said.

Gingrich was also asked how, as president, he would respond to recent reports that Iran plans to send ships near the Atlantic coast of the United States.

“As long as they stay legally outside our legal limits it wouldn’t bother me,” he said. “What I would do is I would assign a much bigger ship.”

“And I would make sure that our ships were always contact capable, always armed, and that the Iranians knew that the very big ship towering over them. Occasionally I’d get just in front of them to create a wave to remind them just how small they were,” he said, laughing along with the audience.

Gingrich and his wife Callista host a screening later tonight of their documentary “A City Upon a Hill” on Hilton Head Island.

Texas Rep. Ron Paul suggested Wednesday that the government could just as easily target the media or academics the way it did US-born al-Qaeda operative Anwar al-Awlaki in a military strike last week.

Paul, the libertarian-minded congressman who's criticized the government's assassination of al-Awlaki in a missile strike last week in Yemen, argued that the strike opens a slippery slope toward broader targeting of citizens by the government.

"Can you imagine being put on a list because you're a threat? What's going to happen when they come to the media?" Paul asked during an appearance at the National Press Club. "The media becomes a threat or a professor becomes a threat. Some day that could well happen. This is the way it works. It's incrementalism."

Paul has staked out turf in the GOP primary as a critic of ongoing US foreign policy and national security strategy. He suggested earlier this week that President Obama's authorization of an attack against a U.S. citizen without due process was an impeachable offense, an assertion he repeated Wednesday.

Paul otherwise used his speech to announce a hefty $8 million fundraising haul for the third quarter before launching into a scathing indictment of federal overreach and a foreign policy he described as akin to the failed "empires" of history.

"This is what's happened throughout history," he said in his lengthy critique of America's "militarism." "Empires get too big, spread themselves too thinly around the world, and then they self-destruct."

Paul warned that US military presence in the Middle East could prompt retaliative terror attacks, saying the intelligence community has linked the presence of military bases in the region to the motivation for the 9/11 attacks.

"We're loading up the Arabian Peninsula with drones and cruise missiles," he said. "Do you think it's going to go unnoticed?! No, it's not going to go unnoticed."

Paul, a vocal critic of the Federal Reserve and banking interests, voiced support for the right of protesters on Wall Street to use "civil disobedience" to express their complaints against the nation's financial system.

"I can't speak for the people out there because I don't know who they are and exactly what they're demonstrating against. I can argue the case for their right to express their outright frustration with what's going on."

Paul said that his  expectations-busting $8 million haul and 100k-plus donor base, formally announced at the beginning of his NPC remarks, demonstrates the appeal of his candidacy against other "status quo" GOP candidates.

He said that his fundraising amount, about half that of his fellow Texan, Gov. Rick Perry, signals that he is not beholden to "special interests" like his rivals.

"All donors are not equal."

In front of crowds of cameras and credentialed press, the presidential hopeful lamented his dismissal by the national media, noting that a recent straw poll victory in California was treated as a "nonevent."

"We have a uphill battle," he said.

MARION, Iowa -- The wife of Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, Ann, continued on her first swing through Iowa this election cycle, reiterating the importance of the state. 

“We’re here; we’re back in Iowa,” Mrs. Romney told more than 50 supporters gathered inside a state senatorial campaign headquarters. “We know Iowa is important, and we know that the process is important, and that’s why we’re here.”

In her short, 7-minute speech this afternoon, Romney talked a lot about her grandfather and how important it was to her to get America back on track. Unlike other stops, she left out her personal struggles with multiple sclerosis. She promised that her husband will improve regulations and will “be the one that throws that blanket off and get things going again.”

“It’s like throwing someone on your back and having to compete in a football game carrying someone around,” she said about the current state of regulation in America. “It’s just what has happened to America lately, and I can’t wait to get Mitt in the White House, so we can help.”

Jennifer Bioche, an uncommitted voter from Marion, Iowa, said, “I think she is a lovely lady. I think it is really spectacular that she is here to support a local candidate, that’s pretty remarkable.”

Romney was campaigning for Republican state Senate candidate, Cindy Goldings, who is in a tight race in Linn County. If she wins, the Iowa Senate will pull back to even numbers of Democrats and Republicans. Goldings was in the news last week after she did not meet with Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, who had offered to help her Senate run. She tried to clarify that situation before introducing Romney.

“Now, I need to make something very clear, because the news media has made a big deal out of this,” she began. “Michele Bachmann was coming here … a week ago. I was taking care of business; I really was. So, I was unable to meet with Mrs. Bachmann. I am so glad I was able to take care of that and be able to introduce Ann Romney.”

