“President Barack Obama and Speaker John Boehner will tee up for a round of golf on June 18, the House Republican's office confirmed Friday,” Roll Call writes.

The Sunday New York Times: “Saddled with a faltering economic recovery, President Obama is rebuilding the campaign machinery that vaulted him into office, hoping it can overcome the challenges of persistently high unemployment and a fractured coalition of supporters.”

“The federal government has moved from economic ‘recovery mode’ to focusing on ‘standing up’ the private sector to fuel a turnaround, a top White House adviser said Sunday,” The Hill writes.

Today's top story from the New York Times: "President Obama’s national security team is contemplating troop reductions in Afghanistan that would be steeper than those discussed even a few weeks ago, with some officials arguing that such a change is justified by the rising cost of the war and the death of Osama bin Laden, which they called new 'strategic considerations.'"

That said, Politico writes: "A whirlwind tour of three crucial bases shows no signs of the war winding down, or of Americans getting ready to leave following last year’s successful surge."

“President Barack Obama and Speaker John Boehner will tee up for a round of golf on June 18, the House Republican's office confirmed Friday,” Roll Call writes.

The Sunday New York Times: “Saddled with a faltering economic recovery, President Obama is rebuilding the campaign machinery that vaulted him into office, hoping it can overcome the challenges of persistently high unemployment and a fractured coalition of supporters.”

“The federal government has moved from economic ‘recovery mode’ to focusing on ‘standing up’ the private sector to fuel a turnaround, a top White House adviser said Sunday,” The Hill writes.

Today's top story from the New York Times: "President Obama’s national security team is contemplating troop reductions in Afghanistan that would be steeper than those discussed even a few weeks ago, with some officials arguing that such a change is justified by the rising cost of the war and the death of Osama bin Laden, which they called new 'strategic considerations.'"

That said, Politico writes: "A whirlwind tour of three crucial bases shows no signs of the war winding down, or of Americans getting ready to leave following last year’s successful surge."

FLORIDA: “If Floridians want welfare, they better make sure they are drug-free,” the New York Daily News reports. “Republican Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill on Tuesday that requires benefit recipients to undergo drug testing.”

“Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos was in full damage control mode Wednesday, the day after a St. Augustine radio host hung up on the U.S. Senate hopeful for refusing to answer whether he would support Rep. Paul Ryan’s controversial budget,” Roll Call reports.

VIRGINIA: “As a Senator, George Allen (R) co-sponsored a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and worked a pledge to keep marriage "traditional" into just about every re-election stump speech,” Roll Call reports. “But these days, as Allen tries to get his job back, he doesn't talk about gay marriage. A top campaign aide said the Senator keeps social issues on the back burner and instead talks with Virginians about the issues they raise: gas prices, jobs and the economy, and the need to rein in federal government spending.”

In his latest National Journal column, NBC’s Charlie Cook breaks down the 2012 GOP field. On Huntsman: "[I]t’s awfully hard to see how this candidacy works." On Romney: "Although he enjoys national name recognition and an impressive network of supporters and donors remaining from his 2008 bid for the GOP nomination, Romney carries burdens that may limit his ability to expand his current levels of support." On Pawlenty: "At this stage, Pawlenty’s strength is more theoretical than real, but when you work through the challenges that each of the other candidates faces, he seems to have fewer problems than the rest."

BACHMANN: Politico’s Jonathan Martin points out that Bachmann announced she was likely to launch a presidential bid, “hours after Sarah Palin announced a bus tour.” And: “The Minnesotan called Palin ‘a friend,’ but quickly added that no two candidates ‘are interchangeable’ and then touted her resume as a tax attorney, education reformer and former state senator. Bachmann declined to say if she would announce in time to participate in a debate on June 13th in New Hampshire, but said she would decide soon.”

Proof the Bachmann people know they’re competing for the same oxygen as Palin… The New Hampshire Union Leader writes of Palin’s trip to New Hampshire and then adds, “Coincidentally, late this afternoon, the point person for Minnesota U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, a potential presidential candidate who, like Palin, is a champion of the Tea Party/liberty movement, released details of Bachmann's aggressive schedule in New Hampshire this weekend and early next week.”

“Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann told reporters tonight that she will travel to her hometown of Waterloo next month to announce whether she will run for president,” the Des Moines Register writes.

