Columbia, South Carolina (CNN) – Florida Sen. Marco Rubio condemned President Barack Obama on Saturday in unusually harsh terms, calling him one the most “divisive” and “destructive” political figures the country has ever seen.

“For all the policy disagreements that we have with our president, it is hard to understate how much he inspired people across this country four years ago,” Rubio said at a fundraising dinner for South Carolina Republicans.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

– Follow Peter Hamby on Twitter: @PeterHambyCNN

The man who currently occupies the White House, he explained, “is a very different person.”

“We have not seen such a divisive figure in modern American history as we have over the last three and a half years,” Rubio said.

“They get frustrated,” he said. “They can’t win on their record. And so they have chosen to go down a different road, one that I think is destructive, counterproductive and very unfortunate.”

He accused the Obama campaign of attempting to “pit Americans against each other” by engaging in class warfare and unfairly attacking Republicans on gender issues.

“Never have we seen such an effort to divide the American people in an effort to win an election as we have today,” Rubio said.

Rubio was addressing roughly 1,200 attendees at the South Carolina Republican Party’s Silver Elephant Banquet, the state party’s largest fundraiser of the year.

The speech raised $300,000 for the party.

Rubio exhorted the crowd to rally behind the Republican Party - which the onetime tea party insurgent described as “the logical home” for conservatives - this November.

Though the freshman senator showed flashes of the attack dog mentality that would be required of him if Mitt Romney chooses him as his running mate, a dim prospect according to people in both Romney’s orbit and Rubio’s, his remarks were largely a paean to American exceptionalism.

His speech, laced with references to his modest upbringing as the son of Cuban immigrants, won him a nearly minute-long standing ovation at its conclusion.

Though a few of the GOP activists and donors in the audience said Rubio might be too untested on the national level to serve as Romney’s running mate this year, they said he has a bright future should he decide to seek higher office down the road.

“I love Marco Rubio,” said Lin Bennett, the chairwoman of the Charleston County Republican Party. “I love his conservative values. He is sharp. He is brilliant. When you listen to him speak, you know it’s coming from his heart. It’s not a political speech.”

Katon Dawson, the former chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party, said that if Rubio does run for president someday, he won’t have to worry about trust issues with the Republican base here.

“He has already made nice with South Carolina,” Dawson said. “He is a conservative warrior.”

Dawson said Rubio, along with South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, represent the kind of candidates the Republican Party needs to do a better job of recruiting.

“We were in desperate need of a DNA change,” he said. “The Republican Party has a tendency to get old. They bring youth and energy and excitement for us.”

Rubio broached that topic himself at one point during his speech, calling the GOP “a more diverse party than the Democratic party is.”

If Rubio does choose to embark on a national campaign in 2016 or later, he got an important head start on Saturday in this key Republican primary state.

He was introduced at the dinner by South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint, one of the nation’s leading conservatives and an early political patron during Rubio’s 2010 Senate bid.

The state’s other senator, Lindsey Graham, earlier compared Rubio to Ronald Reagan.

In preparation for the weekend, the South Carolina GOP commissioned a slick 18-page program for the convention that featured a gauzy portrait of Rubio splashed across the cover.

Convention-goers and banquet attendees were issued badges emblazoned with Rubio’s face as they entered the events.

Rubio, who was accompanied on his trip by Terry Sullivan, one his top political advisers with deep South Carolina ties, also hosted a small fundraiser for his political action committee with Columbia area business leaders.

And multiple Republican sources told CNN that Rubio advisers convened a small meeting with Republican state legislators and conservative activists after the banquet.

(CNN) – In his first campaign swing for Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich this weekend called for party unity and a need to rally behind the likely GOP presidential nominee.

"We're now all on the same team, period," Gingrich said at the Georgia GOP convention Friday, according to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

His comments came in a speech to a crowd that largely backed him when he won the Peach State’s primary in March.

Prior to dropping out of the race in early May, the former Georgia congressman and House speaker had previously vowed to stay in the running until the August convention to collect delegates and get out his message.

The strategy had some Republicans worried about party division, as Gingrich continually tried to court the more conservative factions of the GOP. On Friday, however, he said it was time for the party to come together and stand with Romney.