Following the quick event, the media were told Romney would not take questions but rather would mingle with the crowd before heading to her SUV. One reporter tossed out a question anyway, asking her about what her role as First Lady would be.

“At-risk youth has been a concern of mine and love of mine and passion of mine for a lot of years,” Romney said. A follow-up question went unanswered. 

She finishes her swing through Iowa tomorrow morning, speaking at a breakfast in Bettendorf. It is expected that Mitt Romney will come back to the Hawkeye State sometime in this month.

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Don’t say the Republican Party doesn’t appeal to minorities, Newt Gingrich says.

“How do you have a press conference with Michael Steele and say, ‘Why are you a racist?’” Gingrich said here, citing the former RNC chairman. “You can't attack our team as being racist with Herman Cain running a campaign.”

Cain, a rival presidential candidate, is African-American and running for the GOP nomination.

“I have young professional African Americans, who walk up to me every day and say, 'I'm glad you're running,’” the former Speaker of the House said.

“We're suddenly becoming a party of diversity," Gingrich also said.

He also cited Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez as evidence of that diversity.

Gingrich said the GOP is doing it “not by selling out to the left, but we're seeing a younger generation that wants lower taxes, smaller government.”

He touted his and Cain’s rise in the polls, saying, “Herman and I both, as Georgians, are having a pretty good run. If you add our votes together, the Georgians are now the frontrunners if you add our votes together.”

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - On the tail end of his current campaign swing through Florida, Mitt Romney made a stop at the Seminole Wind restaurant this afternoon to offer praise for the southern cooking, and criticism for President Obama.
 
"This week, the president, he said to the American people that he is a warrior for the middle class. If that's the case I think there has been a severe case of friendly fire," Romney said. "Because he has not done what the middle class of America needs to have a prosperous and bright future. In fact almost everything he did has hurt the middle class."
 
Romney kept his official remarks brief – and they did not include any mention of his primary rival, Texas Governor Rick Perry, notable because of the frequency with which Romney has made Perry a target of barbs on the campaign trail. 

He also sought to sidestep any controversy surrounding his comments Tuesday about the “Occupy Wall Street” demonstrators who have occupied the streets of New York in recent weeks. Asked for his opinion about the Occupy Wall Street protesters as he got into his car to leave, Romney replied "I'm just trying to occupy the White House," then shut the door.
 
Stepping down from the microphone, Romney then made the rounds chatting and shaking hands with customers and touring the kitchen.
 
"Is it really $6.95 all you can eat? That is a deal! Plenty of chicken," he said to a patron in a booth before helping himself to the buffet.
 
On the menu for the former Massachusetts governor? Good southern cooking: Fried chicken, BBQ pork, greens, grits and sweet potatoes.
 
"I'm going to go over here to the vegetable line because I know that's what I should be eating," Romney admitted while loading his plate.
 
Romney ate while speaking to a roundtable of a dozen business leaders, reciting his usual pro-business talking points, and complimenting the food, and the restaurant's owner throughout. He even left a $20 tip.
 
But was the chicken here in Florida better than South Carolina's famous fried fare?
 
"I do not make those comparisons," Romney joked. "I'm in politics after all. The truth only goes so far."

A White House official confirms that the president will make his way through North Carolina and Virginia on a three-day bus tour later this month. It's scheduled for October 17-19.

AP reported and the official confirms: “The trip will be similar to a three-day bus tour through Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois the president went on in August. Obama is intent on keeping up the pressure on Congress over his jobs proposal, a message the White House believes can resonate with the public, and he often picks states that could be important for his 2012 re-election chances. North Carolina and Virginia are both traditionally Republican states that Obama won in 2008.”

Obama was the first Democrat to win Virginia since 1964 and the first to win North Carolina since 1976. But his job approval has declined considerably in those states since he was elected.

Obama appoints Shakira to Hispanic education commission
In other news, President Obama appointed Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, otherwise known simply as Shakira, to his “President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

“In addition to her career in music, Ms. Mebarak Ripoll has been involved in a number of global educational efforts,” the White House said in a press release. “She founded the Barefoot Foundation in 1995, which operates schools and educational projects in Colombia, South Africa, and Haiti, feeding and educating approximately 6,000 children.  In 2010, she collaborated with the World Bank and the Barefoot Foundation to establish an initiative that distributes educational and developmental programs for children across Latin America.  In 2008, Ms. Mebarak Ripoll served as the Honorary Chair of the Global Campaign for Education's Global Action Week.  In 2005, she became a founding member of Latin America in Solidarity Action, a coalition of artists and business leaders seeking to promote integrated early childhood public policies.  Ms. Mebarak Ripoll became a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in 2003, where she promotes the expansion and improvement of comprehensive early childhood care and education across the world.”