The Des Moines Register’s Obradovich: “People don’t come to Iowa to announce they’re not running. If she actually schedules a speech, that’ll be pretty big tip-off that she’s jumping in. She touted her fund-raising, including a 30-hour effort that her staff said raised over $260,000.”

“Tea Party favorite Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) on Thursday night spent five minutes on the House floor in an attempt to justify her vote for the Patriot Act, after admitting to receiving significant feedback from her supporters urging her to reject it,” The Hill reports.

CHRISTIE: The Bergen Record: “Governor Christie said this morning that he will pull New Jersey out of a regional cap-and-trade energy program.” GOP 12’s Heinze writes that the move “will encourage speculation that he might run for president in 2012.”

GINGRICH: The Comeback Kid? In New Hampshire, “[T]he crowds heard Gingrich declare at nearly every stop that his campaign is alive and well, casting himself as a ‘comeback kid’ — a moniker once widely applied to his old nemesis Bill Clinton,” the Washington Post writes. He said, “Look what happened to me over the last 10 days: We had every Washington analyst, except one, explain that my campaign was dead. I just relaxed. They were in a feeding frenzy, they had to get it out of their system, and I knew they would eventually calm down. The trick is, we need to stay focused on talking about what matters for America.”

“Republican presidential hopeful and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich is heading to Columbia,” the AP writes. “Gingrich will speak at a Five Points Rotary Club luncheon Friday at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. It will be Gingrich's first visit to the state since he criticized GOP plans for a sweeping overhaul of Medicare, and his first visit since officially launching his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president earlier this month.”

HUNTSMAN: Demon RINO: A Christian conservative blog, Verum Serum, makes this video taking aim at Huntsman’s moderate positions.

While on his California swing, the Orange County Register’s editorial page writes, “It's too early to make any meaningful judgments about Mr. Huntsman as a presidential contender but his credentials, particularly the economic stability of Utah and his unique foreign policy experience, make him an intriguing addition to a Republican field of candidates that needs some pizzazz.”

PALIN: On the news of Sarah Palin’s reemergence, The Chicago Sun-Times’ Steinberg writes, “As if the death of Osama bin Laden weren’t enough good news for one month to offer the once-sagging political fortunes of the Obama administration — the terrorist mastermind was killed May 1, though it already seems like a year ago — when you include the failure of the Republican Medicare overhaul to pass in the Senate, plus indications that Tea Party darling Sarah Palin might actually run for president, the mood at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue must border on unbridled jubilation.”

PAWLENTY: “In his first foray into New Hampshire since becoming an official candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty yesterday denounced the federal stimulus program, even though under his leadership his state benefited from billions of dollars of the aid,” the Boston Globe reports. “Pawlenty met with reporters and the public and toured Cirtronics, an electronics manufacturing company that indirectly received $935,000 in federal stimulus money.”

“Promising honest debates about the nation’s most serious problems, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty paid a visit to Cirtronics Corporation on Thursday afternoon,” the New Hampshire Union Leader writes. (But check out the photo accompanying the story…)

ROMNEY: The Des Moines Register tees up Romney’s trip to Iowa today, his first trip this cycle, and it’s not glowing: “Many of Mitt Romney’s key Iowa backers from four years ago have scattered or have so far declined to commit to support the potential presidential candidate, partly because he has campaigned so lightly here so far… Several Iowans who were gung-ho for Romney last election argue that given the current circumstances, he has few excuses for avoiding Iowa.”

“Republican Mitt Romney is returning to Iowa to begin what his aides promise will be a leaner campaign for the state's leadoff nominating caucuses than the expensive juggernaut he assembled here in his 2008 race,” the AP’s Beaumont reports. The former Massachusetts governor plans to officially announce his second bid for the presidency next week in New Hampshire, the state around which he's built his 2012 strategy.”

The Boston Globe’s headline on Romney’s trip: “For GOP moderates, new hope in Iowa.” From the story: “[S]plit loyalties within its ranks could improve the chances of a more moderate GOP candidate like Mitt Romney, who stumbled here in 2008 and has spent little time in Iowa since. The former Massachusetts governor, who makes his first 2011 visit to Iowa today and will formally announce his candidacy Thursday, is up against the fact that, over the past quarter-century, highly motivated Christian conservatives have played an outsize role in a presidential selection process here.”

RYAN: Dick Cheney, according to the Houston Chronicle (via GOP 12) says he hopes Ryan doesn’t run, because “that would ruin a good man who has a lot of work to do.” He also said (really, he said this): "I worship the ground the Paul Ryan walks on.”