At the convention, he stressed the importance of making a Republican sweep not only in the Oval Office this November, but also in elections across the country.

"I am not for a narrow victory," he said. "I am for crushing the left in every single way."

His remarks were coded with stronger language for Romney than when he first endorsed the candidate during his suspension speech just weeks ago. At the time, Gingrich gave lukewarm praise, saying Romney was only conservative when compared to President Barack Obama.

In the following days, Gingrich began to step up his support and argued Romney had "earned" his way to represent the party his fall.

This weekend Gingrich also focused on Obama.

In an interview with CNN affiliate WTVM, Gingrich said the president's recent decision to back same-sex marriage - despite having once opposed it - qualified him as a flip-flopper.

"It's unfortunate he's so political, but it eliminates any attack on Romney about ever flip-flopping when you have Obama flip-flopping on something that big, and doing it immediately after the people of North Carolina voted 'no,'" Gingrich said. "It's almost like he was insulting the people of North Carolina."

Last week, North Carolina voted in favor of a constitutional amendment banning marriage and domestic partnerships for same-sex couples.

Gingrich's campaign appearances this weekend marked the first of a string of stops the former candidate will make for his former opponent. The two will share the stage together for the first time at the end of May at a Las Vegas campaign event.

(CNN) - The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on Saturday announced its backing of same-sex marriage, more than a week after President Barack Obama also expressed support for the issue.

"The mission of the NAACP has always been to ensure political, social and economic equality of all people," Roslyn M. Brock, chairman of the NAACP's board of directors, said in a statement.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

She added: "We have and will oppose efforts to codify discrimination into law."

Following Obama's announcement last week, speculation swirled over whether his decision would spark political backlash among some in the black evangelical community, which has traditionally been against same-sex marriage.

Meanwhile, some prominent African-American religious leaders, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Rev. Joseph Lowery, praised Obama's support for same-sex marriage last week.

The NAACP in the recent past has stood in favor of gay rights issues, notably opposing Proposition 8 in California, the Defense of Marriage Act, and North Carolina's constitutional amendment that bans marriage and domestic partnerships for same-sex couples.

"Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law. The NAACP's support for marriage equality is deeply rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and equal protection of all people," said the group's president, Benjamin Todd Jealous.

– CNN's Martina Stewart contributed to this report.

(CNN) - The longest McKay Christensen has ever gone without food is 36 hours.

But now he's vowed to give up eating altogether in a bizarre protest against Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, saying he won't take a bite until the veteran GOP senator agrees to take part in a televised debate ahead of the state's June primary.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

Christensen, a 43-year-old warehouse manager, is an ardent supporter of former state Sen. Dan Liljenquist, the main Republican candidate attempting to oust Hatch in a heated primary battle.

While Hatch, who's running for a seventh term, has agreed to a radio debate set to take place shortly before the June 26 contest, some of Hatch's critics say that's not enough. They want a debate soon, and they want it on TV.

Christensen says he's willing to risk his health to make that happen.

"I know this is pretty extreme, but this is an election," Christensen told CNN. "It's going to take something extreme to not only get their attention, but to create enough pressure that they'll have to respond."

Liljenquist's campaign, as well as the editorial boards for the Salt Lake Tribune and the Deseret News, have also called on Hatch to participate in a TV showdown. They make the case that Utah voters deserve to not only hear the candidates, but to see them side by side.

Team Hatch, however, points out that the senator has already participated in two debates this cycle, prior to the state's party convention in April.

"The question of us not doing a debate is a moot point," Hatch's communications director Evelyn Call told CNN. She added the radio debate was "more than adequate" for the purpose of their campaign, arguing Hatch has been meeting with voters on a regular basis.

"Our job is to make sure we get our message out, meet with Utahans and voters," Call said. "Our job isn't necessarily to get our opponent more press coverage."

After his "last meal" of barbeque on Saturday, however, Christensen said he'll begin his hunger strike and persist until Hatch changes his mind.

"I hope that they will see it's something I'm serious about," Christensen said.

He got the idea after reading about a student's recent hunger strike to influence the University of Minnesota-Duluth to build a gender-neutral restroom on campus. The student's protest lasted less than 24 hours before school officials caved.

