Free Republic

That cheery, DIY effort masks a different campaign, one that is slowly expiring in all the usual ways of terminal campaigns at the end-stage: cash is running low, supporters are griping about not getting paid and aides are valiantly trying to convince themselves as much as the press that, really, there is a path forward.......To a degree rarely seen in presidential politics, Gingrich is his own strategist, scheduler and press secretary.“He makes the decisions about 99.9 percent of the campaign,”.........“They never build any structure to live past the next state,” complained one GOP strategist who advised Gingrich in one key...

Politico reporter Jonathan Martin on Tuesday mocked the "cracker counties" of Florida's conservative Panhandle. Talking to Daily Rundown host Chuck Todd, he derided, "Chuck, a lot of the counties in the Panhandle, in north Florida, the cracker counties, if you will...more resemble Georgia and Alabama than they do Florida."

Perfect resume, perfect looks, perfect family, and a perfect roster of skilled campaign operatives and blue-chip endorsements: Mitt Romney has them all. Yet he comes out of his drubbing in South Carolina with a perfect dilemma.

A group of movement conservatives has called an emergency meeting in Texas next weekend to find a “consensus” Republican presidential hopeful, POLITICO has learned. “You and your spouse are cordially invited to a private meeting with national conservative leaders of faith at the ranch of Paul and Nancy Pressler near Brenham, Texas, with the purpose of attempting to unite and to come to a consensus on which Republican presidential candidate or candidates to support, or which not to support,” read an invitation that is making its way into in-boxes Wednesday morning. The meeting is being hosted by such prominent conservative...

In a campaign that has been chiefly shaped by debates, Newt Gingrich demonstrated Saturday night why he tops the polls — and why he won’t easily be dethroned. Facing tough questions from his Republican rivals and debate moderators in Des Moines, Gingrich parried blow after blow without losing his cool or showing the much-discussed undisciplined side of his personality. It was the former House speaker’s first debate as the undisputed frontrunner and not only did he stand up to the fresh scrutiny, he reminded Republican primary voters of his command of the issues, his intellectual dexterity and his self-assured, forceful...

Herman Cain, the insurgent populist whose candidacy has been ensnared by allegations of sexual impropriety, said Saturday that he is leaving the race for the Republican presidential nomination, saying that the allegations have cast a "cloud of doubt over me and this campaign." "As of today, with a lot of prayer and soul searching, I am suspending my presidential campaign," he said at an event in Atlanta. "I am suspending my presidential campaign because of the continued distraction, the continued hurt . . . on me, on my family, not because we are not fighters, not because I am not...

Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney says allegations that rival Herman Cain groped a former employee are "particularly disturbing" and must be addressed. Romney told ABC News/ Yahoo! on Tuesday that he will not judge whether Sharon Bialek's claims against Cain are true. He declined to say whether they are disqualifying. ... Romney .. "These are serious allegations and they're going to have to be addressed."

The Society of Professional Journalism’s code of ethics is apparently unknown to, and easily dismissed by, MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell. On “Andrea Mitchell Reports” Monday, the anchor introduced Politico’s Jonathan Martin after playing a clip of former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain suggesting some reporters at an event in Texas check the Society of Professional Journalism’s “code of ethics.” “Jonathan Martin is the senior reporter for Politico and broke the original story,” she said. “I assume you read the journalistic code of ethics, whatever that is.” Martin replied by saying he had his copy “well-thumbed.”

Herman Cain, beleaguered by charges of sexual harassment, was all over Washington last week -- an odd choice of venue, considering that the Iowa precinct caucuses are now just 58 days away and the New Hampshire primary 65. But as I learned when I sat next to Cain Friday morning during a long-scheduled taping of Richard Carlson's "Danger Zone" radio program, Cain seemed unfazed. In conversation before the taping he dismissed the controversy. "No documentation. No witnesses. And I didn't cancel a single event this week" -- although his wife Gloria, accompanying him for the first time, cancelled an interview...

The women who accused GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain of sexual harassment more than a decade ago have effectively been released from any agreements they signed pledging not to talk about the alleged episodes, according to employment lawyers. On Friday, the group Cain headed at the time, the National Restaurant Association, agreed to release one of the women from her confidentiality pledge—at least to allow her attorney, Joel Bennett, to release a carefully drafted statetment saying she stood by the charge. But because Cain has called the charges fabricated and at least in one instance suggested one of his accusers...

(VIDEO AT LINK) In an interview with Howard Kurtz on CNN, Politico's Jonathan Martin still can't explain what exactly it is that Herman Cain reportedly did to the women who received payouts from the National Restaurant Association. Mr. Martin's main argument is because the story hasn't been fully challenged, it must be true. Here's a partial transcript of the back-and-forth between Martin and Kurtz. Howard Kurtz, CNN: "Jonathan Martin, let's talk about the first story last Sunday, you and three colleagues reported this and what it didn't contain in the way of details. Here's the language from the story. Sexually...

