*** Monday’s “Daily Rundown” line-up: Top Budget Committee Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) on the president’s election year budget pitch and the looming deadline (again) over the payroll tax cut extension… Charlie Cook and Stu Rothenberg on how the November electoral map looks right now… More 2012 news with the Associated Press’ Kasie Hunt, the Chicago Tribune’s Clarence Page and the Washington Post’s Dan Balz.

*** Monday’s “Jansing & Co.” line-up: MSNBC’s Chris Jansing interviews Dem Rep. Ed Markey, the Washington Post’s Ezra Klein, Politico’s Ben White liberal writer Joe Conason, and  iVillage’s Kelly Wallace.

*** Monday’s “MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts” line-up: MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts interviews DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Jared Bernstein, Richard Wolffe, Patricia Murphy, and NJ Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (on NJ’s same-sex marriage bill).

*** Monday’s “NOW with Alex Wagner” line-up: Alex Wagner’s guests include the Washington Examiner’s Mark Tapscott, Salon’s Steve Kornacki, Brown University Professor of Political Science Wendy Schiller, Democratic strategist Karen Finney, and former RNC Chair Michael Steele

*** Monday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell interviews the Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza, Time’s Christopher John Farley, NBC’s Stephanie Gosk, budget expert Maya Macguinness, and the Washington Post’s Anne Kornblut.

*** Monday’s “News Nation with Tamron Hall” line-up: MSNBC’s Tamron Hall interviews Michael Smerconish.

Mitt Romney won the Maine Republican caucuses Saturday, overcoming a strong challenge by Ron Paul that drew national attention to the normally low-key contest,” 39%-36%, the Portland Press Herald writes.

The Bangor Daily News: “The Maine Republican Party declared Mitt Romney the winner of its presidential caucuses on Saturday, but narrow second-place finisher Ron Paul said he wasn’t ready to concede the state until all communities had caucused.”

The Boston Globe: “Mitt Romney pulled out a narrow win in the caucuses in Maine [Saturday], reinforcing his front-runner status after suffering a trio of defeats Tuesday in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri.”

Yet in a message to supporters last night, the Ron Paul campaign suggested at chicanery over Maine's decision to declare Mitt Romney the winner before all the votes were counted, NBC’s Anthony Terrell reports. Campaign Manager John Tate called the Washington County GOP decision to postpone the caucus for snow an "excuse." Tate even mocked the decision after the predicted three to four inches of snow resulted in only a "dusting."

Per the Portland Press Herald, a county party official said he didn’t think the outcome in that county would give Paul the number he would need to make up the difference.

Just 113 people voted in Washington County in 2008, and Paul got just eight votes, according the FrontloadingHQ.

ROMNEY: The Globe’s Johnson writes: "Romney's 2008 presidential campaign was undermined not by weakness in his deep and stellar resume; rather, it was damaged by doubts about the authenticity of a rightward shift -- particularly in his social views -- during the run-up to his first White House bid. In branding himself 'severely conservative' four years later, Romney added fresh currency to the seemingly never-ending doubts about his philosophical core, or whether there is anything he won't say as he tries to win his party's presidential nomination. It's telling that immediately after Romney made his comment, his campaign had to issue a press release outlining proof of his fiscal and social conservatism." (Hat tip: Political Wire.)

Romney tells National Review’s Costa: “I want people to remember that I was on the front lines on conservative social issues, on conservative fiscal issues, and standing up for conservative foreign-policy values. I wanted to reacquaint people with what they remember from four years ago.” (Hat tip: GOP 12.)

Rush Limbaugh panned Romney’s use of the phrase “severely conservative.”

SANTORUM: “Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum today implied that Mitt Romney paid for votes in the Conservative Political Action Conference straw poll on Saturday, where Romney beat Santorum 38 percent to 31 percent,” the Boston Globe writes.

(Um, that’s what always happens at straw polls – you entice your supporters to attend.)

The New York Daily News: “Mitt Romney had a key conservative caucus win over the weekend — but rival Rick Santorum says he bought the victory.”

The Washington Post's Greg Sargent clips a Huffington Post piece noting that Santorum suggests that insurance companies shouldn't cover birth control at all. “This has nothing to do with access,” Santorum said. “This is having someone pay for it, pay for something that shouldn’t be in an insurance plan anyway because it is not, really an insurable item. This is something that is affordable, available. You don’t need insurance for these types of relatively small expenditures. This is simply someone trying to impose their values on somebody else, with the arm of the government doing so. That should offend everybody, people of faith and no faith that the government could get on a roll that is that aggressive.”

“President Barack Obama is sending Congress a new budget that seeks to achieve $4 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decade through cuts in government spending and higher taxes on the wealthy,” the AP says. “At the same time, he wants to boost spending in key areas such as transportation and education.”

