But campaign filings show that, last September, Romney accepted the maximum campaign contribution of $2,500 from Daniel Staton, the chairman of Friend Finder Networks Inc. that owns —among several other properties — Penthouse, BDSM sites like Bondage.com and BDSM.com, and LikeMyNudePhoto.com. Romney also accepted $2,000 from Staton and an additional $2,300 from Friend Finder Network CEO Marc Bell during his failed 2008 presidential campaign.

Of course, Penthouse and the handful of similar companies overseen by Staton are top targets of the War on Illegal Pornography campaign, and would suffer dramatically under the “strict enforcement of our nation’s obscenity laws” that Romney promised to uphold.

In a statement issued to ThinkProgress, Patrick Trueman, the President and CEO of Morality in the Media, said Romney should return the contributions from Staton:

While Governor Romney cannot police all activities of his donors to determine whether to accept or reject donations, he would do well to return contributions from those like Daniel Staton who are know [sic] to own obscene or hardcore pornography websites once such contributions are called to his attention. We have no reason to disbelieve Mr. Romney regarding his pledge.

Trueman told us that he hopes “to be in touch with [Romney's] campaign over the next week or two and will raise” his concerns.

Morality in Media seeks to dramatically reduce the proliferation of pornography by demanding lawmakers uphold existing federal laws. In a post on their website, the campaign explains that “harm from adult pornography is at pandemic levels,” and claims that pornographic videos, magazines and websites are to blame for a significant number of broken marriages and leads to addiction among “many” children and adults.

As ThinkProgress and several others have reported, right-wing campaigns that call for the strict enforcement of existing obscenity laws aren’t so much looking to rein in the proliferation of pornography as they are seeking to ban it outright.

Mike George and Newt Gingrich

According to a Bloomberg report, Gingrich has named-dropped “Lean Six Sigma,” George’s management efficiency theory, at least 28 times since August in his speeches. George has written several books on the cost-cutting and efficiency-increasing theory and Gingrich has adopted George’s proposal to apply those principles to the federal government.

Good-government groups are expressing serious concerns about the apparent quid pro quo:

“This goes beyond the concern about coordination, and smack dab into the concern of having a mutually profitable business relationship between a super-PAC and a presidential candidate,” said Craig Holman, a lobbyist with Public Citizen in Washington, a group that advocates for tighter regulation of political donations. “There’s Gingrich out there selling Mike George’s book while Mike George helps to promote Gingrich’s candidacy. That’s kind of amazing.” [...]

“Strong America Now obviously is an asset to the Gingrich campaign, and it’s a mutually beneficial relationship,” said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics based in Washington, which tracks political giving.

This type of advocacy on behalf of his well-heeled friends is nothing new for Gingrich — his “Newt Inc.” empire was built on people paying his companies for access to him. While not actually lobbying, the former speaker of the house raked in millions of dollars in exchange for promoting their services to the public and state and federal officials, according to the New York Times.

A Gingrich spokesman defended the relationship with George saying “Gingrich is the only candidate who can communicate the message” of using Lean Six Sigma to reduce government waste. Perhaps after his campaign is over, Gingrich can parlay that unique ability into a more formal endorsement gig.

Congressional negotiators reached a deal to extend the payroll tax holiday and unemployment benefits yesterday. The plan, hammered out by a bipartisan House-Senate committee, came after Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) made a major concession in okaying the extension of the tax holiday without spending cuts. Tea Party Republicans may still derail the deal, which is expected for a vote Friday.

Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is staying at arm’s length from Boehner, refusing to endorse the deal to extend the tax holiday.

“President Obama’s political standing is rising along with voters’ optimism that the economy,” according to a new New York Times/CBS poll which shows the president’s approval rating at 50 percent — compared to Congress’ 10 percent. For the first time in some time, more Americans have a positive outlook on the economy than a negative one.

The same poll shows that a whopping 65 percent of voters say they support the Obama administration’s new contraception rule. Meanwhile, 44 percent of Catholics said they favored marriage equality, while 25 percent preferred civil unions — just 24 percent favored no legal recognition at all.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) will allow a vote on a Republican Senate bill today to repeal President Obama’s new birth control policy. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) is “unlikely to pass the Senate,” but Reid is allowing the vote so pro-life Democrats can reaffirm their position.