Christensen, who lives in Centerville, Utah, is hoping for a similar outcome, saying he expects to get a "serious response" from Hatch within four or five days.

But Hatch's campaign said the tactic is not "going to have any kind of influence" on their decision.

"We can't control what supporters of other campaigns do," Call said.

Liljenquist's team, meanwhile, said it does not "condone or encourage a hunger strike," and Christensen, who has volunteered for the campaign, said the campaign directly asked him not to do it.

And they're not the only ones discouraging the move. Christensen, who has not consulted a doctor about his decision, says his wife is unhappy with his decision, especially as their second eldest daughter of five is set to graduate high school at the end of the month.

Standing 6 feet, 4 inches tall and weighing 331 pounds, however, Christensen says he's in good shape to handle an extended fast.

"But I've read up on what starving can do to the body, and hopefully it doesn't go that far," he said.

Describing himself as "passionate for politics," Christensen says he is known to take unusual action in the name of elections, such as volunteering to drive all over the state to campaign for those running for even the smallest of offices.

Christensen, who emphasized that he was a "sandwich guy," said he'll strictly stick to water during his strike.

"But my wife is a great cook, so I've had to ask her to dial it down a bit."

In all earnestness, though, Christensen added he's prepared to take the hunger strike as far as possible, even if that means all 38 days until the primary.

"People think there are other ways to get Sen. Hatch to debate on TV," he said. "I told them I think it's going to take some added pressure."

Wolfeboro, New Hampshire (CNN) – Likely GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney took a day off from the campaign trail Saturday to spend some alone time on a boat in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.

As seen in the photo above, Romney got out on the waves with Secret Service as company. Earlier this week, the former Massachusetts governor told reporters he was planning for a rare, quiet afternoon.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

"It will be me alone. Put the boat in the water," he said. "Get out the picnic tables. By myself."

Minutes after the candidate cruised off from the dock, another set of boaters participated in the Great Smith River Canoe and Kayak Race in the same stretch of water.

Minneapolis (CNN) – Minneapolis is a conflicted city. It's home to one of the largest gay pride festivals in the Midwest and was once dubbed the "gayest city in America" by The Advocate magazine. The metropolitan area is also home to the conservative power base of Rep. Michele Bachmann.

And in six months, voters there and across the state will decide whether to amend the state's constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

(CNN) - Former wrestling executive Linda McMahon won the Connecticut Republican convention by a wide margin Friday night, crossing one hurdle in her second bid for a U.S. Senate seat from the state in two years.

"My family and I are humbled by the overwhelming support we received tonight at the Connecticut Republican Convention," she wrote on her Facebook page.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

While the win gives McMahon a big boost in her campaign, she will still face former U.S. Rep. Chris Shays in an August Republican primary. Shays crossed the 15% convention threshold needed to push the race into another contest.

McMahon, who ran unsuccessfully as the Republican nominee in a 2010 bid against now-Sen. Richard Blumenthal, won Friday's convention with 60.4% of the vote, while Shays came in second at 32.2%, according to the Hartford Courant.

The two candidates are vying for the seat soon to be vacated by retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman, an Independent who caucuses with Democrats.

A former president and CEO of the wrestling organization WWE, McMahon made headlines for spending tens of millions in her last Senate bid and faced criticism over her company's reputation in the entertainment industry.

In 2010, Blumenthal easily beat McMahon, 55%-43%, despite McMahon spending nearly $50 million of her own money on the campaign.

This time around, McMahon has loaned her campaign $2.1 million as of the end of April, according to Federal Election Commission reports.

"If at first you don't succeed, try, try again," McMahon said Friday at the convention, according to the Hartford Courant. "That's my motto. We're definitely going to bring this home."

Should she win the Republican primary in August, McMahon would run against Democratic freshman Rep. Chris Murphy for the general election in Connecticut, a heavily Democratic state.

A Quinnipiac University survey released in March, however, showed Murphy would topple McMahon in a potential November match-up, garnering 52% of support in the poll against 37% for McMahon.

– CNN's Gabriella Schwarz and Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.

