Today's Mitt's day, for better or worse. Reporters combed through old Bain memos and tried to figure out what it means to "set up deal structures, capability networks and sourcing agreements." Romney and his family went to the movies and saw a Mission Impossible sequel and a film about puppets... apparently unironically. And someone accused the former Massachusetts governor of firing American babies and replacing them with less pricey Indian babies who have learned how to ga-ga and goo-goo in English. This is HUFFPOST HILL for Tuesday, January 10th, 2012, and we'll be back later with a special New Hampshire primary edition:
"Bain of Romney's Existence" headlines. Stop. Please.
ANTI-AMERICAN: EVERYONE FOCUSING ON WHO FINISHES SECOND (WHAT IS THIS, CANADA?) - You all know the deal: Romney will probably finish first tonight, having been campaigning in the state for about four years. The question is by how much and who will nab second place. Mark Blumenthal: "The new Suffolk poll shows Mitt Romney at 37 percent, followed by Ron Paul at 18 percent, Jon Huntsman at 16 percent, Rick Santorum at 11 percent and Newt Gingrich at 9 percent with 7 percent still undecided...Consider these results, all measured over the campaign's final weekend: 1. The WMUR/University of New Hampshire (UNH) poll finds that less than half the likely voters (44 percent) say they have "definitely decided" who they will vote for, 27 percent are 'leaning to someone' and 29 percent are 'still trying to decide.' 2. Nearly a third of the voters on the News7/Suffolk University tracking poll conducted Saturday and Sunday nights are either completely undecided (12 percent) or say it is very likely (2 percent) or somewhat likely (20 percent) that they might change their minds. 3. The Public Policy Polling (PPP) automated survey finds more than a quarter of the likely voters are either totally undecided (4 percent) or say they might end up supporting someone other than their first choice (23 percent)." [HuffPost]
Mitt email: "I just wanted to send you a quick email before all the excitement begins tonight. I couldn't be prouder of our efforts in New Hampshire to earn every vote. I'm optimistic that all of our hard work will help lead us to victory tonight -- and hopefully by more than eight votes."
Someone asked Romney about legalizing marijuana. The response? Classic Mitt. "It's a long ... it's a long question. It deserves a full answer, and not just in a photo line like this." We're guessing that was his response years ago when Tagg asked where babies come from.
@tromney : Nothing left to do, so heading to mission impossible and muppets w the family. http://t.co/tDhQXaIn
CALIFORNIA DEMS TO OBAMA: FHFA NEEDS A RECESS APPOINTMENT - House Democrats from California asked President Obama to do like he did for the CFPB and use his recess appointment powers to put someone in charge of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the mortgage oversight behemoth that is not cool with reducing the principal on your underwater mortgage. "FHFA has consistently and erroneously interpreted its mandate far too narrowly and as such has failed to take adequate action to help homeowners," the letter says. "We appreciate your recent appointment of Richard Cordray as the new Director of the United States Consumer Protection Bureau over similar Republican opposition and we urge you to take the same action to put in place a permanent Director to the FHFA." The agency's been without a permanent director for two years. Acting director Ed DeMarco hasn't made friends by demanding that banks take back bogus loans they foisted on the government the past decade. Lawmakers, because banks are more of a threat to them than the government, want the government to just eat it.
HUNTSMAN WINS A 99ER'S VOTE - Paul Brogan of Concord, N.H. has been out of work since 2008, when he lost his job as a grantwriter for nonprofits. He was undecided right up until he went to vote today. "It actually came down to a toss-up between Romney and Huntsman and something in my gut instinct told me Huntsman," Brogan, 60, said in an email. "He seems like a thoughtful man, not given to histrionics and some of the hysteria that seems to surround some of the candidates. Romney struck me, as I watched him closely last night on television, as off an assembly line." There you have it.
DAILY DELANEY DOWNER - Lee Mortimer of Durham, N.C., lost his job in November 2010 and watched anxiously as Congress fought over a bill that would save his jobless benefits last month. He was heartened that Democrats held their ground against the demands of House Republicans. "It was pretty nerve-wracking seeing all that posturing going on. But it was kind of satisfying to see the Democrats finally stand up," Mortimer said. But when he logged on to the website for the North Carolina Commerce Department's Division of Employment Security to file his weekly certification last week, he saw a bad message in red letters notifying him Extended Benefits wouldn't be paid after the 28th. "It was very deflating," Mortimer said. His is one of several states where the final 20 weeks of federal benefits will soon be unavailable without action from the local government, which is not assured in North Carolina. Mortimer, 65, used to work as an assistant insurance underwriter and has since trained to become a paralegal. He hasn't had much luck finding work, but said he's not ready to retire. If he can keep his unemployment insurance, he said, he can keep looking for full-time work instead of falling back on Social Security to supplement his wife's income. "I would just like to stay in the workforce," he said. "I'm energetic and I don't have any desire to stop." [HuffPost]
How many members of Congress knew some states would have to scramble on benefits within one month of passing that payroll bill? Our guess: zero.