“President Obama is expected to use his budget unveiling today to flesh out his threat last month to curb runaway college tuition increases - potentially by withholding federal student aid from those colleges that fail to keep prices down,” the Boston Globe adds. “Making a direct appeal to middle-class voters, Obama used his State of the Union address and a key swing-state appearance days later at the University of Michigan to strike a theme that resounds with nearly every parent, college student, and laid-off worker seeking continuing education.”

“Chinese heir-apparent Xi Jinping’s trip to the U.S. this week will focus on building relations with local officials clamoring for investment and export markets, expanding a second front for bilateral ties as anti-China rhetoric rises in Washington and on the campaign trail,” Bloomberg writes. “Xi, set to arrive late today in the U.S., will travel to Iowa and Los Angeles after meeting President Barack Obama at the White House. The visits coincide with an explosion of city-to-city and state-to-province ties, a surge in U.S. local governments setting up trade offices in China and increasing demand for foreign investment as U.S. unemployment remains at historical highs.”

“President Obama's effort to accommodate the Catholic Church by altering his administration's rule on birth control coverage has not appeased the church, congressional Republicans or GOP candidates trying to take his job next year,” USA Today writes.

Today, per an upcoming press release, the Obama campaign is announcing “the launch of the Truth Team, a new national effort by President Obama supporters online and on the ground to promote the President’s achievements, respond to attacks on his record and hold the eventual Republican nominee accountable. More than a million people took action as part of the Fight the Smears initiative during the 2008 campaign; the goal of the Truth Team is to double that number, reaching two million grassroots supporters who will communicate the President's record and fight back against attacks before the Democratic National Convention this fall.” 

More: “Truth Teams will be announced today in many states including Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina and Wisconsin with events being held in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio and Virginia.” 

Yesterday, the Maine Republican Party declared Mitt Romney the winner of Maine's caucuses, which were conducted over multiple days. Romney got 39% (2,190 votes) and Ron Paul got 36% (1,996). Rick Santorum finished third and Newt Gingrich fourth. 

Yet in a message to supporters last night, the Ron Paul campaign suggested a chicanery over Maine's decision to declare Mitt Romney the winner before all the votes were counted.

Campaign Manager John Tate called the Washington County GOP decision to postpone the caucus for snow an "excuse." Tate even mocked the decision after the predicted three to four inches of snow resulted in only a "dusting."

"This is MAINE we're talking about. The GIRL SCOUTS had an event today in Washington County that wasn't cancelled."

The campaign claims the votes in Washington County, a Paul stronghold, would have been enough to give Paul his first win.

As the AP reported: 

Caucuses in Washington County that had been scheduled for Saturday were postponed until Feb. 18 because of a major snowstorm that blanketed the region. Earlier, party Executive Director Michael Quatrano said county officials had been told the results of that caucus would not count toward the total.

But Washington County GOP Chairman Chris Gardner objected, saying he had known his county's tally wouldn't be included in Saturday's announcement but didn't realize it wouldn't be counted at all. He said he had called state party leaders and "expressed my complete and utter dismay."

Gardner, a Romney supporter, said the snowstorm had left him no choice but to postpone the caucuses.

"Refusal to reconsider under those circumstances would be extremely disheartening," he told The Associated Press. "I trust that the party will make the right decision here."

Calling the decision an "outrage," the Paul campaign declared they will "stay in it to the very end" and that "Paul will win the most delegates out of Maine."

Maine Republicans will meet on Saturday, May 5 and Sunday, May 6 to elect delegates to the national convention.

In the 2008 GOP caucuses, Romney captured 51% of the vote in Maine while Paul received 18%.

WASHINGTON -- Alice Stewart, who served as communications director for Michele Bachmann's failed presidential campaign, has been named national press secretary for one of her former boss' chief rivals – Rick Santorum.

The hire comes at a time when Santorum's campaign is touting a spike in momentum and money after winning races in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri on Tuesday.  

The Republican presidential hopeful has pulled in more than $3 million in contributions since the three-state victory.

"He's right on the issues and hasn't flipped flopped on the issues," Stewart said of the former Pennsylvania senator.  "People are starting to recognize that. He didn't come to the game like Romney did with the name ID that Romney had."

Stewart will serve under the direction of national communications director Hogan Gidley. In the previous campaign cycle, they both worked for 2008 presidential candidate Mike Huckabee's political action committee, HuckPAC.

Santorum often jokes that he runs his campaign on a "shoestring budget," and even when money began to come in after his Iowa caucus victory, his staff remained small compared to those of his rivals. 

The candidate frequently travels without any members of his communications staff, which has on occasions led to logistical problems and miscommunication between media and the campaign.