“President Obama struck back at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel in a speech to a pro-Israel lobbying group on Sunday, defending his stance that talks over a Palestinian state should be focused on Israel’s pre-1967 borders, along with negotiated land swaps, and challenging Israel to ‘make the hard choices’ necessary to bring about a stable peace,” the New York Times writes.

“Mr. Obama, speaking before a conference of the influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee, offered familiar assurances that the United States’ commitment to Israel’s long-term security was ‘ironclad.’ But citing the rising political upheaval near Israel’s borders, he presented his peace plan as the best chance Israel has to avoid growing isolation. ‘We cannot afford to wait another decade, or another two decades, or another three decades, to achieve peace,’ Mr. Obama said. The world, he said, ‘is moving too fast.’”

“President Obama sought to prove his pro-Israel creds Sunday by assuring the nation's largest pro-Israel lobby that America's commitment to the security of the Jewish state is unwavering,” the New York Daily News adds.

There have been plenty of critics on the right of Obama’s speech about Israel. The Boston Globe, though, says, “Netanyahu was hearing what he chose to hear when he objected to the principles for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement that President Obama outlined in his recent speech on the Mideast.” And: “Obama was right to say what he said. And the overall import of his speech was protective of Israel’s long-term interests… More than ever, Israel needs the security that can only come from a two-state peace agreement. Netanyahu would be acting in Israel’s interest if he welcomed Obama’s offer to help forge that peace.”

“George Mitchell, who stepped down as the Obama administration’s special envoy to the Middle East last week, said Sunday that President Obama’s call to base Israeli-Palestinian peace talks on pre-1967 borders is not a threat to Israel,” The Hill writes. Mitchell said on ABC, “I don't believe it is threatening Israel. A major objective of this initiative, among others, is to prevent a disaster for Israel from occurring at the United Nations General Assembly in September, when the Palestinians have said they will see a unilateral declaration of statehood. The president spoke out strongly against that. We oppose it. And the way to prevent that from occurring is to provide an alternative in direct negotiation that would foreclose or make not necessary that option.”

The Boston Globe on the backlash Cornell West is facing: “A leading black scholar is unapologetic for his scathing and racially loaded comments about President Obama last week, which have ignited fierce blowback from African-American leaders and intellectuals in arguments that continue to rage in black media and on the Web.” More: “Critics have suggested that West’s comments, published on the political blog Truthdig, were motivated by personal slights. West has acknowledged he felt Obama disrespected him and did not return his calls after West stumped for him in the 2008 election. Critics have also described West as a phony, an ivory tower advocate for the poor, or just unhinged. ‘My question to Dr. West: Is this personal or it is political?’ the Rev. Al Sharpton, civil rights activist and Obama ally, said in an interview. ‘Where has the president’s politics changed since when [West] endorsed and supported him for president?”

“Stephen J. Kerrigan, who also helped coordinate the Democratic convention when it was in Boston in 2004, has been named as chief executive officer overseeing the 2012 convention in Charlotte, N.C.,” the Boston Globe reports.

A bill that would have “cut billions in tax breaks for the largest oil companies” failed 52-48 in the Senate, The Hill notes. It needed 60 votes to advance.

Here’s this from Roll Call: “‘Gang of Six’ Collapses on Itself.” “Hopes for a grand bipartisan debt limit deal took a big hit Tuesday after Sen. Tom Coburn pulled out of the ‘gang of six’ talks. … One source close to the talks said the break occurred after Coburn demanded an additional $130 billion in Medicare cuts over the next decade from current beneficiaries. That proposal goes beyond what was included in the president’s fiscal commission plan, on which the group was basing its talks. ‘He is asking for deep Medicare cuts beyond what the fiscal commission proposed and beyond even Paul Ryan’s [R-Wis.] proposal,’ the source said. ‘That is just not going to happen.’”

“House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, who as the House GOP’s lead watchdog has questioned the legitimacy of some Obama administration travel, jetted to Puerto Rico during the recess on a taxpayer-funded trip that included work and down time with a pal, POLITICO has learned.

Issa’s friend and former colleague from the House, Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno, invited him to stay at the historic governor’s mansion in San Juan, a committee spokesman said Tuesday.”