(CNN) – After a rough week in the investment industry, President Barack Obama used his weekly address Saturday to urge Congress to stand by increased regulations of Wall Street, while Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin continued the Republican call for the Democratic-led Senate to pass a budget.

The recession was caused by Wall Street treating the "financial system like a casino," and this week’s $2 billion loss suffered by JPMorgan Chase could have cost taxpayers, Obama said.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

Congress should back reforms such as those enacted nearly two years ago "because we can't afford to go back to an era of weak regulation and little oversight where excessive risk-taking on Wall Street and a lack of basic oversight in Washington nearly destroyed our economy," Obama said.

That law, known as Dodd Frank, passed Congress by narrow margins and is a target of Republicans on the campaign trail.

The president said the new rules require financial powerhouses to "write out a 'living will' that details how you'll be wound down if you do fail."

"So unless you run a financial institution whose business model is built on cheating consumers, or making risky bets that could damage the whole economy, you have nothing to fear from Wall Street reform," he said, then defended his position from suggestions that it is an undue restriction on the free market.

"I believe the free market is one of the greatest forces for progress in human history; that businesses are the engine of growth; that risk-takers and innovators should be celebrated," he said. "But I also believe that at its best, the free market has never been a license to take whatever you want, however you can get it."

Meanwhile, Johnson said in the Republicans' address that Democrats in the Senate and Obama are acting irresponsibly by refusing to pass a budget.

"For his part, President Obama has done nothing to encourage the Senate to pass a budget. Just this week in the Senate, the president's budget lost by a vote of 0 to 99," Johnson said. "This is a stunning repudiation of his leadership. At a time when America requires sober financial management, President Obama's fiscal plans have been so unserious, that not a single member his own party supported them with their vote."

Spurred by Republicans, the Senate held votes on five budget proposals on Wednesday, none of which passed.

The vote appeared to some as an effort to score political points, but Johnson said Saturday, "The American people understand that we are facing enormous economic challenges. And they're looking for solutions, not political games."

He also criticized Obama for his broader economic policies and his health care law.

"Instead of concentrating on job creation, President Obama has concentrated on growing government and increasing its control over our lives," Johnson said.

The jabs will likely continue next week, when the president is to speak on the economy and GOP candidate Mitt Romney returns to the campaign trail.

(CNN) - Former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, will return to the White House on May 31 for the hanging of his official portrait, a spokesman for Bush said.

"They are looking forward to seeing a lot of their friends from the administration and they are grateful to the president and first lady for their hospitality," spokesman Freddy Ford said.

Bush has mostly shied from D.C. and the White House since leaving office. He was in town earlier this week for an event highlighting the work of the George W. Bush Presidential Center to promote political freedom.

(CNN) - Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus argued Friday the president was more focused on "the man in the mirror" than holding true to his campaign pledges.

"My point is he's a person in love with the sound of his own voice. He loves giving speeches, but he doesn't love following through on his promises," Priebus said on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer."

(CNN) - President Barack Obama's campaign ended the month of April with over $115 million in the bank, federal campaign filings posted Friday showed.

The campaign had $115,157,432.79 cash on hand after raising $25.7 million that month. Combined with other Democratic efforts, including the Democratic National Committee, they raised $43.6 million in April, slightly more than the $40.1 million GOP candidate Mitt Romney and his allies raised. Romney ended the month with $104 million cash on hand.

But Obama's campaign did report debt: $1,200 owed to a Nebraska company for telemarketing.

-CNN's Kevin Bohn and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report

(CNN) – Frustration with the economy led to an incarcerated man winning 40% of votes in the West Virginia Democratic primary earlier this month, Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday.

In an interview with WTOV, Biden said he doesn't "blame people, they're frustrated, they're angry."

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

"When you're out of work, man, it's a depression," Biden told the CNN Ohio affiliate. "And a lot of people are still hurt because of this Godawful recession we inherited that cost 8.4 million jobs before we could really get going."

The vice president was speaking in Martins Ferry, Ohio, on Thursday, touting the improving auto industry and relating his own middle-class background to experience of many in this battleground state.

But while voters may be frustrated now, Biden said he believes voters will decide he and President Barack Obama are better suited for the White House than GOP candidate Mitt Romney.