Newt Gingrich slammed Rick Santorum’s stance against allowing women to serve in combat in the military, saying the position shows Santorum completely misunderstands modern warfare.”

Nearly half of Michigan voters are less likely to vote for Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R) after his Senate campaign ran its racially-charged ad during the Super Bowl, according to a new poll. Of 54 percent who have seen the ad, 45 percent say they’re less likely to vote for Hoekstra. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D) now has a 14-point lead in the race, double her lead before the ad ran.

The White House threatened to veto House Republicans’ transportation package if it passes, because of its inclusion of the Keystone XL pipeline and the inadequacy of its funding for roads and bridges. The Senate is also debating a transportation bill that has President Obama’s support.

Famed author and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel is asking Mitt Romney — perhaps the most visible Mormon in the country — to denounce the Mormon Church’s practice of posthumously baptizing Jews killed during the Holocaust.

A day after the White House welcomed Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, whom President Obama spoke with for 85 minutes, Obama will today call on businesses to “insource” jobs that have been shipped overseas back to the United States, echoing a key passage of his State of the Union address last month.

And finally: The New York State Senate won’t always love Whitney Houston — in fact, Republicans there are blocking a motion to honor the late singer because she may have died of a drug overdose. “I was outraged,” said sponsor, Sen. Eric Adams (D). “For us to focus on how she died rather than how she lived is an insult.”

For breaking news and updates throughout the day, follow ThinkProgress on Facebook and Twitter.

In an effort to prove that the myth of widespread voter fraud is just that, the head of the American Civil Liberties Union has offered to pay $1,000 for a single example of voter impersonation. The offer applies to anyone who can show a prosecuted case of someone successfully voting by impersonating another person that would have been stopped by voter ID laws.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) put a hold on the transportation bill, delaying consideration of the bill in order to make an unrelated statement on U.S. aid to Egypt.

Lobbyists who were kicked off federal advisory committees when the Obama administration implemented a ban against lobbyists on the committees are now suing the government to reverse the decision. In a court filing, six lobbyists argue that the ban violates the First Amendment.

A new Gallup survey shows that fewer Americans received health insurance from their employer in 2011, continuing a three-year decline in employer-provided health care. During the same period, the number of Americans without any insurance has increased from 14.8 percent in 2008 to 17.1 percent in 2011.

Wall Street “made its broadest assault yet against new regulation” yesterday, targeting the Volcker Rule, part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law. While some called for the rule to go farther, “the loudest response came from critics like Wall Street trade groups.”

Rick Santorum pulled ahead of Mitt Romney in another national poll, this one from CBS News/New York Times, which showed him leading with a 3 percent margin.

Independent voters are fleeing Romney, according to new polling data. In November, Romney was beating President Obama among independent voters, 53 percent to 41 percent. Now those numbers are upside down with Obama beating Romney 41 to 42 percent.

And finally: Outside the Westminster dog show in New York City today, the group “Dogs Against Romney” will protest “to ensure pet lovers are aware that Mitt Romney is mean to dogs.” The group was inspired by Romney’s tale of leaving his dog strapped to the roof of his car in a crate during a 12-hour road trip.

For breaking news and updates throughout the day, follow ThinkProgress on Facebook and Twitter.

The blitz features an array of 30-second TV spots aimed at bucking up vulnerable Republican incumbents, supporting GOP House and Senate hopefuls, and criticizing Democrats. One spot supports Blue Dog Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT).

But there is a large element of hypocrisy and contradiction in the spots. One typical ad praises former Sen. George Allen (R-VA), who was defeated in 2006 following his infamous bullying of an Indian-American campaign tracker who he called “macaca” and is seeking his party’s nomination for the same senate seat this November. The narrator says:

Big government isn’t going to help the American recovery. We need to focus on jobs to get our economy back on track. In the Senate, George Allen supported tax cuts that spurred economic growth. He supports a Balanced Budget Amendment. And as Virginia’s governor, Allen cut spending and waste with bipartisan support. Call George Allen. Tell him to keep fighting to promote Virginia jobs.

Watch the ad:

But the Chamber has a selective memory. It was a leading proponent of President Obama’s 2009 stimulus legislation promising that the tax cuts and even many of law’s spending provisions would “provide stimulus and get Americans back to work.” Allen has called the law a “jobless stimulus.”

