Via NBC:

FLORENCE, SC — Speaking to media during an impromptu press conference Tuesday, Texas Gov. Rick Perry twice mentioned rival Rick Santorum’s Catholic faith in criticizing his record on fiscal issues.

“Rick Santorum is a good man, he is a good father, he’s a good Catholic,” Perry, an evangelical Christian, said. “But he hasn’t always been a good conservative.”

The casual but twice-repeated remark — the first time that Perry has publicly pointed to his rival’s faith — attracted the attention of journalists because both men are competing to win evangelical voters in the final days before the South Carolina primary.

I have defended Perry on related issues before and am grateful to him for being a defender of religious freedom at the debates and I am suspicious of being overly suspicious — but candidates ought to be overly cautious in this area. No need to fuel bigotry stories waiting to be written or actual bigotry.

Romney is campaigning now in eastern Iowa, where he did well in 2008. http://is.gd/Dr8LRd

Noteworthy: Romney did well in an area dominated by Catholics. (Dubuque is 75% Catholic). Just look at the map from 2008. http://is.gd/6vaE99

Rich Lowry says Santorum’s focus on families and the working class sets him apart from the GOP field. http://is.gd/hkpks0

I like Rick Perry for promoting federalism. But then why is he suing Virginia in federal court to get on the ballot? http://is.gd/lEKYWn

Rick Perry no longer supports abortion in the case of rape. He was convinced after talking with pro-life attorney Rebecca Kiessling, who was born after her birthmother was a victim of sexual assault. http://is.gd/aqBrsh

Former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson formally joins the Libertarian Party, ending his bid for the GOP presidential nomination and declares himself a candidate for the president under the Libertarian Party. We might make a difference on who wins New Mexico. http://is.gd/oumNsV

With the retirement of Sen. Ben Nelson, D-NE, the Democrats’ chances of retaining the Senate in 2012 get dimmer. But they’ll face an even harsher 2014. http://is.gd/5Svqqi

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-OR

Bipartisan support, finally! Rep. Paul Ryan, R-WI, teamed up with Oregon Democrat Sen. Ron Wyden on a new plan to reform Medicare. Wyden said it was time for conservatives and progressives to come together and “deal with the costs and demographic challenges.” It won’t do as much to solve Medicare’s insolvency as Ryan’s previous plan, but reforming the expensive but popular plan without any Democratic support is impossible. http://is.gd/AZwNoA

Newt Gingrich drops 12 points in Iowa, with 12 points going to Perry and Paul in the latest Rasmussen poll. Mitt is now in first in Iowa. Romney 23%, Gingrich 20%, Ron Paul 18%, Rick Perry 10%, Michele Bachmann, 9%, Rick Santorum 6%, and Jon Huntsman 5%.  http://is.gd/MsQiQK

Lifeway, a Christian bookstore chain, pulls the Komen Bible from their shelves because of Komen’s support for Planned Parenthood. http://is.gd/nCt4lY  

No surprise, but good to make it official: The National Right to Life Committee and its Nebraska affiliate will oppose Sen. Ben Nelson’s reelection in Nebraska. http://is.gd/33O8GL

Rumors have swirled that former NM Gov. Gary Johnson, who supports abortion, might leave the GOP presidential race and run on the Libertarian Party banner. He says he hasn’t made up his mind, but he did offer an idea of what a third-party run would look like. http://is.gd/H4I4iw

According to Andrea Tornielli, all documentation is being prepared for Pope Benedict XVI to proclaim Blessed Hildegard the new Doctor of the Church in October 2012 during the “Year of the Faith.” http://is.gd/lNHQUN

R.I. Governor Lincoln Chafee, an Independent who made news for dedicating a “holiday” tree dropped even further in the polls, now at just a 27% approval rating. Merry Christmas, Linc. http://is.gd/N5CHFk

Mitt Romney suggests that Newt Gingrich should return over a million dollars in consulting money to failed housing giant Freddie Mac. Gingrich responds suggesting that Romney return money he earned at Bain for laying people off. Newt’s response backfires big time. http://is.gd/jqLHqv

If Romney or Gingrich falter, Rick Perry might take it all, says Ken Klukowski. (It’s possible, but tough.) http://is.gd/qVOVxw

President Obama’s favorable ratings hold steady, still below 50%. http://is.gd/9K61gY

A new Pennsylvania redistricting map would strengthen five congressional districts held by Republicans while pitting two Democrats (Jason Altmire and Mark Critz) in the same district.  http://is.gd/a6heYD