@kenvogel Wasn't @DickMorrisTweet trying to be a $ player? His super PAC just reported raising a whopping $25 in last 6 mos:http://is.gd/SWA3cM
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BAIN: YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT, WE FIRE PEOPLE... WHUT - From Bain's website, via Sam Stein: "We help clients ensure that IT offshoring and outsourcing decisions are based on business strategy and help set up deal structures, capability networks and sourcing agreements to deliver enduring results -- lower costs now and flexibility for the future. Strategic sourcing is the process by which organizations determine how to access the right IT and business capability at the right cost. Sourcing must be managed effectively across the four key dimensions of management, resources, services and business processes. Outsourcing of IT or business processes is just one option of sourcing strategies, often unleashing tremendous value. With strategic sourcing, Bain can enable clients to ensure sourcing decisions are based on business strategy and to help set up sourcing agreements to deliver value now and flexibility for the future." [HuffPost]
"As Romney reached out for a baby today, a heckler yelled out: 'Are you going to fire the baby?'"
NEVERMIND POLITIFACT: WE'LL TAKE YOUR MONEY - WaPo: "Earlier this week, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee aired a TV ad, timed to the GOP presidential debate, attacking GOP incumbent Rep. Charlie Bass for voting to 'end Medicare.' The Bass campaign sent letters to two stations that air in New Hampshire -- WMUR and WHDH -- demanding the ads be yanked. Crucially, the Bass campaign repeatedly cited PolitiFact's Lie of the Year designation to bolster its case. Both stations refused. 'Our lawyers looked at the ad and concluded it's within the bounds of robust public debate,' Jeff Barlett, the general manager of WMUR, tells me. 'If Charlie Bass and his supporters disagree with this, they're free to create their own ad and tell their side of the story.'" (P.S. Charlie Bass voted to end Medicare. It's true. We were totally there, watching. He did. K?) [WaPo]
WHO NEEDS PRESS SECRETARIES WHEN YOU HAVE THE TRANSCANADA CORPORATION? - This is just one of many reasons why Canada should be stopped. Lucia Graves: "After calling out an opponent for plagiarism, Republican Senate candidate Linda McMahon pulled key parts of her own Keystone XL op-ed, which ran last week on a Connecticut news site, from the website of the corporation that stands to profit from construction of the $7 billion pipeline: TransCanada. In her op-ed, McMahon, who is running for the seat held by retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), wrote of TransCanada's pipeline: 'Keystone XL stands ready to put some 13,000 Americans to work to construct the actual pipeline. These would be pipefitters, welders, mechanics, electricians, and heavy equipment operators, among others.' That sounds strikingly similar to what TransCanada itself wrote of the Keystone project on its website: 'TransCanada is poised to put 13,000 Americans to work to construct the pipeline -- pipefitters, welders, mechanics, electricians, heavy equipment operators, among other jobs.'" As if butter tarts weren't bad enough. Canada!!!! ::shakes fist:: [HuffPost]
WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY ASKS MEDIA TO TAKE STAFF SHAKEUP AT FACE VALUE, MEDIA DOESN'T LISTEN - White House press secretary Jay Carney today urged reporters not to read too much into Bill Daley's departure from the White House. Daley served a year as Barack Obama's chief of staff and chief-guy-who-looks-like-a-19th-century-railroad-tycoon. The Hill: "'These jobs are tough,' Carney said, comparing time at the White House to dog years...Carney also said Daley would have a "high-profile role" in the reelection campaign. Asked how responsibilities will be divided up, the spokesman responded: 'We will wait until Jack takes over as chief of staff. ... He will make some decisions about how his office is structured.'" Free flack advice for the White House: If there's nothing to see here, don't say he's going to spend more time with his family, even if it's true. [The Hill]
When HuffPost Hill's cocker spaniel got on in dog years, it started to rub its butt on the carpet.