Though the measure passed almost entirely along party lines, the Chamber spent millions in 2010 to defeat the Democrats who backed the bill — and some of that money may have come from foreign businesses. The $789 billion law has been the largest increase in spending in the Obama presidency.

A constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget would have rendered this stimulus bill — and the preservation of the Allen-backed tax cuts that the Chamber claims spurred growth — impossible.

But even if three years is too long ago for the Chamber to remember, one would think they could remember back to last week. For just as the group blitzed Americans with messages that a smaller government was a panacea to solve the woes of a demonstrably improving economy, its own “Americans for Transportation Mobility Coalition” launched an ad last week calling for more federal government spending on transportation. With clips of President Ronald Reagan, the spot demands “new investments in transportation to keep America moving and jobs growing.” That would likely mean more “big government.”

A majority of Catholic voters support President Obama’s new contraception policy, according to a poll released this weekend by the Coalition to Protect Women’s Health Care, which includes the Center for American Progress. Just 29 percent of Catholics polled opposed the policy, while 57 percent (and 59 percent of Catholic women) support it. An additional 5 percent wanted the policy to be stronger.

Obama will unveil his 2013 budget proposal today, which the White House is calling a “blueprint for how we can rebuild an economy” and Republicans are already attacking. The plan includes increased spending on infrastructure and education, with spending cuts in many other places.

Athens saw its biggest riots yet this weekend as the Greek Parliament passed strict new austerity measures. The vote paves the way for a bailout from its European neighbors and the International Monetary Fund; without it, Greece would almost certainly have to leave the Eurozone, which could seriously harm global markets.

Mitt Romney claims to be an outsider, but his campaign has made room for lobbyists. At least 294 registered lobbyists donated more than $400,000 to Romney’s campaign in 2011 and bundled more than $2 million in donations. Several advisers are also lobbyists.

Romney picked up two much-needed wins this weekend in Maine’s caucuses and at the CPAC straw poll, but his competitors are contesting both. Rick Santorum accused Romney of essentially buying the straw poll by purchasing tickets for supporters — a charge supported by reporting from Politico and the New York Times — while Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) suggested the Maine GOP favored Romney.

A new PPP poll released this weekend shows Santorum is the new national leader with a huge 15 point margin. However, the poll was conducted before the Maine caucus and CPAC straw poll.

Newt Gingrich is in desperate need of cash and struggling to raise money. Having largely struck out with top bundlers, he is now focusing on mid-tier donors and has been forced to spend less time with voters and more with potential donors.

The New Jersey state Senate is expected to pass a bill today to recognize gay marriage. On Thursday, the state Assembly is expected to do the same, but Gov. Chris Christie (R) has promised a veto. Democrats hope to muster enough votes to override Christie’s veto.

The administration is preparing to call for reducing the corporate tax rate, a proposal Obama hinted at in his State of the Union address last month. The current rate of 35 percent is one of the highest in the world and the new rate would put it more in line with that of other developed nations.

And finally: Rick Santorum was overheard this weekend in Northern Virginia asking if the sushi he had just eaten was cooked.

For breaking news and updates throughout the day, follow ThinkProgress on Facebook and Twitter.

Frank Gaffney and John Bolton, who condemned Gaffney in a unanimous ACU resolution

Gaffney’s attacks on conservative stalwarts like Grover Norquist, head of Americans for Tax Reform, and Suhail Khan, a Bush administration offical, as agents of the Muslim Brotherhood has made him a bit of a pariah among conservatives. David Keene, the then-chairman of the American Conservative Union (ACU), which puts on CPAC, and the current head of the NRA, told ThinkProgress last year that Gaffney “has become personally and tiresomely obsessed with his weird belief that anyone who doesn’t agree with him…[must be] dupes of the nation’s enemies.”

This year, the ban on Gaffney’s official participation remained in effect, but he was able to purchase a side room at the conference through TeaParty.net, giving him unofficial but proximate access to the conference. Conservatives are hesitant to speak ill about each other in public, but a source close to CPAC told ThinkProgress that Gaffney, already on thin ice, made CPAC leadership “livid” by attacking Norquist during his panel Saturday.

The degree to which conservative leaders have tried to distance themselves from Gaffney and his Sharia conspiracy theories is especially apparent given two documents obtained exclusively by ThinkProgress.