"We always planned to staff up when the time is right, and the time is right," said Gidley. But he also cautioned, "We'll never be the bureaucratic, DC behemoth that Mitt Romney's campaign is … that's not what Rick Santorum is. He won’t surrounded by handlers."

The development reflects a split among senior veterans of the Bachmann campaign, who have remained friendly while being hired in separate directions.

Two members of Bachmann's staff went to work for Mitt Romney in the days after Bachmann left the race – including high-profile debate coach Brett O'Donnell.

(O'Donnell apparently split abruptly from Romney's staff last week.)

Reached by telephone Saturday night, Stewart said her move does not indicate that her former boss will endorse her new one.

"She's made it clear she's not in any hurry to endorse," Stewart said about Bachmann.

Bachmann dropped out of the race Jan. 4, one day after finishing last among the candidates competing in the Iowa caucuses.

Stewart will likely begin her new job next week when Santorum travels to Michigan.

WASHINGTON -- Presumed GOP front-runner Mitt Romney has won a straw poll of Republican voters at the American Conservative Union's annual CPAC conference in Washington.

Romney received 38 percent of Saturday's vote on the final day of the Conservative Political Action Conference, followed by Rick Santorum, who garnered 31 percent.

The win is likely to soothe concerns that Romney cannot shore up backing from conservatives wary of his past change of position on abortion and his onetime support for an individual health care mandate.

Romney told a packed audience here during remarks Friday that he is "severely conservative," while Santorum urged attendees not to choose a GOP nominee who cannot excite the conservative base.

"We always talk about how we are going to get the moderates," Santorum said in a clear reference to Romney. "Why would an undecided voter, vote for a candidate of a party that the party's not excited about?"

One-time Romney "alternative" hopeful Newt Gingrich came in third place with 15 percent of the straw poll vote. Rep. Ron Paul won just 12 percent support.  

Some 3,408 people voted in the straw poll, the second-highest number to participate in the poll.

Paul has won the poll for the last two years, but he did not participate in this year's conference.

The Texas congressman's past victories prompted organizers to change the format for the poll, doing away with paper ballots and offering online voting for participants.

The American Conservative Union, which runs CPAC, also commissioned a national poll of 600 self-identified conservatives reached by telephone this Tuesday and Wednesday.

That survey showed Romney clocking in in first place with 27 percent, followed closely by Santorum at 25 percent. Third-place finisher Gingrich garnered 20 percent support in the national poll.

Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida was the top choice for vice president among straw poll participants, while he and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Romney backer, tied at 15 percent among the national poll respondents.

"This is the first time ever in 25 years that we've ever done a corollary survey that asks the same exact questions," ACU pollster Tony Fabrizio told reporters during a press conference before the release of the results.

The margin of error for the national poll was plus-minus 4 percent.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio was the top choice for vice president among straw poll participants, while he and New Jersey governor and Romney backer Chris Christie tied at 15 percent among the national poll respondents.

Seeking to affirm his conservative credentials in front of a crowd of Republican activists today, Mitt Romney waged a defense of his time as governor of Massachusetts, declaring, “I was a severely conservative Republican governor.”

“I fought against all odds in a deep blue state,” Romney said.  “But I was a severely conservative Republican governor. I understand the battles we as conservatives must fight, because I have been on the front lines, and expect to be on those front lines again.”

It was a defense of a part of his record that has come under frequent attack during the course of the GOP primary. 

Earlier this morning, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum likened the statewide health care plan Romney launched in 2006 to a "stepchild” of President Obama’s federal program.

Romney’s speech was, in some ways, a vigorous defense of this morning’s broadside from Santorum, who swept a series of primary contests Tuesday night, posing a new threat to Romney’s path to the nomination.

But the defense involved a delicate dance for Romney, who touted his time as governor of Massachusetts, all while railing against career politicians.

“I happen to be the only candidate in this race – Republican or Democrat – who has never worked a day in Washington,” Romney said, adding, “I don’t have old scores to settle, or decades of cloakroom deals that I have to defend.”

“This gathering has always welcomed me,” Romney told the crowd of his record, “and you’ve consistently supported me, not because of my rhetoric, but because of my record in that deep blue state.”

Edited by NBC's Jay Rankin

President Obama announced changes to a rule that would have required some religious institutions to provide contraceptive coverage to their employees on Friday in a bow to complaints from religious groups and conservative Republicans.

Obama announced a rule that would require insurers who provide coverage to religiously-affiliated employers to notify employees of the contraceptive services for which they're eligible for free coverage.

It's a revision to a previous proposal that would have given groups like Catholic charities and hospitals a year to add contraceptive services to their health care plans; administration officials say they would have spent the interim period consulting with groups on ways to balance their religious concerns with the new requirement.