The Washington Post’s fact checker gave Darrell Issa “two Pinocchios” for saying that the Mexican government said the Obama administration had committed an “act of war.” Issa’s office denied that he said “act of war” but “active war.” “We find it interesting that Issa’s office denied he said “act of war” but then defended his right to do so when shown a second quote,” the Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler writes.

“Former Sen. Blanche Lincoln is planning to set up shop on K Street. Alston & Bird will announce this week that the Arkansas Democrat will join its operation, according to a source close to the firm,” Roll Call reports.

The Hill: “Republicans on Capitol Hill may be in the process of learning a hard lesson: Meddling with Medicare, whatever the nation’s fiscal circumstances, just isn’t popular.”

On that note, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced it’s running automated phone calls attacking House Republicans for voting to overhaul the program for those under 55. An example of one of the calls in 20 congressional districts across the country:

“Hi, I’m calling from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee calling about Congressman Lou Barletta’s vote to end Medicare. You’ve paid into Medicare for more than 25 years and deserve the Medicare benefits you’ve earned. Under the Barletta plan, Medicare ends and you’ll have to save about $182,000 more to pay for your health care. Where will you get $182,000? Everyone agrees we must cut spending and tighten our belt, but Barletta has made the wrong choice. Ending Medicare to pay for subsidies for Big Oil making huge profits or tax breaks for the ultra rich! That’s not right.”

John Harwood on the fight over raising the debt-ceiling: "'No one wants to vote to increase the debt limit,' said Donald Marron, a former economic adviser to President George W. Bush who now runs the Tax Policy Center. But neither does any leader in Congress dispute that 'the cap has to go up.' That history explains why financial markets have shrugged off the drama now building around the debt limit. When Mr. Boehner warned last week that 'there will be no debt-limit increase' without deep spending cuts, his audience at the New York Economic Club responded with polite applause and no apparent alarm. As politicians with governing responsibility, Mr. Obama, Mr. Boehner and Mr. Reid must amass legislative majorities for an increase by August to preclude government default, according to the Treasury Department. That effort also includes, Mr. Marron noted, 'jockeying to see who wins the right to vote "no."'"

“The United States has reached a ‘critical moment’ in its relationship with Pakistan after the killing of Osama bin Laden, Senator John F. Kerry said yesterday before flying to Pakistan to address what he called ‘very disturbing’ evidence of the Pakistani government’s knowledge of insurgent sanctuaries,” the Washington Post reports, adding, “The Massachusetts Democrat is the most senior US official to travel to Pakistan since the raid on the Al Qaeda leader’s compound.”

BACHMANN: After a March head fake brought on by Bachmann adviser Ed Brookover, some Iowa Republicans say they expect Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann to announce her campaign for the White House at a May 26 Polk County GOP fundraiser in Des Moines. The Tea Party favorite is headlining the fundraiser and co-chair of the Polk County GOP in Iowa, Dave Funk, told the Daily Caller his "sense is she's going to run." Funk said the Minnesota congresswoman will go on a five day tour of the Hawkeye state after the May 26 fundraiser. 

DANIELS: After House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said Tuesday on the "Today" show he would like to see Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels bring the same reforms he made in Indiana to Washington, D.C., the Republican said his "chances would actually be quite good" if he were pitted against President Obama in the 2012 presidential election, Reuters reports.

GINGRICH: Newt Gingrich, whose personal wealth may not match some of his other likely opponents, plans to play in every single primary state, Politico writes. “Gingrich isn’t pinning his hopes on any single state, believing instead that, for those who can’t fund their own campaigns, the drawn-out contest will require a prudent use of resources spread across the board.”

Newt Gingrich’s past experience – and problems – may both help and hurt his campaign, the AP writes. “Viewed by many as a masterful grass-roots strategist and message manipulator, he led Republicans to control of the House for the first time in four decades. Still, he's remembered as much for his stormy fall — he faced ethics complaints and later resigned — as for his triumphant rise. And questions about his temperament still surface.”

HUNTSMAN: Politico reports former Utah governor and U.S. ambassador to China Jon Huntsman is adding on to his previously scheduled trip to New Hampshire to give a speech at the University of Southern New Hampshire on May 21. His now five-day Granite State trip will now begin on May 19^th with a stop in Lebanon near the Vermont border, and continues with a meeting with the state GOP chairman, Jack Kimball, in Concord the next day.