Last September, the board of the ACU unanimously passed a resolution (read it here) condemning the “false and unfounded” attacks Gaffney had made against Norquist and Khan, both board members, after having another board member, Cleta Mitchell, look into Gaffney’s serious charges of sedition and abetting an enemy.

In a letter to the ACU board (read it here), Mitchell, a prominent and very conservative attorney, said she reviewed the “evidence” Gaffney presented (including a lengthy PowerPoiint presentation and DVDs smearing Norquist and Khan), and found Gaffney’s “ceaseless war” to be “reprehensible.” She wrote in the conclusion:

I have tried to talk Mr.Gaffney into ceasing these attacks – but to no avail. I have done everything I know to do to try and bring this to a halt, including private conversations and public appearances saying essentially what I have said in this letter. I have taken whatever official actions in my capacity as a board member of various organizations to vote against any motion that would support Mr. Gaffney’s allegations and will continue to do so.

Further, I will work to ensure that any organization with which I am involved will not b eallowed to be used as a platform to spread Mr. Gaffney’s baseless attacks.

The unanimous ACU board — which includes neoconservatives like U.N. ambassador John Bolton — endorsed the letter and resolved that Gaffney’s claims against Kahn and Norquist were “false and unfounded,” writing that the board “profoundly regrets and rejects as unwarranted the past and on-going attacks upon their patriotism and character.”

The board includes some of the most prominent conservative operatives and activists in the country (view a full list here, though Asa Hutchison and Carly Fiorina were not members at the time of the letter).

Gaffney is increasingly isolated by his fellow conservatives, yet his organization continues to receive funding from major mainstream conservative donors like the Bradley Foundation.

View the letter and resolution.

On his personal YouTube page, more than a dozen sparsely-viewed videos show Friess discussing his philanthropic endeavors as well as his thoughts on President Obama, health care reform and the cause of the economic crisis. Here’s a look at some of the more interesting things about Friess that you may not know:

1. He has a long history funding Islamophobic organizations. One of Friess’ biggest beneficiaries is a collection of some of the largest Islamophobic organizations in the country, including Frank Gaffney’s Center for Security Policy and David Horowitz’s Terrorism Awareness Project.

2. He filmed an introduction video to Clarion Fund’s Islamophobic “Obsession” Documentary. The controversy and outrage over the film “Obsession” has been well documented, but that didn’t seem to faze Friess, who filmed a five and a half minute promotional video in which he encouraged viewers to purchase the full DVD and use it “as a voting guide when you go into the election booth on election day.”

3. He preached intolerance in a commencement speech at the Graziadio School of Business at Pepperdine University. “Be more intolerant,” urged Friess to a room full of graduating students in 2007. “There’s a group of people—maybe the secular Taliban is a good name for them—who have morphed this idea, that you have to accept my values being every bit as cherished as your values. That’s not tolerance…there are too many things in this world which we sit back and tolerate.”

4. Friess has given A LOT to Republican politicians. Rick Santorum’s not the only beneficiary of Friess’ campaign contributions. Over the years, Friess has contributed millions of dollars to Republican candidates and committees across the country, including Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Ohio Governor John Kasich and Texas Governor Rick Perry. Perry’s also not the only former Santorum competitor who cashed big checks from Friess. Newt Gingrich’s presidential campaign has received $5,000 from Lynette and Foster, Mitt Romney received $1,000 for this election (and the campaign maximum $4,600 from both Friess’s in 2007) and even Tim Pawlenty’s presidential exploratory committee deposited a cool $5,000. Talk about hedging your bets.

5. Friess donated to gay rights advocate, former Republican Senator Alfonse D’Amato. And not just a few thousand dollars either. In the mid-1990s, Friess funneled over $260,000 to committees with ties to the former New York senator, who famously bucked his party on LGBT issues and voted against Don’t Ask Don’t Tell in 1993 and for the Employee Non Discrimination Act. Granted, the donations were more likely contributed as a way to protect his own business interests than actual gay rights, but D’Amato is a strange bedfellow for someone supporting a candidate who compared homosexuality to man-on-dog sex.

6. He was a founding donor to conservative news site The Daily Caller. A $3 million initial investment into Tucker Carlson’s news site in early 2010 helped it get off the ground. He’s since made at least one additional contribution of $500,000. Yet as POLITICO notes, The Daily Caller has thus far failed to disclose its connection to Rick Santorum when covering him on the campaign trail.