But today, Obama acknowledged that a chorus of critical Catholic bishops and other faith leaders, as well as criticism from lawmakers and candidates, compelled him to speed up the timeline and announce a final rule today.

“After the many genuine concerns that have been raised over the last few weeks, as well as, frankly, the more cynical desire on the part of some to make this into a political football, it became clear that spending months hammering out a solution was not going to be an option,” he said, addressing reporters in the White House briefing room today.

“So last week, I directed the Department of Health and Human Services to speed up the process that had already been envisioned,” Obama continued, as that department’s secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, stood next to him. “We weren't going to spend a year doing this; we're going to spend a week or two doing this.”

“Women who work at these institutions will have access to free contraceptive services, just like other women, and they'll no longer have to pay hundreds of dollars a year that could go towards paying the rent or buying groceries,” Obama said.

Exemptions from this rule for religious institutions where most employees are of the same faith, like churches, remain intact.

The White House contends that insurance companies will agree to cover such costs because preventive services reduce the likelihood of more expensive medical care like cancer treatment and unexpected pre and post-natal care.

While Obama said today the new rule preserves the “principle of religious liberty," his announcement immediately elicited a new round of outcry from detractors on the campaign trail, in Congress and beyond.

Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, speaking today at the Conservative Political Action Committee’s annual gathering in Washington, told a room full of activists that if elected, he would “reverse every single Obama regulation that attacks our religious liberty and threatens innocent life.”

Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO), a chief sponsor of a bill that would overturn the whole mandate, called the announcement “an accounting gimmick.”

“Just because you can come up with an accounting gimmick and pretend like religious institutions do not have to pay for the mandate, does not mean that you've satisfied the fundamental constitutional freedoms that all Americans are guaranteed,” he said in a written statement.

And while Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) said he thought it was “good that the President reaffirmed that the Federal government cannot force faith-based institutions to provide services that they teach are wrong,” he said measures like this demonstrate that “our Constitutional rights will continue to be threatened by the Administration’s policy goals.”

Religious organizations also sounded off, including the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a self-described legal and educational institute that “protects the free expression of all faith” and has so far filed three lawsuits in federal courts against the rule. The group noted that some religious organizations may object to having to pay an insurance company which “which will turn around and provide contraception to its employees for free.”

Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and a vocal opponent of the mandate, said that the change to the rule was “a first step in the right direction” but said that his group reserved “judgment on the details until we have seen them.”

But the new plan did seem to mollify some Democrats who had previously objected to the plan. Virginia Senate candidate Tim Kaine, the former governor of that state, said he was “pleased that the White House has taken further steps to ensure that all women have access to affordable contraception and to ensure that religious organizations will not be asked to violate their beliefs in the process.”

Kaine had a harsher tone on Tuesday, before the change was announced, saying the White House “made a bad decision in not allowing a broad enough religious-employer exemption.”

And Rep. John Larson (D-CT), who wrote a letter to Sebelius last week saying HHS needed to “re-engage in a dialogue with the religious community on this matter,” today praised the administration’s shift.

"In this politically charged environment, it is heartening to see that we can come together to find a path forward that protects the health needs of women while recognizing the conscience concerns of religious institutions,” Larson said in a statement.

NBC's Shawna Thomas, Libby Leist and Pete Williams contributed to this report.

How does Romney win the GOP nomination? Or can he? Thanks for the question, Devie!

Edited by NBC's Matt Loffman.

WASHINGTON -- Rick Santorum told an enthusiastic CPAC crowd that he was one of them, drawing contrasts his Republican presidential rivals, whose views he likened to President Obama’s.

"We know each other. We’ve worked together in the vineyards,” Santorum told the activists, stressing their common roots. “We've taken on the tough battles that confront this country. I know you and you know me and that's important because we've worked together.”

"Some say experience is a bad thing in this election. I don't think so. I think knowing the people who are the conservative leaders, knowing the people who have worked in the vineyards for decades, knowing the people who bring the ideas and the breath and the well spring of ideas to conservatism is important,” Santorum added.

The former Pennsylvania senator made his pitch to the activists, who rewarded him with a standing ovation, on the heels of his victories in a trio of nominating contests on Tuesday, upsetting Mitt Romney.

Santorum’s speech Friday was filled with subtle shots at Romney, though few specific mentions of his name. Santorum argued that money alone – a strength of the Romney campaign – isn’t enough to win the election. Republicans need passion, ignited by a conservative nominee, in order to win, he argued.

"As conservatives we lost our heart," he said, speaking of past losses in presidential campaigns. "The lesson we learned is that we will no longer abandon our principles for a hallowed victory in November."

