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Yesterday on CNN’s State of the Union, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels said the following about the current GOP presidential field: I don't think they're yet talking about the things…that have a lot of zeros attached to them, the ones that are threatening to kill not just an economy but the entire idea of America, the idea of upward mobility from the bottom and tomorrow is better than today…I'll tell you what's bothering me a little bit [is] the president is clearly in very desperate political shape. And it seems more clear every day. And I worry a little bit, ironically,...

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is reconsidering his decision not to enter the 2012 presidential race — and he says he will let top Republican donors know within days about his plans, Newsmax has learned. During the past few weeks, several leading Republican donors and fundraisers have been urging the popular Republican governor to reconsider his decision not to run and to enter the GOP primary. These Christie supporters note that significant GOP support has remained on the sidelines of the primary fight. Many leading fundraisers have yet to commit to any current primary contender, including frontrunners Rick Perry and...

The candidates in last night's Republican presidential debate failed to deliver again. The two hour event included the same old stump speech sound bytes, lots of defensive posturing and attempted jabs at each other most of which missed their marks. The allegedly conservative front runner claimed anyone against giving illegal immigrants tuition breaks is heartless, the moderate that's currently running second is still trying to defend his state health care mandate and the most memorable moment of the night came from a candidate few have even heard of. Meanwhile hours before the debate, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie appeared with...

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) disagreed with several of the GOP White House contenders after Thursday night’s GOP debate, saying President Obama is not a socialist. During the debate, most of the candidates described the president that way. When asked Friday if he thought Obama had pursued socialist policies, Daniels laughed wryly and simply said, “No.” He also used the opportunity to warn the contenders to be more careful with their rhetoric. “At some stage I just think that if you’re interested in results you should just try to be careful to use words that don’t drive anybody away and...

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels defended his description of Social Security as a "Ponzi scheme" Tuesday, wading into a debate about the popular entitlement program that has enveloped the Republican primary. Daniels describes the program as such in his yet-to-be-released book, Keeping the Republic, echoing a critique that Texas Gov. Rick Perry made in his own book last year. Leading Perry challenger and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has seized on the "Ponzi scheme" comments , arguing that Perry needlessly "scared seniors" by describing the program in that way.  But Daniels sought to downplay the significance of the descriptor Tuesday morning...

<p>Former New York Gov. George Pataki is taking a harder look at running for president, saying Democratic President Obama is faltering and the Republican field is thinning.</p> <p>Spokesman David Catalfamo said Monday that several factors are in play as the 66-year-old Pataki again considers a White House run.</p>

Republican fiscal conservatives are coalescing around a candidate for president — and he currently isn't in the race. Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Speaker of the House John Boehner, House Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan have all encouraged House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan to run against Obama, The Weekly Standard reports. The policy wonk, known for "the Ryan plan" to eliminate the federal debt through dramatic spending cuts and reforms, has to date shown little interest in running. But the conservative magazine says his wife is "on board" if he decides to enter...

INDIANAPOLIS -- Gov. Mitch Daniels is dipping into the state's $1.2 billion surplus to give bonuses to most state workers. Daniels said Friday that most state workers will get bonuses of $500, $750 or $1,000 based on their performance over the last year. The bonuses will total between $15 million and $20 million. State Auditor Tim Berry reported Thursday that the state ended the year with $1.2 billion in cash reserves. Berry called state workers "heroic" for their efforts to save money. Daniels said Friday that the rest of the state's surplus is likely to be socked away rather than...

the times Daniels OKs bonuses up to $1,000 for each state employee By Dan Carden dan.carden@nwi.com, (317) 637-9078 | Posted: Friday, July 15, 2011 10:45 am INDIANAPOLIS | State employees will be paid a bonus of up to $1,000 each for their efforts in helping Indiana amass a $1.2 billion budget surplus. Gov. Mitch Daniels authorized the one-time payment on Friday to recognize employees he said have spent years doing more with less. "There's not a state in the nation where state employees are more committed to efficiency and care with tax dollars than Indiana," Daniels said. The "efficiency dividend...

A poll unveiled this week from American Research Group shows that three Republican presidential candidates -- U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas and former Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska -- are gaining serious momentum in Iowa, site of the first presidential caucus. Bachmann, who declared her candidacy in June and has been surging in polls at both the national and state levels, topped the poll with 21 percent. Former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts placed second with 18 percent. Paul, who was the Libertarian candidate in 1988 and ran for the Republican nomination in...

