GOP Presidential - Well, no one saw that coming. Not really. This morning the race for the Republican presidential nomination has been turned upside down again with three stunning wins by former Pennsylvania U.S. Senator Rick Santorum(R) in three states. Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri.
Although former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney(R) is still the front runner, both in terms of perception and the delegate court, the Santorum upset victories, coming all on one day, do serious damage to the sense that Romney was building unstoppable momentum. Next stop is Maine, where GOP caucuses end this weekend. Texas Congressman Ron Paul(R) is expected to do well there. More.
Wisconsin - New developments in Wisconsin. A former top aide to Governor Scott Walker(R) has entered a guilty plea to charges stemming from an investigation into Walker’s 2010 campaign. The aide admitted to doing political work while she was on the clock as a county employee. She will serve no prison time and has pledged to cooperate with the on-going investigation.
Her cooperation could be trouble for other possible defendants and Walker himself as he prepares for his own interview with investigators.
Meanwhile, the state’s Government Accountability Board continues working to verify the more than one million signatures turned in to force a recall election against Walker. The board says it will not accept outside help.
A report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the paper’s analysis of a sample of petition signatures suggests as many as 15% may be invalid, but that is not a high enough number to prevent the eventual certification of a recall. More.
Alabama - Governor Robert Bentley(R) delivered his state of the state speech Tuesday night pledging to continue on as the Alabama’s fiscal watchdog on behalf of taxpayers. He told lawmakers the state will live within its means and will not resort to tax increases to balance the budget. More.
Pennsylvania - More of the same kind of fiscal conservatism Tuesday from Governor Tom Corbett(R). He too is pledging to balance the budget without tax increases and warning education advocates against using inflated numbers to argue Corbett is short changing schools. More.
Ohio - Governor John Kasich(R) gave an upbeat state of the state address Tuesday. For the first time in recent memory – and possibly for the first time in state history – the annual address was delivered outside of Columbus, in the city of Steubenville. More.
Connecticut - Governor Dannel Mallloy(D) will deliver his budget address today in Hartford. It is expected to focus primarily on his plans to reform education. For much of the last week the Malloy administration has been releasing details of his plan one day at a time, dominating the news coverage of state government in Connecticut and defining his second year in office as a year of major educational reform. We’ll have more on the story later this afternoon on Governors Journal.
California - A major development Tuesday in the nationwide debate over gay marriage. A California federal appeals court struck down Proposition 8 – the voter initiative that outlawed gay marriage. The case is likely to go to the U.S. Supreme Court. More.
Michigan - In an interview with Stateline.org, Governor Rick Snyder(R) says he sees no point in pursuing right to work legislation in his state. He says even if he were to succeed in such an effort, the savings would be minimal and the cost to long term relations with labor would make it difficult to get much else accomplished. More.
Maine - Governor Paul LePage(R) is making news by offering a subtle threat to his fellow Republicans in the legislature. He suggested Tuesday that if the GOP refuses to use its majorities to pass his budget, including controversial Medicaid cuts, he will campaign in the coming year for legislative candidates who will support him. More.
South Carolina - In an effort to trim costs, Governor Nikki Haley(R) is asking her state parks director to come up with a plan to make the parks self sustaining financially by 2013. The parks director says it can be done and it will be done.More.
Keystone XL - As the state of Nebraska awaits a new proposed route for the Keystone XL pipeline from TransCanada, Republicans in Washington continue to put pressure on President Obama to grant conditional approval. A House committee voted Tuesday to transfer authority for granting a permit to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. A vote on the floor of the House could come next week. More.
Nebraska - Former governor and U.S. Senator Bob Kerrey(D) announced Tuesday he will not run for the Senate seat being vacated by Ben Nelson(D). Some are trying to convince current Governor Dave Heineman(R) to run, but such a switch is considered unlikely. More.
Storm Watch - Today we have the latest edition of the Storm Abernathy story. After Storm’s announcement his potential rivals in 2012 size up their chances and their options.
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