Santorum has spent his time on the campaign trail this week largely focused on Romney and President Obama, with little mention of Newt Gingrich. His attacks at CPAC were clearly intended for Romney, the campaign’s frontrunner.

"We always talk about how we are going to get the moderates.  Why would an undecided voter, vote for a candidate of a party that the party's not excited about?" Santorum said.

He left the direct hits to the man who introduced him, Foster Friess.

The Wyoming billionaire is the chief funder of the "Red, White and Blue Fund" and has been traveling with the inner circle of the campaign -- raising questions about where the line is drawn between candidates ability to interact with their Super PACs  without coordinating.

Today, Friess opened with a joke about a liberal, a moderate and conservative walking into a bar.

The bartender says "Hi, Mitt," the punch line goes.

Edited by NBC's Morgan Parmet

Obama administration officials say they are are accommodating charity hospitals, religious-affiliated universities, or other religious organizations when it comes to providing employees free contraception under the federal health-care law.

What does that accommodation mean? The policy going forward will be the insurance company -- NOT the hospital or charity -- will have the opportunity to reach out and offer contraception coverage, free of charge, if a religious-affiliated employer objects to providing this coverage.

Per a fact sheet being passed around:

Under the new policy announced today, women will have free preventive care that includes contraceptive services no matter where she works. The policy also ensures that if a woman works for religious employers with objections to providing contraceptive services as part of its health plan, the religious employer will not be required to provide contraception coverage but her insurance company will be required to offer contraceptive care free of charge.

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, one of Mitt Romney's highest-value backers, juiced up the CPAC crowd early Friday in advance of the GOP frontrunner's speech to the group, lauding Romney as a "responsible" and "consistent" conservative.

"I believe he's the results-oriented conservative," McDonnell said to some applause in the ballroom, which was filling to the gills largely in anticipation of the next speaker, Rick Santorum.

"He's the guy, whether it's been as governor of Massachusetts, as head of a large private sector company, in turning around the Olympics, he's the results-oriented, can-do, consistent conservative," McDonnell said of Romney.

Listing his candidate's job-creation record, McDonnell added, "That's, to me, the kind of can-do responsible conservative leadership that we need for the United States of America." 

McDonnell's direct reference to his endorsee contrasted with yesterday's omission by former presidential candidates Herman Cain and Rick Perry -- both  of whom neglected to mention their support for Newt Gingrich in their addresses to the crowd.

The popular Virginia governor, who is widely discussed as a vice presidential pick, also offered details about his biography, including his 21 years in the United States Army.

And in a shot at Rick Santorum, he spoke emotionally about his daughter, an Army platoon leader who McDonnell said would call him from Iraq with tales of being under fire from the enemy.

"Yes I did get a little bit emotional. But she didn't," he said. "She got the job done."

He largely veered away from social issues but slammed the president for failing to balance the budget.

"I say Mr. President, take responsibility. You're the commander in chief, get the job done, quit making excuses, let's turn this country around," he said.

He also offered shoutouts to a list of fellow Republican governors who enjoy popularity in among conservative voters despite flagging overall approval ratings, including Govs. Scott Walker and Rick Scott.

Cliff Owen / AP

Mitt Romney addresses the Northern Virginia Technology Council - Consumer Electronics Presidential Series breakfast in Reston, Va., Friday, Feb. 10, 2012.

What a difference four years can make: Romney at CPAC in ’08 vs, ’12… Santorum (at 10:25 am ET), Romney (12:55 pm), and Gingrich (4:10 pm) all set to address CPAC, and straw poll results and Sarah Palin to come tomorrow… GOPers and Romney advisers getting nervous about Romney’s performance… Maine caucus results on Saturday… White House to address contraception policy (and possible changes) today… Obama five years ago today… And Santorum and Lew to appear on “Meet the Press.”

*** What a difference four years can make: On Feb. 7, 2008, fresh after his losses to John McCain on Super Tuesday, Mitt Romney walked into the ballroom at CPAC as a rock star and the conservative alternative to McCain. And when he told the audience he was exiting the presidential race, the boisterous crowd groaned, the L.A. Times reported at the time. Attendees also chanted, “Mitt, Mitt, Mitt,” the New York Times added. Conservatives there wanted someone else (Romney, Huckabee) rather than the man who was well on his way to becoming the party’s nominee (McCain). But almost exactly four years later, a funny thing has happened: Romney has turned into the 2012 version of McCain. Even though his positions and stances haven’t changed much from that ’08 campaign -- with the big exception of his 2012 emphasis on his business background -- Romney is now the one who’s his party’s likely nominee and who, at least right now, elicits little passion from the conservative base. Just check out this headline from the Washington Post: “At CPAC, little love for Mitt Romney, but most see him as inevitable nominee.”