The Washington Post’s Cilizza reports that Huntsman’s political action committee has hired two more communications operatives: James Richardson, who first signed on with Haley Barbour and will oversee online communications, and Matt Connelly, who has worked on California gubernatorial campaigns and will be in charge of rapid response.

PAUL: Ron Paul is planning a rally in Exeter, NH on Friday, during a two-day swing through the state, WMUR reports.

ROMNEY: "Mitt Romney, whose emerging candidacy for president has been clouded by GOP doubts over his health care plan in Massachusetts, is planning a bit of political jujitsu tomorrow: taking the biggest perceived negative of his campaign and attempting to turn it into a positive," the Boston Globe writes. The former Massachusetts governor will seek to redefine his candidacy by delivering a major speech outlining his vision for dismantling President Obama’s overhaul and creating a new national model. Romney is expected to propose tax breaks for consumers buying coverage on the open market; a requirement that insurers cover patients with preexisting conditions; and provisions giving states more power in the health coverage arena."

By the way, Romney will deliver his speech in Michigan, and MSNBC.com’s Carrie Dann notes that a new poll from Lansing-based EPIC-MRA shows Obama’s job approval underwater in the state, with 61% giving the president a negative rating. But it’s worth noting that the poll was in the field before Osama bin Laden’s death, which -- per NBC’s latest survey -- is worth at least a modest bump for the commander-in-chief.

According to IowaPolitcs.com, Mitt Romney will make his first appearance in Iowa when he gives a speech and participates in a question and answer session in Des Moines on May 27 as part of a series of presidential lectures held in partnership with the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs.

TRUMP: An indication Trump might not actually run? He said on FOX, per GOP 12: "I have heard over a lifetime that if you have really accomplished a lot and done a lot, you cannot run for high political office. And I can see why. I can see now why Ross Perot dropped out… I heard from people that were involved that he was just getting hammered because he did a lot. He did a lot of deals, a lot of everything."

Trump spoke at length about his hair in a Rolling Stone interview, per the New York Daily News: "Okay, what I do is wash it with Head and Shoulders," Trump said. "I don't dry it, though. I let it dry by itself. It takes about an hour… I mean, I get a lot of credit for comb-overs. But it's not really a comb-over… Yes, I do use a comb. Do I comb it forward? No, I don't comb it forward. It's sort of a little bit forward and back. I've combed it the same way for years. Same thing, every time… I actually don't have a bad hairline. When you think about it, it's not bad."

NEBRASKA: "The Tea Party Express announced Wednesday morning that they are backing Attorney General Jon Bruning in the GOP primary for the candidates aiming to unseat Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), marking the group’s first endorsement of the 2012 cycle," per Roll Call.

NEW YORK: "It is a special election that was never supposed to be this close. But outside groups have begun pouring money into New York’s 26th district, a conservative region near the Empire State’s western border that has become an unlikely battlefield in a new age of political influence," Roll Call reports. The election takes place May 24.

TEXAS: "Retired Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (D) will announce Wednesday morning that he is filing to run for the open Senate seat in Texas, according to a Democratic source close to the campaign," Roll Call writes.

The New York Post’s lead: “Five Republicans slammed President Obama -- but went easy on one another -- in South Carolina last night for the first presidential debate of the 2012 elections, while many big-name potential candidates stayed on the sidelines.”

“Republican presidential hopefuls on Thursday night didn't allow President Obama's widely-praised operation that killed Usama bin Laden this week to deter them from attacking his foreign policy or blaming his domestic policies for high gas prices and the fragile economy recovery,” Fox News writes of its South Carolina debate last night. “Pawlenty and Santorum were among the five participants seeking to prove themselves to be more than the party's B-team as they try to catapult their White House bids into the national spotlight.”  

This may be the most important point of the night: “The candidates offered few specific solutions for adding jobs and improving the economy, a key voter issue according to an April poll by Winthrop University,” The (South Carolina) State newspaper’s O’Connor writes. (There was only about six minutes out of 90 devoted to the economy, by our rough count last night.)

The New York Times’ take: “While candidates in presidential debates often need no introduction, the participants who filed onto the stage at the Peace Center for the Performing Arts offered an exception to that rule. There were two former governors, a member of Congress, a former senator and the former chief executive of a chain of pizza restaurants — all of whom round out the lower rung of an unsettled Republican field.”