"They're going to decide, is the way back to their employment, is the way back to them being able to have a job and raise a family - is it under the values set and the ideas of Romney, or is it under ours?" he said. "And we feel confident we'll do just fine."

Keith Judd, inmate #11593-051, is serving a 210-month sentence in a Texas jail for extortion. He met all the parameters for getting on the West Virginia ballot and received 73, 138 votes to Obama's 106,770 in the primary held on May 8.

Also see:

Romney to start airing first general election campaign ad Friday

Third party effort packs it in for 2012

Conservative group hits the road in Wisconsin

CNN's GUT CHECK | for May 18, 2012 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

First on CNN… The Romneys donate their own money to presidential bid: Mitt and Ann Romney each donated $75,000 this week to the Romney Victory Fund, the joint fundraising committee between Romney's campaign and the Republican National Committee, a Romney campaign source told CNN’s Dana Bash.

Just In… Facebook's modest debut: Facebook's stock market debut finally came and went - but for all the breathless hype, shares ended right near their offering price.

TRAIL TRIVIA
(Answer below)
What sitting U.S. congressman carries a tribute to Bruce Lee everywhere he goes?

MARK (@PrestonCNN) & MICHELLE (@MJaconiCNN)
What caught our eye today in politics

On Fridays, we reach out to the masters of the political class, and today we want to step back and learn from California.

Christopher Lehane, California-based Democratic political consultant

“While it is said, as goes Maine so goes the nation, the reality is that as goes California so will go the nation whether it be cultural trends (e.g. gay marriage), economic (e.g. the clean jobs economy) or demographic (e.g. importance and contributions of the Latino population). Today, as reflected in this week's revelation that the state faces a $16 billion deficit, California is grappling with the challenge of governing in an era of finite resources and in the context of a political infrastructure that facilitates dysfunction as opposed to consensus – in some ways like the current paralysis in government dynamic in Washington, D.C. A generation ago, California was first (or near first) in public education, job creation and infrastructure investment, and today California is at the bottom (or near bottom) in many of these same categories (most notably public education). The state has unparalleled strengths, enormously talented and enterprising creators, great universities, the hubs of the tech, bio and clean energy economies, wonderful weather and diversity. The challenge for the state's political structures and elected leadership will be how to effectively leverage these great strengths to overcome the current political dysfunction and lead a California comeback. Given that California's challenges and strengths reflect the countries' challenges and strengths, California can once again lead the away. And given that the people of the state have demonstrated time and time again the capacity to lead, we will ultimately get it right.”

John Heubusch, executive director for The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation

"California's current political environment is driven now almost exclusively by its economic environment, and with the economic and fiscal mess it finds itself in, it is hard to imagine California ‘teaching’ the rest of the states anything. Perhaps the better way to pose the question is. ‘What can the rest of the states learn from California's mistakes? When a state government finds itself on the edge of its seat awaiting a windfall of income tax revenue from a single company's IPO (Facebook) to help save itself, things are bad. California's great quality of life when you can get off the freeway can't be denied. But its ability to thoughtfully and collectively plan for the long haul in a fiscally sane way is as dreamy a notion of what it produces in Hollywood. The state is weak because its coffers are boom dependent, and its the booms, whether stemming from the internet or the housing bubble, that have masked the same underlying structural problems facing the country as a whole. The issues driving high unemployment, slow growth, and a failing education system among others just find themselves magnified here. Decades of habitual overspending, a hyper-regulated economy, and increasingly progressive tax policies are driving a continued migration from the state. That, in turn, destroys investment opportunities and growth for the future. The cycle continues. But, hey, it's 70 degrees and sunny and you can see the ocean from here.”

the LEDE
Did you miss it?

Leading CNNPolitics: Obama's North Carolina math problem
The state Democratic Party here is consumed with an ongoing sexual harassment scandal. The embattled governor is so unpopular she decided not to run for a second term. And supporters of same-sex marriage were dealt a crushing defeat at the ballot box last week. – CNN's Peter Hamby

Leading Drudge: The Big Bet
Shares of Facebook Inc. opened about 11% higher after they started trading, but quickly lost steam and fell as low as the$38 IPO price in their first half hour of trading.