*** Romney, Santorum, and Gingrich all set to address CPAC: Yet there’s another difference between Feb. 2008 and Feb. 2012: The GOP race right now is far from over, and Super Tuesday is nearly a month away. Today, Romney (at 12:55 pm ET), Rick Santorum (at 10:25 am), and Newt Gingrich (at 4:10 pm) address the CPAC confab. According to excerpts of his remarks, Gingrich will say, “Getting America again will require bold thinking and bold solutions. Many of these new approaches will be opposed by the establishment in both parties.” He will mention replacing the EPA with an “Environmental Solutions Agency”; creating a 21^st century Food and Drug Administration; replacing NASA’s bureaucracy; and limiting judges “who violate the Constitution.” In addition, Gingrich will discuss his support for an optional 15% flat tax, setting capital gains to zero, and bringing gas prices down to $2 per gallon. Tomorrow, we’ll get the CPAC straw poll results (at 4:15 pm ET) and the concluding speech by Sarah Palin (at 4:30 pm).

*** But the more things change, the more they stay the same: While things have changed for Romney from four years ago, this line from Romney’s speech a CPAC last year is very familiar, NBC’s Marc Koslow notes: “My father never graduated from college. He apprenticed as a lath and plaster carpenter, and he was darn good at it. He learned how to put a handful of nails in his mouth and spit them out, point forward. On his honeymoon, he and mom drove across the country. Dad sold aluminum paint along the way, to pay for gas and hotels.” It’s the same thing he said about his father in Colorado on Tuesday. So the more things change, the more they remain the same…

*** Republicans and advisers getting nervous about Romney’s performance: A growing challenge for Romney is Republicans and even his own advisers have become “increasingly anxious” about his performance, the Washington Post writes. “One prominent adviser told the candidate to sharpen his use of conservative code words and create ‘small pictures’ — vivid imagery, in other words — to connect with voters. Another flew to Boston to say that Romney’s message is too businesslike and broad to capture the passion of angry Republican voters. Still others have gone on television and written opinion columns to hammer home what is becoming a common theme this year: that Romney has not been able to ignite a cause when the GOP is primed to become part of one.” So we’ve gone from advisers taking credit (in the New York Times) for his turnaround in Florida, to now criticizing him (in the Washington Post) after his defeats on Tuesday. Folks, that isn’t characteristic of a winning presidential campaign…

*** Maine results on Saturday: A final note about the GOP presidential race: On Saturday, we’ll get the results from Maine’s caucus, which has taken place (for the most part) from Feb. 4 through Feb. 11. The results are expected to be announced around 7:30 pm ET, the Maine GOP has told First Read. Maine awards 24 delegates, but like in Iowa, Colorado, and Minnesota, the precise allocation of delegates will be determined at a later date. After his remarks at CPAC, Romney heads to Portland, ME.

*** White House to address contraception policy today: Turning away from the GOP presidential contest to the contraception controversy the Obama White House is facing, First Read can report that it will address its contraception policy TODAY. Per the AP, “A person familiar with the decision says President Barack Obama will announce a plan to accommodate religious employers outraged by a rule that would require them to cover birth control for women free of charge.” The White House definitely wants to be able to put a period on this. While this story has been at the very least a headache for Team Obama and could be a potential problem come November, the culture-war rhetoric we heard from Republican leaders at CPAC yesterday suggested something that could turn of independent voters. It may end up a wash in the end, but it’s fascinating that both political parties – in their heart of hearts – believes this contraception issue is a political winner for them.

*** Obama five years ago: By the way, today happens to be fifth anniversary of Obama’s presidential announcement in Springfield, IL. (One of your First Read authors was covering the event there, and remains cold from the frigid air that day.) The Obama campaign is up with a video commemorating that day. And, not surprisingly, the RNC is up with its own video marking that announcement.

*** On “Meet” this Sunday: NBC’s David Gregory interviews Rick Santorum and White House Chief of Staff Jacob Lew.

Countdown to Super Tuesday: 25 days
Countdown to Election Day: 270 days

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*** Friday’s “Daily Rundown” line-up: One of us (!!!) with a preview of today's 2012er CPAC speeches, a live report from CPAC with NBC's Jamie Novogrod and more on what the mood in that crowd says about the mood out in the country with Indiana Republican Party Communications Director and Bush 43 White House veteran Pete Seat… NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin on the latest violence in Syria and TIME's Bobby Ghosh on what's at stake… NBC's Kristen Welker on what you might have missed in Washington this week… More 2012 news with The New York Times' Nick Confessore, TheGrio.com/msnbc's Joy-Ann Reid and msnbc's Willie Geist.