7. Claimed liberals were to blame for Columbine shooting. In a speech delivered at the Metropolitan Club in New York City in 2002, Friess tried to pin the blame for 1999′s Columbine school shooting on liberals. “How hard have those intolerant of John Adam’s perspective worked to strip from young people any hope of knowing the concepts and truths that help deal with life…They have gone to great lengths to strip all of this away and we have sat back in the name of tolerance while our youth were robbed of these truths and proven tools. I think we should be encouraged to learn from Columbine and let it be a battle cry for all of us so that we may change our society through productive intolerance.”

The roundtable topics included education, energy, financial institutions and markets, defense/homeland security/foreign policy, health care, and infrastructure. Unsurprisingly, the panels were chaired and hosted by a few prominent Republican politicians and several wealthy investors and industry insiders. They roundtable leaders and industry finance chairs included:

– L.E. Simmons (energy), who has has “guided the investment of over $1.6 billion in private equity capital used to build energy service and equipment companies.”

– Patrick Durkin, managing director of Barclay’s Capital and a top Romney lobbyist-bundler.

– Richard Breeden, a hedge fund manager and a former SEC chairman under President George H. W. Bush.

– Tom Farrell, president and CEO of Dominion Power.

– Former Sen. Jim Talent (R-MO) (infrastructure), now a “distinguished fellow” at the right-wing Heritage Foundation.

– Former HHS Secretary and ex-Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt (R), now head of a “health care intelligence business.”

If the number $10,000 seems familiar, perhaps it was because he offered to make a bet with then-primary opponent Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX) for that amount in a disagreement over his previous positions on federal health insurance mandates. Now, Romney is asking the wealthiest 1 percent to make a similar-sized bet on him. And, according to one of the event’s co-chairs, the event raised $1.5 million for Romney’s campaign.

Pete Hoekstra

Hoekstra’s ad, which aired during the Super Bowl last weekend, featured an Asian woman in a rice paddy in China — the scene was actually shot in California — speaking broken English and thanking Stabenow because “we take your jobs.” Hoesktra is currently running for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat. Watch the ad here.

ThinkProgress spoke with Anuzis at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Thursday about the ad. Anuzis spared few punches, calling the ad “dumb” and in “bad taste.”

KEYES: There’s been a bit of a controversy this week with this new ad. What’s your take? Do you think it was in poor taste?

ANUZIS: I’m not too worried about the poor taste, I just think it was a dumb ad. Pete Hoekstra voted to raise taxes, Pete Hoekstra voted for the “Bridge to Nowhere,” Pete Hoekstra voted five times to increase the debt ceiling, and then he goes out and leads with his chin by saying, “I’m against Debbie Stabenow because she sold all of our debt to China.” Well, he voted for that debt. [...]

KEYES: A lot of people have said this borderlines on racial insensitivity. Do you think you would agree with that?

ANUZIS: At best it was in bad taste. It’s not something I would have done. But I’m not too worried about that as much as the issues that are behind that. I think the beauty of this ad is the hypocrisy that Pete Hoekstra is trying to go after Debbie Stabenow for spending when he voted the same way.

Anuzis also called out Hoekstra for his “hypocrisy” in voting for many of the proposals that increased the very debt discussed in the ‘China’ ad.

Though Hoekstra originally unveiled the ad on the website www.debbiespenditnow.com, a major backlash ensued and he took down the site yesterday, now redirecting visitors to his campaign website. The ad itself is still live on Youtube, however.

His Republican primary opponent, Clark Durant, released a response ad this week, criticizing Hoekstra’s ad as “demeaning.”

Peter Brimelow

As noted by PFAW, this year, among the participants in the conference is Peter Brimelow and Robert Vandervoort. Brimelow is the founder and head of the White Nationalist hate website VDARE, a site known for publishing the works of racist and anti-Semitic authors. Robert Vandervoort is the director of ProEnglish, an English-only group, and is a former leader of the White Nationalist group Chicagoland Friends of the American Renaissance.

These aren’t just your average conservative activists. They have actively pushed the idea that our diversity is killing us, that Jews are destroying the American white majority, and that non-white immigrants are the cause for our economic problems.