WHITE HOUSE PROMOTES IMMIGRANT-RIGHTS ADVOCATE - Because you can only get so much political juice out of the Sotomayor nomination -- and because it'll be hard to win without Nevada, New Mexico and/or Arizona -- the White House today announced that Cecilia Munoz will serve as the director of the Domestic Policy Council. Elise Foley: "Munoz is currently serving as the head of intergovernmental affairs and worked for decades in the immigration advocacy community, most recently for the National Council of la Raza. In her new position, she will deal with a variety of domestic policy issues, including education and social programs. The White House specifically referenced Munoz's work on immigration reform, as well as her past work outside the government on the issue. She leads the Administration's efforts to fix the broken immigration system,' according to the White House press release." We'll say this, at least: You won't see any La Raza folks in a Romney White House. So it's something. [HuffPost]
HOW SUPER PACS GOT THEIR NAME - Much to our surprise, it doesn't involve John Podesta's home planet of Krypton. Politico: "[I]ts genesis is largely a mystery...be sure to call veteran political scribe Eliza Newlin Carney for help with its etymology. Carney, a Roll Call reporter, made the first identifiable, published reference to 'super PAC' as it's known today while working at National Journal, prophetically writing on June 26, 2010, of a group called Workers' Voices -- a kind of ''super PAC' that could become increasingly popular in the post-Citizens United world.' And Carney's wording wasn't accidental. 'I very much wanted to consciously develop a term to avoid using, every time I wrote something, 'independent expenditure-only political action committee.' I knew they were going to be a big deal, and I knew I was going to write about these committees all the time,' Carney told POLITICO. 'Even today, I get questions from people wondering where 'super PAC' came from and why they're called that. I'm always embarrassed to tell them. Some people don't realize it's not an official term -- just shorthand.'" [Politico]
BECAUSE YOU'VE READ THIS FAR - Pug is pissed! And kind of sounds like R2-D2 in freakout mode.
Nothing works right in Oakland: "In a fun twist of irony [Editor's note: C'mon], the Oakland Tribune newspaper is attempting to quash the freedom of speech of another local news outlet, with a cease and desist order sent earlier this week. According to writers at the newly established activist paper, the Occupy Oakland Tribune, the other Tribune is demanding the smaller news outlet disable its content and stop using the word "Tribune" in its name, saying it "tarnishes and diminishes the value" of the city's flagship paper." [SF Weekly]
COMFORT FOOD
- This guy has to be the best fingerpainter in the world. [http://bit.ly/yqiq32]
- Tortoise, conveyance of choice the discerning lizard. [http://bit.ly/yR4RKA]
- The only beauty product you need to look as glamorous as the stars. [http://bit.ly/ydRkTd]
- This may come as a surprise, but baby sloths are adorable. [http://bit.ly/Ay0FRP]
- The "Shit _____ Say" format is already kind of stale, but this "Shit Gay Guys Say to Their Cats" video is pretty funny. [http://bit.ly/wPkXsX]
- Poor lion just wants to play! And eat a small child. [http://bit.ly/xgXxCl]
- A bookstore comes alive in this beautiful stop-motion short. Similar to Toy Story, but more bookstorey. Eh? EH?! [http://bit.ly/zmzT6Z]
- Documentary on the Voyager spacecraft, time capsules, and the relationship between Carl Sagan and Annie Druyan. [http://bit.ly/wMi5pY]
TWITTERAMA
@chrislhayes: Does Romney have a peacoat-wearing, bearded hipster working advance for him ala @hipstercop? http://bit.ly/y5GoRA
@jbendery: Lew's dog, Dough MT @eliotnelson: To be replaced by pro-bank dog RT @jbendery: Bo resigning? MT @ShawnaNBCNews: Carney's press conf moved up
@brianbeutler: Give a man a fish, that's socialism. Teach a man to fish & years later you can raid his fishery & fire a bunch of people.
ON TAP
By @christinawilkie
TONIGHT
7:30 pm: Angelina Jolie will make DC look pastier than usual at the premiere of her new flick "In The Land of Blood And Honey". Given that it's recess, expect to see congressional staffers in place of their invited bosses. [United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, 100 Raoul Wallenberg Place, SW]
New Hampshire At-A-Glance
6:00 pm: Jon Huntsman's Election Night Party. The heartbreak starts around 9:45 pm. [The Black Brimmer, 1087 Elm St., Manchester]
7:00 pm: Mitt Romney's Election Night Event might be the least exciting victory party ever. We have nothing to support that, we're just, you know, assuming. [Southern New Hampshire University, 2500 N, River Rd., Manchester]
7:30 pm: Come see how everyone who told Rick Santorum to skip New Hampshire was right. [Derryfield Restaurant, 625 N. Mammoth Rd, Manchester]
8:00 pm: Our money is on Ron Paul's party tonight. Starts later, good news guaranteed, probably has a bar. Libertarianism precludes drink limits, right? [Executive Court, 1199 S Mammoth Rd., Manchester]
9:30 pm: Umm, Newt Gingrich's event is not going to be fun, ok? Of that we're certain. Just head on over to Ron Paul's. [Radisson Hotel 700 Elm St., Manchester]
TOMORROW
6:30 pm: The National Organization of Italian American Women hosts an Epiphany Celebration to honor Three Wise Women, with Anita Bevacqua McBride, freelance food writer Domenica Marchetti, and Dena Feeney. SHADDAPAYUFACE! ... sorry. [Maggiano's Little Italy, 5333 Wisconsin Avenue NW]
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