*** Friday’s “Jansing & Co.” line-up: MSNBC’s Chris Jansing interviews Santorum benefactor  Foster Friess, former Gore/Hillary Clinton senior adviser Doug Hattaway, former Perry & Gingrich campaign manager Rob Johnson; former Bush speechwriter and Wash Post columnist Michael Gerson, and MSNBC Contributor Robert Traynham.

*** Friday’s “MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts” line-up: MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts talks with Politico’s Roger Simon, National Journal’s Beth Reinhard, Wendy Schiller, Family Research Council’s Ken Blackwell, Meghan Smith (Catholics for Choice) & Kristen Day (Democrats for Life)

*** Friday’s “NOW with Alex Wagner” line-up: Alex Wagner’s guests include the Washington Post’s Jonathan Capehart, Politicos’s Ben White, Daily Beast Contributor and Editor of Citizen Jane Politics Patria Murphy, NBC’s Luke Russert, the New Yorker’s Ryan Lizza, Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards, and TheGrio.com Managing Editor and MSNBC Contributor Joy-Ann Reid

*** Friday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell interviews NBC’s David Gregory, Florida Senate candidate Connie Mack, Dem strategist Bob Shrum and GOP strategist Vin Weber, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, NBC’s Luke Russert, and the Washington Post’s Jonathan Capehart.

*** Friday’s “News Nation with Tamron Hall” line-up: MSNBC’s Tamron Hall interviews Michael Smerconish.

*** Saturday's (and Sunday's) "Weekends with Alex Witt" line-up: MSNBC's Alex Witt interviews NBC's Harry Smith as part of her "Office Politics" series.

“Three of the four Republican presidential candidates are addressing a major conservative gathering in Washington, giving them a high-profile stage to reshape their messages at a moment of uncertainty in the contest,” the AP writes.

“Addressing the annual convention of party faithful is a rite of passage for presidential candidates, but for Santorum and Romney, the stakes are much higher,” The Hill writes. “Still reeling from his bruising Tuesday loss to Santorum in Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri, Romney must convince activists he’s the bona fide conservative he claims to be. For Santorum, the challenge is to win over those whose doubts about his electability against President Obama make them reluctant to bet on a losing horse.”

GINGRICH: “Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has adopted a Southern Strategy that he hopes will keep his campaign alive. It’s only a long shot, but Gingrich doesn’t have many better options,” Stu Rothenberg writes.

“Newt Gingrich was just days away from the Jan. 31 Florida Republican presidential primary when he told reporters that his campaign was down to its last $600,000,” Bloomberg says. “Five losing contests later, Gingrich and Winning Our Future, an outside political action committee supporting him, are almost silent on television airwaves, offering free water and coffee at events, and revamping a fundraising strategy based largely on the support of a single wealthy backer, Sheldon Adelson and the Las Vegas casino owner’s family.”

Karl Rove says it’s Santorum, not Gingrich who is “Romney’s main challenger.”

ROMNEY: Peggy Noonan likens Romney’s campaign to the “Death Star,” per Political Wire: "Nobody in the conservative base hates Rick. Newt is hated by many and Mitt by some. Mr. Santorum is liked. He has real indignation about what's happened to America, and he brings passion to his ideas about reform. He's got little money, little organization -- there's no broad assumption he can pull it off. And by the time the Romney campaign is done dismantling him, he may have some people who hate him. But this will only underscore the Romney campaign's reputation for destroying, not creating. And nobody loves a Death Star."

“Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has accused President Obama of attacking religious freedom because of a federal mandate requiring insurers to cover contraception. But Romney, who overhauled the Massachusetts health care system, did not change an almost identical mandate in Massachusetts,” the Boston Globe reports, adding, “The Massachusetts mandate dates to 2002, when Republican Governor Jane Swift signed a bill requiring health insurers to cover contraception, in the same way they cover other prescription drugs. (Unlike the new federal law, it did not require insurers to provide contraception for free.)”

More: “When Romney was shaping his 2006 health care overhaul, he wanted to allow insurance plans that offered coverage only for hospitalization and catastrophic illness, without other mandated benefits. But the Legislature rejected his proposal. He wrote in his 2009 book ‘No Apology’ that he believed features added by the Legislature, including mandates for in vitro fertilization and dental care, would be expensive. But the contraception mandate never came up… When Romney signed the health care overhaul into law, there was no change to the contraception mandate.”

“Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who has been attacking former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum for being Washington insiders, hosted a $10,000-a-head event with lobbyists and industry executives today at the JW Marriott in Washington, D.C.,” the Boston Globe writes.

“Message to Mitt: Pump up the volume,” the New York Daily News writes. “After losing a trifecta of contests in Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado, Mitt Romney’s supporters are calling on him to sharpen his message and soften his image.” More: “He needs to show that he understands that conservatives have been burned before, that they have been sold a bill of goods on the campaign trail only to be betrayed once a candidate gets in office,” said Republican strategist Keith Appell. “He has to convey to conservatives that he is not that guy, that he is not going to be the second coming of George H.W. Bush,” Appell added, referring to Bush’s “read my lips — no new taxes” flipflop.

“Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, a native of Michigan and the son of a former Michigan governor, says he would like to win the state’s primary later this month but ‘I’m not expecting a landslide,’” the Boston Globe writes.

SANTORUM: “Rick Santorum, fresh off victories in three states, will use a speech to Republican activists to attempt to solidify his position as the prime alternative to Mitt Romney in the Republican presidential race,” Bloomberg writes.

“Of the GOP presidential hopefuls, Santorum is by far the most public and emphatic about his faith, drawing on his Catholicism and deeply held views on social issues as the foundation of his message. It serves to solidify his standing among religiously motivated voters -- and subtly remind them of lingering reservations of opponent Mitt Romney's spiritual background,” AP writes, adding, “When the GOP field was at its fullest, several candidates were fighting to be the favorite of religious conservative voters. Now, Santorum is moving to consolidate that wing of the party, which could make him a force in places like Alabama, Kansas, Oklahoma and others on the upcoming primary calendar.”

“Foster Friess, the wealthy investor who is fueling Rick Santorum's presidential campaign, is enjoying his new-found fame,” Reuters writes. " ‘I am. You know why? I have a huge ego,’ Friess joked in an interview with Reuters. … On Friday morning, the 71-year-old will formally introduce Santorum at an annual CPAC convention of thousands of conservatives…. A devout Christian whose website is laced with Biblical quotations, he brings an aw-shucks grin to interviews and tries to disarm people with a cornball joke or a rehearsed story. On Thursday afternoon, Friess was in the back of a town car headed for the U.S. Capitol to meet with Arizona Senator Jon Kyl ‘Just a pal. Just a friend,’ Friess said.”

More: "‘Obama is King George III in spades," he said, referring to the British 18th century monarch rejected by American colonists, and his reputation as an overbearing ruler. Friess had no hesitation in bringing the Mormon Church, of which the Republican frontrunner Mitt Romney is a member, into an attack on abuse of welfare benefits, suggesting, without explanation, that ‘little Mormon gals’ were getting pregnant with rich men and taking welfare to pay for their babies.”

NBC’s Kristen Welker reported on “TODAY” that it’s very likely there will be an announcement today on the contraception issue to allay concerns of religious leaders.

“Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday that he is ‘determined’ to find a solution to the controversial birth control issue and that the administration is making ‘a significant attempt to work this out,’” The Hill writes of Biden’s appearance on a Cincinnati radio show, adding, “ ‘As a practicing Catholic, I am of the view that this can be worked out and should be worked out and I know the president feels the same way,’ the vice president told Cincinnati radio station WLW, adding that the ‘frustration’ voiced in recent days ‘is real.’”

“Ten states now have President Barack Obama’s OK to scrap one of the most rigorous and unpopular mandates in American education — that all students measure up in reading and math by 2014. In exchange, the states had to promise they would raise standards and develop more creative ways to measure what students are learning,” AP notes. “‘We’ve offered every state the same deal,’ Obama said Thursday. ‘If you’re willing to set higher, more honest standards than the ones that were set by No Child Left Behind, then we’re going to give you the flexibility to meet those standards.’”

Michelle Obama will raise money in Boston March 9.

“The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL), over possible violations of insider-trading laws, the Washington Post reports. “Bachus, who holds one of the most influential positions in the House chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, ‘has been a frequent trader on Capitol Hill, buying stock options while overseeing the nation's banking and financial services industries.’”

FLORIDA: “The Republican-controlled Florida Senate passed a redistricting map today, sending Congressional lines that cement a strong Republican majority in the delegation to Gov. Rick Scott’s (R) desk,” Roll Call writes. “Democrats immediately announced they had filed a lawsuit alleging that the map violates a 2010 popularly enacted state constitutional amendment that prohibits crafting Congressional lines with ‘the intent to favor or disfavor a political party or an incumbent.’ Democrats blasted the state GOP, which also controls the state House.”

MASSACHUSETTS: “A new UMass Lowell/Herald poll shows Joseph Kennedy III (D) trounces Sean Bielat (R) in a general election trial heat by a 60% to 28% margin in a race for the seat being vacated by Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA),” Political Wire.

VIRGINIA: “A Republican member of the Virginia House of Representatives was so excited his bill passed that he took a knee. And Tebowed,” the New York Daily News writes, adding, “The legislation, which would allow Virginia's homeschooled students to play at their local high schools despite not attending the school, had recently earned the nickname Tebow.”

And, yes, there’s a photo.