More: “The chairman of the Republican National Committee, Reince Priebus, sought to allay the worries of party activists who believe Republicans are missing an opportunity to start defining Mr. Obama in their quest to win back the White House. ‘As we all know, there are numerous other candidates that are looking at it — and thank God,’ Mr. Priebus said before the proceedings began. “Quite frankly, I think Americans are sick and tired of two-year, knock-out drag-out contests with a zillion debates and forums.”

The Washington Post calls the debate an “awkward moment” for the GOP. “With many of the party’s potentially strongest candidates either choosing not to participate — or still making up their minds about whether to run — the 90-minute debate offered a platform for second-tier candidates to make their case. They took full advantage of the spotlight, but in the process they offered dissonance in the GOP message along with moments of comedic relief to the audience. That made for a sometimes-entertaining evening for the audience in the hall and those watching on television. But it probably did little to help Republican voters figure out who has the stature and the strength to take on the president in 2012.”

The Wall Street Journal: “Just days after Mr. Obama scored one of the biggest triumphs of his presidency with the killing of Osama bin Laden, several of the candidates laid into Mr. Obama for actions taken elsewhere in the world. Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty congratulated Mr. Obama on the bin Laden killing but complained that the president had deferred to allies in the intervention in Libya. ‘If he said [Libyan leader] Moammar Gadhafi must go, he needs to maintain the options to make Gadhafi go. And he didn't do that,’ Mr. Pawlenty said.”

Ouch. Pawlenty’s comments on climate change are dubbed, “The ‘I’m sorry’ moment” by The State. It did note, however, that it thought Pawlenty (and Paul) got the “loudest support.” It also labels Santorum as “dodging the question,” for his answer on Pakistan and what he’d do about it.

HUNTSMAN: Some members of Congress – including some in key primary state South Carolina – reject the notion that Jon Huntsman’s campaign is a nonstarter because of his work as an ambassador in the Obama administration, The Hill writes. “I think that enhances his credentials — he was sent to represent the people of the United States,” said Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.).

Jon Huntsman is scheduled to meet with Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina today, the Salt Lake Tribune writes.

PAUL: An online money bomb for Rep. Ron Paul raised nearly $590,000 in advance of Paul’s appearance in the Fox News debate last night, The Hill reports.

Paul has opened a campaign office in Ankeny, IA, the Des Moines Register writes.

PAWLENTY: Tim Pawlenty “found himself on the defense several times during the debate,” Minnesota Public Radio recounts. “He defended his fiscal record as Minnesota governor, claiming he did not leave Minnesota's finances in poor shape. And he, once again, apologized for his early interest in cap and trade, a market-based system designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

Erick Erickson says Pawlenty and Cain won the debate. “Tonight, he proved he is Presidential material. Maybe it was because of the people surrounding him — the one eyed man is king among the blind. But I think it was more than that. He came across polished in his own right and not just in comparison to the others. His answers were solid. His admission of error on cap and trade was solid. His jobs answer was golden. His attacks on the President were spot on.”

Roll Call’s Bellantoni: “Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty used the first Republican presidential debate — and the absence of major contenders — to showcase his credentials, deflect criticism of unpopular positions and introduce himself to voters.” But: “The most newsworthy element of the Fox News-hosted forum held Thursday night in Greenville, S.C., might have been the number of likely candidates missing from the stage.”

ROMNEY: In two recent New Hampshire polls from Suffolk University and the University of New Hampshire, Mitt Romney has a “commanding” lead, taking 35 percent of the vote in the Suffolk poll and 36 percent in UNH’s, U.S. News reports. The only other candidate to clock in with double digits is Donald Trump who had 11 percent in the UNH survey.

Romney told Politico that he agrees with President Obama’s decision not to show photos of Osama bin Laden, writing in a statement, “"It's best not to release the photo because it has the potential to incite retaliatory violence against Americans.”  

Well, that didn’t last long: “The GOP plan to replace Medicare with vouchers will have to wait, party leaders acknowledged yesterday as lawmakers bowed to political realities in pursuing a deal to allow more government borrowing in exchange for big spending cuts,” the Boston Globe reports.

The Boston Globe makes this good point: “[T]he most recent fury and flurry of votes are not likely to produce many new laws this year, and both sides know it. In the short era of divided government since the Republicans took control of the House in January, Congress has produced plenty of high-profile symbolic votes and a paltry amount of substantial laws. The reason, political specialists say: Both parties are using debates and votes to telegraph messages to their most fervent supporters, put the opposing party on record on key issues, and jockey for position for the 2012 elections.”