The media have been up to their usual tricks this week, smearing a Republican candidate with innuendo and anonymous charges. As the always fair minded James Taranto notes, Cain seems as much a victim as a villain in this latest mediagenic tale: With virtually no facts available, a fair-minded person cannot possibly draw any conclusions from these stories. Maybe Cain behaved badly. Maybe the women were unhappy in their jobs and took advantage of a legal regime that--especially in the wake of the furor over Anita Hill's unsubstantiated accusations of ribaldry against Clarence Thomas--is highly indulgent of sexual-harassment allegations. Maybe...

When sexual harassment complaints against Herman Cain unfolded at the National Restaurant Association in the late 1990s, the issue was all too familiarfor the trade association. In the wake of the televised 1991 Clarence Thomas Supreme Court confirmation hearings — and the widely publicized sexual harassment charges leveled against him by Anita Hill — American businesses had been hit by a wave of sexual harassment cases. And the restaurant industry, in particular, was hit especially hard. Industry officials saw it coming — none other than Cain himself warned as long ago as 1991 that changes in federal law resulting from...

Joel Bennett, the lawyer for one of the former employees of the National Restaurant Association who accused Herman Cain of sexual harassment, spoke to Wolf Blitzer live on CNN moments ago. Bennett said that in his legal opinion, what occurred between Cain and his client met the legal definition of sexual harassment. But despite repeated questions from Blitzer, he refused to specify what the alleged actions were, and he said his client would not be appearing to shed any further light on the matter. When Blitzer pointed out Cain’s vehement, blanket denial, Bennett replied, “In all my years of lawyering,...

What did Politico know and when did they know it? Last evening I sent a series of questions via Twitter to the 4 authors bylined on the Herman Cain “sexual harassment story.” And I did so because it occurred to me that one component of this story that no one seems to be asking about is what, exactly, did the Politico reporters know of any confidentiality or non-disclosure agreements by which either/both Herman Cain and the two women cited anonymously in the Politico story were bound. So far, I haven’t received a single response. Perhaps there’s a reason for that....

For Herman Cain, forget the treats; just bring on the tricks. Republican presidential contender Herman Cain is the subject of a bombshell accusation on Halloween day that he sexually harassed two women during his tenure at the National Restaurant Association. Cain stoutly denies the charges. The curious thing about the accusations against Cain are their timing. Why now? Why did Politico break the news now, as opposed to weeks before or later, if Cain secured the GOP presidential nomination? Did Politico only obtain the story now, or had it been sitting on the report for a while? Why now? Early...

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: You know, I guess I shouldn't be surprised, folks. After all of these years, none of us should be surprised, but I still am. Look at how quickly what is known as the mainstream media goes for the ugliest racial stereotypes they can to attack a black conservative. You know who's laughing himself silly today is Bill Clinton. (imitating Clinton) "Yeah, I really did it. Ha-ha. They praised me and they went as far out of their way as they could. Even my old buddy Carville is out there and he's saying, 'Look what happens when you...

You have to read pretty far down into the Politico story before you find that response from Herman Cain spokesman J.D. Gordon, and the article sticks all the exculpatory material at the end: Ron Magruder, Denise Marie Fugo and Joseph Fassler, the chair, vice chair and immediate past chairman of the National Restaurant Association board of directors at the time of Cain’s departure, said they hadn’t heard about any complaints regarding Cain making unwanted advances. “I have never heard that. It would be news to me,” said Fugo, who runs a Cleveland, Ohio, catering company, adding such behavior would be...

by Sheri UrbanReal FeministPolitico sicks no less than FOUR reporters onto vague nearly 20 year old allegations to smear new GOP Frontrunner Herman Cain.So desperate are the powers that be to bring down this uber-successful black businessman, that they are doing a Clarence Thomas on him, complete with sketchy allegations such as: a woman “accused him of innuendo or personal questions of a sexually suggestive nature” and conversations that were regarded as “improper in a professional relationship.” Can you possibly be any more vague? A few weeks ago a group of “feminists” commemorated the 20th anniversary of dopey fraudster...

This guy--who slammed Herman Cain yesterday--tried to get Sarah Palin, too. She called him a "punk" on Glenn Beck's Radio show nearly one full year ago. @ 00:48, and further exposes Politico's method of hatchet jobs and then not retracting nor accepting responsibility afterwards when proven WRONG. PALIN CLIP HERE ON JONATHAN MARTIN. Furthermore, this Jonathan Martin (Politico) individual, we have come to find out was:a) Almost nominated to be in the top 10 of a list of worst liberal journalists in the United States. Helen Thomas went on to claim the top spot.b) Was exposed as member of the...