Leading HuffPo: Mitt Romney To Mock New Hampshire Bridge Backed By His Supporters
Mitt Romney will campaign Friday in New Hampshire, looking for his own "bridge to nowhere." The Romney camp thinks they have found it in a 19th century bridge no longer used for traffic that was restored with state and federal funds. -

Leading Politico: Race issues return with Rev. Jeremiah Wright
The renewed focus on President Barack Obama’s controversial pastor is reviving the issue that neither presidential campaign wants to discuss directly: race.

Leading New York Times: Magnate Steps Into 2012 Fray on Wild Pitch
Joe Ricketts, an up-by-the-bootstraps billionaire whose varied holdings include a name-brand brokerage firm in Omaha, a baseball team in Chicago, herds of bison in Wyoming and a start-up news Web site in New York, wanted to be a player in the 2012 election. On Thursday he was, though not in the way he had intended.

TRAIL MOMENTS
The political bites of the day

–Romney creates his own bridge to nowhere –
MITT ROMNEY AT A CAMPAIGN EVENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE: “As you all know the story of this bridge, this is part of the president’s stimulus plan. He went out and borrowed $787 billion and said if Congress allowed him to borrow that kind of money, that he would hold unemployment below 8%, and it hasn’t been under 8% since.”

– Hey Iowa, Obama lauds agriculture –
PRESIDENT OBAMA AT THE SYMPOSIUM ON GLOBAL AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY IN WASHINGTON: “Food security is a moral imperative, but it's also an economic imperative. History teaches us that one of the most effective ways to pull people and entire nations out of poverty is to invest in their agriculture and as we've seen from Latin America to Africa to Asia, a growing middle class also means growing markets including more customers for American exports that support American jobs so we have a self interest in this.”

– Bono bemoans trendiness in foreign aid –
U2 FRONTMAN AND ACTIVIST, BONO, AT FOOD SECURITY REMARKS ON CAPITOL HILL: “It's not just music that is… subject to the whims of fashion. Development, too. Hunger was kind of off the map in some quarters. Agriculture was old hat in some quarters. Boring. Unsexy. Of course, it's not boring if you live in the Sahel right now.”

– Sebelius talks political compromise after being heckled by protester –
SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES KATHLEEN SEBELIUS AT A GEORGETOWN GRADUATION EVENT: “In some countries around the world it's much easier to make public policy. A leader delivers an edict, it goes into effect. There's no debate, no press, no criticism, no second guessing. Our system is messier, slower, more frustrating and far better and it almost always ends in compromise. The conversations can be painful, but it's through this process of conversation and compromise that we actually move forward together, step by step toward that more perfect union.”

– Powell frets invasion of privacy, talks about parking picture –
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE COLIN POWELL IN AN INTERVIEW WITH TIME MAGAZINE: “I’m talking about the bathroom. Or my neighborhood mall. I parked my new car slightly at an angle in order to avoid a pole. A student took a picture of that, and he put it online. It went viral, and people said I couldn’t park. The word they used is asshat, a word I’d never heard before.”

TOP TWEETS
What stopped us in 140 characters or less

icymi: romney sources tell @streitfeldcnn and me the gov called gwbush 2day to thank him for his endorsement #betterlatethanneverendorsement

—
Dana Bash (@DanaBashCNN) May 18, 2012

Contraception and Religious Liberties: In culture war skirmishes, Georgetown becomes political football religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/18/in-… #cnn via @CNN

—
Jim Roope (@jimroopeCNN) May 18, 2012

Edwards trial: Jury also asked for magic markers and a clipboard. Hmm maybe I should reschedule my flight home

—
joe johns (@joejohnscnn) May 18, 2012

Sox/Cubs at Wrigley MT @PWSullivan Both teams warned by security of possible protestors running on field to protest Ricketts' SuperPAC.

—
Steven Shepard (@HotlineSteve) May 18, 2012

Hollande said he'll "say nothing against Cheeseburgers." Pres Obama reminded that "cheeseburgers go very well with French Fries."

—
Mark Knoller (@markknoller) May 18, 2012

Wow. Romney's speech comes in under 8 minutes in New Hampshire. Was it the sun, the Obama protesters or just the end of a very long week?