We’ve already seen a GOP more than willing to use racially-coded language throughout the primary season. But is presumed front runner Romney really going to appear at the same conference as people who spew such hatred towards people of color and ethnic minorities? If he wants to be the president of ALL Americans and not just white Americans, Mitt Romney should refuse to speak today. And if he feels he must go on stage, then he needs to denounce Brimelow and Vanervoort’s odious beliefs from the stage. Anything less is tantamount to agreeing with what they say.

A protester at a workers' rights rally (credit: Marion Dyer)

In 2010, Americans for Prosperity, the group’s affiliated 501(c)(4) tax-exempt “social welfare” organization spent more than $1.3 million on electioneering. When the group told the IRS in its annual disclosure that it does not engage in political activity, tax experts questioned whether the group was complying with the laws governing nonprofits.

Charles and David Koch are major funders of Americans for Prosperity. Last year, Walker famously had a lengthy phone conversation with a prankster posing as David Koch in which the governor bragged about his union busting campaign, joked about using a baseball bat against his opponents, and confessed that he had considered planting trouble makers in the protest crowd.

The Koch brother’s corporate PAC and organizations they bankroll spent hundreds of thousands on donations to and expenditures in support of Walker’s campaign, but David Koch claims he doesn’t “directly” support the governor.

The White House will likely announce “an accommodation” for religious groups angered by its new rule requiring employers — including organizations with religious affiliations — to offer health insurance that fully covers birth control. ABC’s Jake Tapper reports that the deal with be respectful of religious beliefs, but the move most likely will not satisfy bishops and religious leaders.

House Financial Services Chair, Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL) faces an insider-trading probe by the Office of Congressional Ethics. Bachus received over 44 percent of his campaign donations last quarter from the industries he oversees.

Nine months ahead of Election Day, participants at the Conservative Political Action Conference reflect the same disenchantment with Republican presidential candidates and weariness of Republican in-fighting that voters have complained about on the campaign trail. “I know it’s a long shot, but I wish someone like Daniels or Christie would come along and win the nomination at a brokered convention,” said a Republican activist from Virginia.

Conservative columnist Peggy Noonan notes that both cable news and broadcast news are down, suggesting interest in politics “on both the left and the right, are relatively flat, with mild increases here and there.”

The right-wing U.S. Chamber of Commerce begins a multi-million dollar ad campaign in congressional races. The independent expenditures aim to help 11 Republican allies of big business in House races and 8 Senate races, as well as Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT).

The Oklahoma Democrat who introduced an “Every Sperm is Sacred” amendment to the state senate’s controversial Personhood Bill writes in The Guardian that her amendment was meant “to draw humorous attention to the hypocrisy and inconsistency of this proposal,” which would declare that life begins at conception and grant full legal protection to the fetus.

Lawmakers in Virginia passed legislation that will allow adoption agencies to deny placement of children based on their religious or moral beliefs, including gay couples in the state. Governor McDonnell has said he will sign it, making Virginia the second state after North Dakota to pass such a law.

And finally: This week, Virginia state Rep. Robert Bell passed a bill that allows Virginia’s homeschooled students to play at their local high schools despite not attending that school. The passage of the so-called Tebow legislation (in honor of home-schooled Tim Tebow) excited Bell so much that he bent over on a knee in the Virginia House chamber and broke into the “Tebowing” pose.

For breaking news and updates throughout the day, follow ThinkProgress on Facebook and Twitter.

If you believe every woman deserves access to affordable birth control, make sure Congress hears from you. 

SANTORUM: It was a secular revolution on which we relied on the goodness of each other. This is the left’s view of where America should go. And of course where did France go? To the guillotine. To tyranny. If there are no rights that government needs to respect, then what we see with ObamaCare is just the beginning of what government will do to you.

Watch it:

Government officials have reached an agreement with five of the nation’s biggest banks on a $26 billion settlement to aid homeowners caught in the home foreclosure crisis. The agreement is the broadest effort yet and could provide relief to nearly 2 million current and former homeowners.

Despite the public outcry, Michigan’s Republican Party chairman defended former congressman Pete Hoekstra’s controversial ad. Bobby Schostak called the spot’s stereotyping of Asians “satirical.”

A growing number of Republican lawmakers want return to earmarks, The Hill reports. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) says Republicans increasingly believe they have ceded too much authority on funding home-state projects to the administration.