Senate Democrats unveiled a major change to the President’s jobs bill today injecting a proposal that would hit millionaires with a five percent tax surcharge. Majority Leader Harry Reid announced the revised bill will come before the Senate next week with debate and votes expected.

At a press conference, Reid told reporters the tax would pay for $445 billion of the President's $447 billion proposal. Senate Leaders indicated the White House has signed on to the change in how the bill is paid for.

"We're going to propose to pay for this important jobs legislation by asking people who make more than a million dollars a year to pay 5 percent more to fund job creation and ensure this country's economic success," he said.

When asked why Democrats would introduce a millionaire surtax that would be "political dynamite" to Republicans, Reid cited poll numbers showing the majority of Americans support taxing the rich.

"Seventy-five percent of Republicans support this tax.  The problem is, none of them are in the Senate.  So they're going to have to listen to their constituents," Reid said.

He said he could not guarantee every single Democrat will support the bill but he predicted "overwhelming" support.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) acknowledged it has taken the past month to figure out how to change the bill to win more Democratic support. Some Democrats did not like White House proposals that would have raised taxes on families making $250,000 or more a year and curbed tax breaks to the oil and gas industry.

"We have spent the last several weeks planning how it can win the most votes on the Senate floor as one package.  We believe we have found the best answer available.  These tough economic times call for sacrifice -- shared sacrifice," Schumer said. 

Earlier today on the Senate floor, Republican leader Mitch McConnell previewed the partisan sniping that will ensue next week. McConnell said the millionaire tax was not a serious effort to generate support from the other side of the aisle.

"I understand our Democrat friends want to jettison entire parts of the bill altogether - not to make it more effective at growing jobs, not to grow bipartisan support. No, they want to overhaul the bill to sharpen its political edge," he said.

Adding to the political battle, Republican staff circulated past comments from a number of Senate Democrats who had previously opposed such a tax in debates over financing other pieces of legislation.

Updated 2:16 p.m.

Gabrielle Giffords, the Arizona congresswoman who was shot in a January assassination attempt, will make a rare appearance Thursday in a retirement ceremony for her husband at the White House.

Giffords's congressional office announced Wednesday that the Democrat was on her way to Washington to participate in a brief ceremony for her husband, NASA Astronaut Mark Kelly, marking his retirement from the U.S. Navy.

Vice President Biden will preside over a ceremony for Kelly, who will deliver brief remarks. The event will not be open to cameras, however; a print pool reporter will cover the event, photos from which will be released through Giffords's Facebook page. Giffords will not go to Capitol Hill or participate in any official congressional duties, her office said in a release.

This trip marks the sixth time since January that Giffords has left Houston, where she has undergone intensive rehabilitation since being shot in the head in January during an event in her Arizona district. Giffords had traveled this spring to Florida to watch the launch of a shuttle mission that her husband commanded. She also made a memorable, surprise appearance on the House floor this summer for a high-stakes vote on a deal to prevent a default on U.S. debt.

NBC's Kelly O'Donnell contributed to this report.

Texas Congressman Ron Paul raised $8 million in the third quarter with 100,000 donors, his campaign confirms to NBC News.

Paul has now announced the news -- at his speech at the National Press Club in Washington, NBC's Carrie Dann reports.

Paul raised $4.5 million in the second quarter.

Paul has a devoted following that has bolstered his fundraising this cycle and in 2007-2008. In the latest NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll, Paul was third with 9% behind Rick Perry and Mitt Romney.

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Town halls are a political tradition in New Hampshire. And Mitt Romney, the front runner in the Granite State, is going to be doing more of them.

The Romney campaign tells NBC News the candidate will hold two town-hall meetings on Monday, Oct. 10, first in Milford and then in Hopkinton, ahead of Tuesday's Republican debate at Dartmouth. These will be Romney's 13th and 14th town halls this campaign cycle, according to the campaign.

"Gov. Romney will focus on his plans to create jobs and turn around our struggling economy," spokesman Ryan Williams said. "Open town hall meetings are a significant part of New Hampshire political tradition. Gov. Romney believes it is important to make himself available to voters and answer their tough questions."

The first town hall will be held in Milford at 12:20pm at the Milford VFW. The second will be at 6:15pm in Hopkinton, at the Hopkinton Town Hall at 330 Main Street.