Tuesday, January 17, 2012

2012 South Carolina primary debate liveblog

And then there were five.

With former Utah governor Jon Huntsman having bowed out of the GOP presidential primary race this morning, the remaining quintet of White House hopefuls will take the stage in Myrtle Beach for tonight’s Fox News/Wall Street Journal/South Carolina Republican Party debate.

Primary day is five days away, and a new Gallup poll shows former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is going from strength to strength, leading his nearest GOP rival by 23 points nationally.

Can former House speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.), former senator Rick Santorum (Pa.), Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) or Texas Gov. Rick Perry shake things up tonight? Stay tuned as we liveblog tonight’s debate from 9 to 11 p.m. Eastern, and refresh this page often for the latest updates!

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» Election 2012: Where and when to watch the debate


Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney(R). (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

8:45 p.m. | Did Romney really win Iowa?

When the dust settled after the Iowa caucuses earlier this month, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (R) was leading former senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) by eight votes.

But could Santorum actually be the winner?

The Washington Examiner’s Byron York reports:

The final numbers will be different from those released on caucus night. One campaign source says the vote count as of midday Monday showed Santorum ahead by 80-something votes. If that number holds through certification of the last precincts, Santorum will win. Of course, there is always the possibility that some of the final precincts will contain discrepancies that put Romney back on top. It’s just not clear.
8:30 p.m. | Romney camp features Huckabee in new Web ad

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee (R) hasn’t endorsed a candidate in the 2012 GOP presidential race. But you might not know it from a new Web ad released by former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney’s (R) campaign.

The 30-second spot, “Huckabee,” features clips of the Fox News host and 2008 GOP presidential hopeful defending Romney from attacks on his record at Bain Capital.

“It’s surprising to see these attacks coming from fellow Republicans. ... They ought to know that if downsizing can turn around a failing company, then at least it prevents all the jobs from being lost, and sets up a stronger company that can grow and start re-hiring,” Huckabee says in the spot. The clip is from a Jan. 10 airing of “The Huckabee Report.”

Huckabee, a favorite among social conservatives, placed second in South Carolina in 2008, taking 30 percent to Sen. John McCain’s (Ariz.) 33 percent. Although he has not endorsed a candidate this time around, Huckabee has remained active in the GOP race: Over the weekend, he co-hosted an event for the GOP contenders in Charleston, and last month he held a 90-minute forum on Fox News Channel.


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