The U.S. Justice Department entered the court battle over a tough new Indiana abortion law that disqualifies Planned Parenthood of Indiana from the Medicaid program, siding with the organization in its request Thursday for a court order blocking the statute as unconstitutional. In a brief filed electronically after the close of business, Justice Department attorneys said U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt should grant Planned Parenthood's request for an injunction because it blocks Medicaid recipients' freedom to choose the provider of their choice. The law signed May 10 by Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels cuts off Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood...

WASHINGTON — The Health and Human Services Department is telling the state of Indiana that its Medicaid plan, which bans funding to Planned Parenthood, is illegal and must be changed. In a letter sent to Indiana's Medicaid director, and obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday, Medicaid Administrator Donald M. Berwick says Indiana's plan will improperly bar Medicaid beneficiaries from receiving services. Berwick writes that federal law requires Medicaid beneficiaries to be able to obtain services from any provider qualified to provide services.

With Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels out of the race, is a Huntsman boomlet brewing? There is no shortage of voices willing to say so, including Jon Huntsman. "I think the opening is to our advantage," the former Utah governor told Politico. "How many reform-minded governors are there left who are going to take a very fiscally conservative approach to problem-solving?" Daniels had a strong appeal to fiscal conservatives, but his "truce talk" added a special appeal to that subset of fiscal conservatives actively motivated to stick it to social conservatives. Many mavericky McCain campaign aides are now drifting off in...

WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney is emerging as the man to catch in the narrowing Republican presidential field, grabbing a clear head start in fundraising, organization and experience despite vulnerabilities that still might undo him. With Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels becoming the latest respected Republican to forgo a candidacy, many party insiders say the field is largely set. And Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and Olympic Games organizer, is in front. "It's Romney's to lose," said Scott Reed, a GOP consultant who managed Bob Dole's presidential campaign. He said Romney's biggest advantages are his personal wealth, fundraising know-how and experience as...

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels said early Sunday that he won't run for president because of family considerations, narrowing the field in the race for the GOP nomination. "In the end, I was able to resolve every competing consideration but one," Daniels said, disclosing his decision in an e-mail to supporters. "The interests and wishes of my family, is the most important consideration of all. If I have disappointed you, I will always be sorry."

Washington – Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has informed supporters he will not seek the Republican White House nomination. The New York Times reported early Sunday, citing an email message Daniels sent to supporters that read, "In the end, I was able to resolve every competing consideration but one," Daniels wrote.

With friends like Conor with one N, Mitch Daniels probably doesn't need enemies within the conservative base. Everything is upside down in the Republican primaries. The GOP establishment is rallying behind a principled candidate with a proven conservative track record. That's upsetting the conservative base: on talk radio and right wing blogs, they concede that the man in question governs as a staunch conservative, but insist his candidacy isn't viable because he lacks charisma and electability. Gee, Daniels is making headlines, again. He has a real gift for that. Indiana Republican governor Mitch Daniels was hit in the forehead by...

Mitch Daniels knocked in head at gym By: Maggie Haberman May 20, 2011 03:44 PM EDT An accident at the gym left Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels with 16 stitches on his forehead on Friday, his office announced. Daniels, who is weighing a run for the White House, was standing near a door at the National Institute for Fitness and Sport in Indianapolis, and "the door suddenly swung open and struck the governor in the forehead," his office said in a statement. "He was treated and released and is recovering at home."

I am not really sure what is wrong with Mitch Daniels. Two years ago, you would not have found a bigger Mitch Daniels booster in the United States than yours truly. He had bucked national trends to win an landslide re-election and was doing all the right things to demonstrate administrative competence, which is something our party badly needed to demonstrate after the last two years of the Bush administration. Then he started saying crap like this, courtesy of Jenn Rubin...

Top Republicans are increasingly convinced that President Barack Obama will be easily reelected if stronger GOP contenders do not emerge, and some are virtually begging Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels to add some excitement to the slow-starting nomination race. It’s a sign of the GOP’s straits that the party is depending on the bland, wonkish Daniels for an adrenaline boost. But interviews this week with longtime party activists and strategists made clear that many in the Republican establishment are unnerved by a field led by Mitt Romney, who could have trouble confronting Obama on health reform; Tim Pawlenty, who has yet...