—
Maeve Reston (@MaeveReston) May 18, 2012

TRIVIA ANSWER
During a screening of the new documentary "I am Bruce Lee" at the Motion Picture Association last night, a newly svelte Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. credited the martial arts icon with helping him to shed more than 100 pounds. He also said that Lee was one of the "most influential men in his life."

Jackson also disclosed that he had "Bruce Lee body art" - before quickly adding that he probably shouldn't have admitted that in public. But he did. And Gut Check was there. And our ears perk up when we hear disclaimers like that - especially from politicians.

GOT NEWS?
Our inbox awaits: gutcheck@cnn.com
Anyone can sign up for Gut Check by emailing gutcheck@cnn.com
Tips or comments? Send them to Michelle; send complaints to Preston, because he is already in a bad mood. We also want to give a shout out to Dan Merica, who runs our Twitter account @gutCheckCNN and enriches this product every single day.

Hillsborough, New Hampshire (CNN) – Mitt Romney stood in front of a so-called "bridge to nowhere" Friday and mocked President Obama's stimulus program for failing struggling Americans.

"That's your stimulus dollars at work: A bridge that goes nowhere," Romney told roughly 150 supporters, then generalized his criticism of the stimulus program. "It is without question the largest one-time careless expenditure of government money in American history."

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

The city of Hillsborough received $150,000 in federal stimulus funds to restore historic Sawyer Bridge, which was built in the 1800s and spans a babbling brook.

But no cars have traversed the bridge in more than 20 years – in fact, it does not connect to any roads.

On Friday Romney quoted the Obama administration as defending its $787 billion reinvestment program against charges its price tag was too high for the number of jobs it would actually create.

"So they said 'yeah, but we put in place a whole series of elements that are critical to the future of America,'" he said, referencing the stone bridge behind him. "And you got one back there."

Meanwhile, supporters of the bridge project point to its historic value and say the restoration was overwhelmingly supported by New Hampshire's legislature - including some lawmakers who are now backing Romney - earlier this decade.

Romney's appearance in New Hampshire was the third time in several weeks the GOP candidate has visited. Campaign advisers say they see a real shot at winning the state where Romney has a summer home and deep ties in Republican circles.

Obama easily won New Hampshire in 2008, and an Obama campaign source told CNN the president's path to victory in the fall would likely require putting it again in the Democratic column.

–CNN Senior Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash contributed to this report.

Also see:

Romney to start airing first general election campaign ad Friday

Third party effort packs it in for 2012

Conservative group hits the road in Wisconsin

(CNN) – A Democratic North Carolina state representative apologized Friday for saying in an interview with CNN that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's Mormon faith allows individuals to "have multiple wives."

In the interview with CNN Political Reporter Peter Hamby, state Rep. Alma Adams said, "From what I understand about the Mormon faith you can have multiple wives. That's sort of a contradiction. There are questions about who Romney is and what he believes in terms of that particular issue."

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

She predicted the conservative voters who supported a constitutional amendment defining marriage in her state as between a man and a woman would not "be OK" with his faith.

Adams, who is the leader of the Legislative Black Caucus, issued an apology Friday afternoon.

"I want to apologize in no uncertain terms for my comments on Mitt Romney and the Mormon faith," she said in a statement. "I recognize there is no place in our public or political discourse for such comments, I regret making them and am sorry for any hurt or misunderstanding they may have caused."

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints outlawed polygamy in 1890.

- CNN's Peter Hamby and Kevin Liptak contributed to this report

Also see:

Romney to start airing first general election campaign ad Friday

Third party effort packs it in for 2012

Conservative group hits the road in Wisconsin

Washington (CNN) - Mitt and Ann Romney each donated $75,000 this week to the Romney Victory Fund, the joint fundraising committee between Romney's campaign and the Republican National Committee, a Romney campaign source told CNN.

Under the law, $75,800 is the maximum amount an individual can contribute to the fund. Although the law allows a candidate, in this case Romney, to give unlimited funds to his own campaign.

The Romney source said the information will appear in the campaign's Federal Election Commission report for May.