Washington state is poised to legalize marriage equality after the state House passed a bill to do so yesterday, which now just requires the governor’s signature. Gov. Chris Gregoire (D) has been a strong supporter of the measure and will sign it in the next few days.

Nancy Brinker, the founder and head of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, admitted that she “mishandled” the Planned Parenthood controversy in her first public comments since the controversy erupted. In a statement to the Washington Post’s Sally Quinn, Brinker wrote that she had “made some mistakes” and said she learned some lessons.

Federal regulators with the Securities and Exchange Commission will sue several big banks for contributing to the financial crisis through the sale of bonds linked to subprime mortgages. The SEC is expected to argue that the banks misrepresented the poor quality of the loans pools they bundled and sold to investors. The suit represents a greater crackdown on Wall Street giants that have yet to be held accountable for their role in the economic downturn.

Young adults have been among those hit hardest by the economic downturn, the AP reports. Americans aged 18 to 34 “have suffered bigger income losses than other age groups and are less likely to be employed than at any time since World War II.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans to announce a $10 million campaign today to support 20 congressional candidates, the majority of whom are Republicans. The ads will focus on four Senate races, including candidates such as Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), that Republicans hope to win to gain control of the Senate.

And finally: Who says there are no conservative celebrities? CPAC, the premier annual gathering of conservatives that starts today, will feature some major star power: one member of the Duggar family, Kirk Cameron from “Growing Pains,” and Stephen Baldwin. Meanwhile, Donny Osmond is helping out Mitt Romney. OK, maybe they’re right.

But there is even more troubling news for Romney. As ThinkProgress has noted, Republican turnout has been down in virtually every primary so far, suggesting a lack of enthusiasm for Romney and the rest of the GOP field. But last night’s results are far more severe. Turnout was not just down but down tremendously, and in many places, Romney was unable to capture anywhere close to as many votes as he won in 2008.

Romney won Colorado with 60 percent of the vote four years ago, and its demographics favored the candidate, but this year, Romney won just 34.9 percent of the vote, coming 6 points shy of Santorum. In Minnesota, which Romney won with 41 percent of the vote in 2008, he won just 16.9 percent last night — coming in third behind Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX). And in Missouri, Romney was down slightly, from 29 percent in 2008 to 25.3 percent last night.

Looking at the vote totals, instead of percentages, which takes into account voter turnout, the numbers are even worse for Romney, as this graphic produced by ThinkProgress’ Adam Peck shows:

In some places, Romney’s collapse was even more stunning. As the New York Times’ Nate Silver noted, “Romney’s stronger areas in [Colorado] were associated with turnout declines of about 20 percent. But turnout was steady or slightly up in places where Rick Santorum did well.” For instance, in Pueblo County, where turnout was actually up, Romney took just 27 percent of the vote — a huge drop from the 62 percent he won in 2008. And in the Denver suburbs, which Romney won, he was still way down from 2008. In Douglas County, Romney went from 72 percent in 2008 to 46 percent; in Arapaho County, he went from 66 percent to 45 percent; and in Jeffferson County, he went from 65 percent to 39 percent.

Romney won comfortably in earlier primaries in Florida and Nevada, but only after drowning his competitors in millions of dollars of negative advertising. Romney’s campaign did not invest heavily in last night’s primaries, suggesting the candidate may have hard time winning on his own, without spending huge amounts to destory his competition in every state.

The results also seem to confirm the findings of a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll, which showed that the more people learn about Mitt Romney, the less they like him.

With US troops withdrawn, the State Department is finding it difficult to do their job in Iraq and is preparing to downsize its staff at the embassy in Baghdad by as much as half in the coming weeks, a stunning reversal after a huge buildup, the New York Times reports.

Members of a bipartisan negotiating committee can’t agree on how to pay for another payroll tax cut extension, dashing “any hope for a quick a quiet resolution” before the current extension expires at the end of the month. Senate Democrats have pledged to put forth their own bill if negotiators can’t agree.

The longest serving person in the U.S. Senate, Sen. Dan Inouye (D-HI) blasted Senate hopeful and former Rep. Pete Hoesktra (R-MI) for his controversial ad playing on Asian stereotypes. “His racist thoughts are not welcome in the United States Senate,” Inouye, who is Asian-American, said.