A new Church foundation named after Pope John Paul II promotes Catholic sportsmanship. http://is.gd/QqY10r  

The Diocese of Orange recently purchased the Crystal Cathedral once used by TV preacher Robert Schuller. (I really can’t understand why.) Deacon Kandra thinks to renovate the cathedral, the Diocese ought to hire the person who transformed one church from drab to sacred. http://is.gd/skRZ0L

Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Ill., expressed repentance for sins committed by members of the Church, including the sexual abuse of minors. http://is.gd/YH8nyr

“I was taught the faith in Catholic schools using materials that were weak and insubstantial. I wasn’t being taught my faith. The liturgy suffered from experimentation as well,” said Bishop Alexander Sample of Marquette, Mich. http://is.gd/qJLxDF

There is little room for dissent with Kathleen Sebelius in charge, says WSJ columnist Bill McGurn. He gives a shout out to the new CatholicVote ad in his column. (Subscription might be required). http://is.gd/gzNO77

Too soon to call it a comeback, but Rick Perry climbs up to 13% in the latest Iowa poll.

Perry’s also starting a month-long bus tour of Iowa. http://is.gd/01oIhI

Michele Bachmann will one-up him, by hitting all 99 counties of Iowa in her bus tour. http://is.gd/rwIaYw

A brokered GOP convention? Don’t bet on it, says Sean Trende. http://is.gd/Z8Krl8

Speaker Boehner says the House will pass a bill extending the payroll tax cut. The bill also contains a provision on the Keystone Pipeline which Obama opposes. http://is.gd/uO9gqW

NBC calls the ad with Tim Tebow and his mother a “controversial anti-abortion ad.” http://is.gd/btr2aQ

The Supreme Court is an ‘enormous issue’ for 2012. http://is.gd/aX0Q7T

Obamacare could obliterate most health care conscience protections, experts say. http://is.gd/DbjGro

Catholic blogger Matthew Warner thinks Rick Perry’s new ad about gays in the military is overly simplistic red meat that doesn’t help the pro-marriage cause. (I think Matt’s right.) http://cvote.to/9m  

Non-partisan political analyst Charlie Cook says Newt Gingrich’s campaign fundamentals are very lacking and will hamper his chances of winning the nomination. http://cvote.to/9n

The Saint Louis Police Dept. calmly and quietly cleared out the Occupy Wall Street crowd in their town — without using harsh techniques or causing social unrest. (Sometimes it’s best not to be Clint Eastwood.) http://cvote.to/9o    

Washington Post blogger Jen Rubin also thinks Newt Gingrich needs to explain his changes on embryonic stem cell research. http://cvote.to/9p

Ron Paul is making a major play for evangelical Christians in Iowa. http://cvote.to/9q

The GOP Senate fight in Wisconsin is just between former Gov. Tommy Thompson and former Rep. Mark Nuemann, right? Actually, a third candidate might win the race, says Hotline. That’s State Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald. http://cvote.to/9r

Awesome News: Abortions in Arizona drop 30% after pro-life law takes effect. http://cvote.to/9s

What’s propelling the Newt surge? My take is that many GOP primary voters are looking for someone who understands how the heck Washington works (or doesn’t) and who can explain to them in a believable way how he plans to fix it. In 2008 America elected a President with only a couple years experience as a junior Senator from Illinois and look where that got us.

Newt has his baggage, to be sure, but most GOP voters tuning into the debates this year don’t follow politics very closely (they are understandably busy with living their own lives) and, at first glance, Newt is impressive. He’s been involved in these issues now under debate for literally decades, and his memory and experience serves him well. It’s not surprising that in these unsettling times GOP voters are turning to the candidate who looks like the grandfather who has seen it all and, even more importantly, understands this particular American moment in terms of the history that got us to this moment and how historical challenges similar to this one were eventually solved and overcome.

In terms of substance, Newt far exceeds the monotonous droning of Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 mantra, and the Texan “let’s shoot all the bureaucrats” solutions proposed by Rick Perry. He’s got a real grasp of all the issues, as opposed to Ron Paul’s tunnel-vision. And people view Newt as a cheerful warrior who can crack jokes and point out the absurdity of the left, in many of the ways that Rick Santorum does not or chooses not to. Michele Bachmann has had her day, Jon Hunstman will never have his because he’s done precisely nothing to earn it. Mitt Romney, as polished as he is, has managed to turn off more voters in running for the nomination than he has won. There’s more reasons to explain why Romney hasn’t caught on and why it’s still doubtful to me that he ever will.

So where does that leave us? With Newt.