Hillsborough, N.H. (CNN) – Mitt Romney knows the chances of California going for him in November are slim, so why not call the state out as an example of economic policy gone awry?

A day after musing over a move to low-tax haven Florida, Romney–who owns a home in La Jolla, California–cast the Golden State as a cautionary tale for overtaxing and overspending.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

On a Friday conference call he told swing-state voters that the 2012 election gave them a choice over the country's economic future.

"You could either be like the America that we've known in our past, which is having low taxes and high growth and a strong economy," Romney said. "Or you could try to be like California, where they raise taxes higher and higher and higher."

Romney said California's policies "scare away employers. They make it harder for entrepreneurs to grow and thrive in their state. And they have huge deficits. The deficits in California get worse and worse."

California's budget deficit has reached an eye-popping $16 billion, the state's governor acknowledged this week.

A day earlier, on Thursday, Romney told voters in Jacksonville, Florida that his wife Ann had a soft spot for the battleground Sunshine State.

"She has said someday, who knows, we might move to Florida," he said to cheers from the audience. "You never know. Someday, way down the road."

He later assured reporters that he and his wife "love California," but added: "There are attractions to Florida. It has the right tax rate, among others."

Florida does not levy a state income tax.

– CNN's Ashley Killough contributed to this report.

Also see:

Romney to start airing first general election campaign ad Friday

Third party effort packs it in for 2012

Conservative group hits the road in Wisconsin

(CNN) – Likely GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney called former President George W. Bush to thank him for his support, two sources told CNN.

On Tuesday, Bush made headlines when he gave an off-the-cuff endorsement for the former Massachusetts governor, telling an ABC News reporter "I'm for Mitt Romney," as the doors of an elevator he was on closed before him.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

Bush was in Washington, D.C. at the time to make a rare public appearance at a ceremony for dissidents.

The remark was the first public support from the former president, whose father, former President George H.W. Bush and mother, Barbara, endorsed the presumptive GOP nominee in March.

Romney's campaign responded later in the day, saying they "welcomed" the nod.

"We welcome the president's support, as we welcomed his father's," spokeswoman Andrea Saul said.

Romney, however, rarely refers to the 43rd president by name in speeches, often using the word "predecessor" instead.

Bush's younger brother, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, also endorsed Romney in March.

Also see:

Romney to start airing first general election campaign ad Friday

Third party effort packs it in for 2012

Conservative group hits the road in Wisconsin

(CNN) - The Republicans seeking to oust Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida have more company in their race: former Florida Rep. Dave Weldon.

Weldon - who represented the state's space coast until 2008, when he left Congress and returned to practicing medicine - announced Friday he's joining the field of Republicans seeking to unseat Nelson, the state's senior and two-term senator. He is also Florida's only Democrat in statewide office.

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

In a press release announcing his bid, Weldon made no mention of Nelson, nor his GOP rivals, but criticized President Barack Obama, who he said has "has traded America's greatness for international acceptance, turned his back on our Constitution and the intentions of our founding fathers and crushed the economic engine that helped make America great."

His campaign said the candidate "just couldn't sit on the sidelines anymore and watch our freedoms being systematically stripped away."

Already in the race are former Sen. George LeMieux, who was appointed to the seat now held by Sen. Marco Rubio by former Florida Gov. Charlie Christ, and Rep. Connie Mack, who on Wednesday picked up the endorsement of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

The nine Republicans have raised nearly as much - $8.5 million and change - as has Nelson this cycle, according to Federal Election Commission tallies.

The state's primary will be held on August 14. The independent Cook Political Report and Rothenberg Political Report both rate the race as leaning in Nelson's favor.

- CNN's Paul Steinhauser and Gregory Wallace contributed to this report

Also see:

Romney to start airing first general election campaign ad Friday

Third party effort packs it in for 2012

Conservative group hits the road in Wisconsin

Washington (CNN) - The GOP-controlled House of Representatives on Friday passed a nearly $643 billion military spending bill - a measure at odds with prior defense spending agreements and President Barack Obama's Pentagon plans.

The measure passed in a 299-120 vote. An overwhelming majority of Republicans backed the measure, while the bulk of Democrats opposed it.