Rick Santorum swept all three GOP primaries last night in Colorado, Missouri, and Minnesota, dealing a severe blow to Mitt Romney, who has tried to present his nomination as inevitable.

Newly amended forms for the pro-Romney super PAC reveal that another Bain exec and his wife are the people behind a mysterious $250,000 donation.

In its comprehensive examination of federal disclosure forms, the Washington Post has discovered that members of Congress have steered millions of taxpayer dollars to institutions where their relatives work. The Post found 16 representatives whose actions aided their immediate families.

The CBO on Tuesday reported that the budget deficit fell sharply in January, from $50 billion a year ago to $27 billion last month. The improved numbers were attributable to higher tax collections from individuals and lower outlays. January’s numbers bring the total deficit reduction to around $70 billion for the first four months of fiscal year 2012, which began on October 1.

The government’s proposed settlement with banks over their mortgage and foreclosure practices was dealt another setback last night when New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (D) canceled a news conference where he was expected to endorse the deal. Officials are still intent on finalizing the deal this week, even as multiple states continue to holdout.

And finally: Someday, wrestler/actor “The Rock” will save the world, but not yet, he said in a recent interview. “Right now, the best way that I can impact the world is through entertainment,” he said. “One day, and that day will come, I can impact the world through politics. The great news is that I am American, therefore I can become President.”

Rainer is a teacher at Blanche Ely High School who is being investigated for the third time by the Broward County School Board in South Florida. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel is reporting that Rainer is accused of referring to one of her Haitian students as “little chocolate boy,” and a “chocolate that nobody wanted.”

Rather than deny the allegations, Rainer is defending herself with an unusual—and probably ineffective—argument:

[She] said her use of “chocolate” was taken out of context. She said “chocolate” is an endearment in the black community. She said her husband, the Rev. Willie Rainer of Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church in Pompano Beach, calls her “Sweet Chocolate.”

Rainer has an alarmingly long history of insensitive and flat-out offensive remarks. In March 2010, as students discussed the devastating earthquake in Haiti, Rainier allegedly explained to her class that Haiti was suffering because the country made a pact with the devil, echoing an incredibly offensive remark that made national headlines when Pat Robertson first said it on his weekly television program. To emphasize the point, Rainer reportedly instructed another Haitian student to stand by classroom trash cans because, she said, “that’s where they belong,” according to the formal complaint filed against Rainer last month.

And it gets worse. Another teacher, who is an avowed atheist at the same Broward County public school, alleges that Rainer and another teacher proceeded to sprinkle what they described as holy water on her when she discussed her disbelief in God.

That incident was reported to the Broward School District’s Professional Standards & Special Investigative Unit, but charges were ultimately dropped after local churches—including the one where her husband is a reverend—pressured the district.

Amazingly, even after this latest incident, Rainer will still have a job teaching in Broward County’s public school system. The district superintendent is recommending a three day suspension without pay and attendance at a diversity training course, after which she will presumably resume her teaching duties.

This Thursday, the PAC will host its second annual Scotch & Cigars fundraiser, according to an invitation posted by the Sunlight Foundation. A $1,000 PAC or individual contribution buys a spot on the event’s host committee. Just a $50 check “entitles you to a cigar and open selection of whiskey and wine, as well as good company with fellow conservative guests” in executive suite #3320 of Washington’s Marriott Wardman Park. To encourage healthy behavior by young people, the event has a $20 discounted rate for anyone under age 30.

Attendees will have to dress the part; the required dress code for the event is “lounge suit for men, cocktail dress for women.”

The “good company” includes several powerful political players: anti-tax activist Grover Norquist, twice-defeated former Gov. Robert Ehrlich (R-MD), and current U.S. Reps. Dan Benishek (R-MI), Ann Marie Buerkle (R-NY), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), and Bob Latta (R-OH). Despite the health dangers of tobacco and hard liquor, the event has the apparent seal of approval from Buerkle (a nurse) and Benishek (a medical doctor and surgeon).

There is just one hitch: the hotel is 100 percent smoke-free so the cigars will have to be taken out to the balcony (the current weather forecast for Thursday predicts an overnight low of 28 degrees) or remain unlit.

Donors might want to note, however, that in the 2010 campaign, the One Nation PAC spent more of its funds on fundraising consultants ($32,837) than on actual contributions to candidates ($20,299), according to the Center for Responsive Politics.