At least, for now. I forget where I read this but someone pointed out that these next few weeks will tell us a lot about how much Newt has learned from his time out of politics. If he has learned greater humility, for instance. If he grows into the role that is possibly opening for him as the Republican nominee or if he takes it as a boost to his ego.

As I’ve written before, I haven’t decided who I support in this primary and I certainly haven’t endorsed anyone. I doubt, at this point, I will endorse anyone. The question for me is who will take on President Obama in the general election.

I would say that the ruminations of Mark about Newt’s wealth and lifestyle don’t seem on-point. Much of what is criticized about Newt’s affluent lifestyle could be equally applied to Mitt Romney. Senator Obama was no pauper but people seemed to believe that he could empathize with their plight (wrongly, I would argue, but that’s not because of Obama’s current affluence, it’s because of his worldview). The unfortunate fact of national politics these days is that you typically don’t have what is required to run for President unless you have significant personal resources, period.

No, instead I think we should be focusing on Newt’s character. The mainstream media and the left have had decades to develop personal attacks on Newt, some of them founded, many of them overblown and some of them outright false. We owe it to ourselves to examine this man’s record as we would any serious candidate for President, and not simply rely on the media-driven narrative which has so often poisoned our political discourse.

Anyway, those are my first thoughts on Newt. With less than a month to go until the Iowa caucuses, this interminable primary season is at last bounding into the final chapter. Who writes that final chapter and wins the nomination is anyone’s guess.

Another triumph for the aggressive secularist state: Catholic dioceses in IL drop lawsuit, will no longer provide foster care. http://cvote.to/8O

Catholics have a duty to fight against pornography and its devastating spiritual and societal consequences, says family activist Patrick Trueman. http://cvote.to/8P

Obama has turned his back on Catholics, Michael Gerson writes in the Washington Post. http://cvote.to/8Q

Video of Herman Cain’s stumble on Libya gets 156,000 views in 18 hours. Watch. http://cvote.to/8U

Rick Perry calls for a part-time Congress an end to lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court in favor of 18-year terms. http://cvote.to/8R

Cain, Gingrich, Romney and Paul are in a four-way tie in Iowa. http://cvote.to/8S

Read the letter 27 senators sent to the Obama admin challenging its denial of a grant based on abortion. PDF. http://cvote.to/8T

Full text of Bishop Lori’s “stemwinder” speech on religious liberty yesterday. http://cvote.to/8V

Matthew Warner, with the Quote of the Day: “If you really were the 99%, the only thing you’d need to ‘occupy’ is the voting booth.”

Hooray! Supreme Court to hear challenge to Obamacare. http://cvote.to/8I

Everyone in the political world is talking about this explosive 60 Minutes story about Congressmen making money on insider trading. The corruption will make your blood boil. http://cvote.to/8G

Jay Newton-Small of TIME magazine says there are five reasons why Rick Perry will survive for now. http://cvote.to/8H

Kudos to the Cardinal Newman Society! Siena College cancels anti-Catholic speaker after the watchdog group called out the college. http://cvote.to/8J

From the U.S. Bishops’ General Assembly: Religious freedom surfaces as a key issue. http://cvote.to/8K

New CNN poll shows Herman Cain dropped from 25% to 14%, now in 3rd. Mitt Romney on top at 24%, Newt Gingrich jumps from 8% in October to 22%. http://cvote.to/8N

Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, Conn.: “Make no mistake…  aggressive secularism is also a system of belief.”

Bishop Joseph P. McFadden of Harrisburg, PA: “School choice is a social justice issue.” http://cvote.to/88

Austin, Texas suspends law attacking pregnancy centers.  http://cvote.to/89

New national CBS poll has Cain 18, Romney 15, Gingrich 15; Cain losing support of women. PDF. http://cvote.to/8A But a McClatchy poll has Newt in 2^nd place, with Cain dropping to 3^rd. http://cvote.to/8B

Both Virginia’s and now Mississippi’s Legislatures have flipped to full Republican control. http://cvote.to/8C

Texas Gov. Rick Perry went on a damage control tour after his debate “brain freeze.” He did all the morning news shows and recited the Top Ten list on Letterman. http://cvote.to/8D

Herman Cain also had gaffes. Cain apologized for calling House Minority Pelosi by the nickname ‘Princess Pelosi.’ In Michigan yesterday, he said: “How do you beat Obama – beat him with a Cain.” http://cvote.to/8E Cain then later jokingly asked if Anita Hill, who accused Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment, would be endorsing him. http://cvote.to/8F