BRIAN BAKST

Associated Press
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Gingrich: Romney self-deportation plan a fantasy

Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich on Wednesday ridiculed rival Mitt Romney's call for self-deportation of illegal immigrants as an "Obama-level fantasy" that would be inhumane to long-established families living in America. Romney, for his part, accused Gingrich of pandering to a Hispanic audience and said Gingrich himself had supported self-deportation in the past.

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GOP candidates vie for backing of SC military vets

Mitt Romney has ex-POW John McCain vouching for him. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum highlights his time on the Senate Armed Services Committee. And former House Speaker Newt Gingrich frequently calls himself an "Army brat" who grew up on military bases.

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South Carolina TV already awash in GOP attack ads

Mitt Romney is "a Massachusetts moderate" who "can't be trusted" on abortion and other core Republican values. Newt Gingrich has questionable judgment for "teaming up with Nancy Pelosi," the Democratic lawmaker the GOP loves to malign. Rick Santorum is a "serial hypocrite" with "a record of betrayal."

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Southern son Rick Perry banks on heritage in SC

Rick Perry is pouring on the down-home charm as he seeks a campaign revival in South Carolina, betting that geographic kinship will pay off now that the GOP presidential race is finally shifting to his comfort zone.

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Bachmann, Perry plan to head south after Iowa vote

Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann plan to make their next — and possibly last — stands in South Carolina instead of chasing the rest of the GOP presidential pack to New Hampshire.

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Bachmann plays gender card as Iowa GOP vote nears

Desperate for a late lift in Iowa, Republican Michele Bachmann is increasingly stressing a distinction in the presidential field: She's the only woman competing for the nomination.

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Iowa Rep. King joins Bachmann, but no endorsement

Republican Michele Bachmann's closest congressional ally has offered kind words for the presidential candidate but stopped short of an outright endorsement that could lift her back-of-the-pack campaign.

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GOP's Bachmann limps to Iowa caucus finish line

Encountering small crowds and fresh viability questions, Republican Michele Bachmann slogged into the final weekend of Iowa caucus campaigning Friday looking for any spark to her flagging bid.

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Bachmann quits race, says she'll fight for issues

Michele Bachmann announced Wednesday that she has "decided to stand aside" and is ending her bid for Republican presidential nomination after her last-place finish in the Iowa caucuses.

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Bachmann book plays up her past political rebounds

Her GOP presidential bid in danger, Michele Bachmann describes in a new memoir two times where she thought a curtain had fallen on her political career, including an early election loss that made her swear off future campaigns.

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Dayton: Vikings stadium push in 'limbo'

The Minnesota Vikings' chances for getting a decision this year from state lawmakers on financing for a new football stadium plummeted Wednesday, pushing resolution of the issue past the date when the team's current lease binding it to Minnesota runs out.

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Bachmann criticizes Obama's student loan plan

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann criticized a directive by President Barack Obama to ease student loan debt as an "abuse of power" that will give people incentive to dodge debt.

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Out of race, still in debt for Minn.'s Pawlenty

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty is out of the race for president — but still deep in debt.

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Bachmann slides ideas into 11-point economic plan

Searching for a campaign boost, Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann attached a catchy slogan Tuesday for a newly packaged 11-point proposal for repairing the U.S. economy.

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In hindsight, Pawlenty regrets quick race pullout

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty says he might have stayed in the Republican presidential race longer had he known it would be this volatile.

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More aides leave Bachmann presidential campaign

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann is losing her pollster and senior adviser in a staff exodus that raises questions about the viability of her White House bid and her campaign finances.

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Bioethicist challenges Bachmann on vaccine claim

A prominent bioethicist has offered $10,000 to charity if Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann can prove her claim that a vaccination caused mental retardation.

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2012 contender Bachmann seeks to broaden appeal

Pigeonholed as a right-wing disciple, Michele Bachmann is offering herself as a presidential candidate who can unite the GOP's disparate base and appeal to Republicans of all ideological stripes.

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APNewsBreak: 2012 dropout Pawlenty a no for Senate

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty on Wednesday definitively ruled out a 2012 campaign for the U.S. Senate after ending his Republican bid for the White House a few days ago.

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As Perry looms, Bachmann presses faith in GOP race

The surest place to find Michele Bachmann on Sundays this summer is at a worship service somewhere in Iowa, offering the testimony of a Republican presidential candidate who has long tied her political beliefs to her faith.

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Bachmann points to foster parenting — on her terms

From her first campaign to her latest, Republican presidential contender Michele Bachmann has used her time as a foster parent to help create an image of a family-focused Christian driven by compassion and social conviction.

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Pawlenty knocks Obama, Bachmann in same swipe

Republican presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty said Wednesday that President Barack Obama's previous jobs as a community organizer and law professor didn't prepare him for the White House. And, Pawlenty said, Iowa shouldn't repeat the mistake of voting for another charismatic politician who lacks experience.

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SPIN METER: Spouse standard shifts for Bachmann

Republican Michele Bachmann says scrutiny of her husband is out of bounds as she seeks the Republican presidential nomination. But her rules have changed since she attacked Democrat Barack Obama over comments his wife made three years ago.

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APNewsBreak: Bachmann brings $3.6M into next phase

Republican Michele Bachmann has $3.6 million in the bank as her presidential campaign enters its next phase, provided that she draws down her Minnesota congressional fund entirely.

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Going after 2012 candidate Bachmann has its risks

For Michele Bachmann, the laugh line doubled as a clear message that she thinks she's ready for the rough-and-tumble of presidential politics.

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