All Blog Posts from Crossroads

Sarah B. Boxer, traveling with the Romney campaign, reports:

ROCK HILL, S.C.--The unemployed woman who got a handful of cash from Mitt Romney said today she plan to attend his campaign rally tonight--as Romney for the first time appeared to refer to her in a speech as an example of the pain caused by unemployment.

At a rally this morning in Spartanburg, Romney said the stories of those who are jobless "just breaks your heart."

"I spoke with a woman the other day who, with tears running down her face said, 'Can you find me a job? I'm looking for a job,'" Romney said. "9.9 percent unemployment in South Carolina. It just breaks your heart to see what's happening across the country."

Romney did not mention the woman, Ruth Williams, by name. The campaign initially said he was referring to her, but later said he was talking about someone else.

The campaign has not said that Williams will officially be a part of any campaign related events. She told CBS News she is just going to hang signs beforehand and express her support for Romney this evening.

Williams, who is 55, said today that she's still looking for work, but continues to volunteer at Romney's South Carolina campaign headquarters.

She said she has been cleaning around the office and cooking for staffers since last week - and even made them a batch of spaghetti this afternoon.

"People wonder why people do things for free," Williams said, "but his staff is so kind."

Romney handed Williams the cash--about $50 or $60--after he spotted her at after a rally in Sumter.

Williams had met Romney days before, after she saw his campaign bus at a stop sign in the Columbia area.

"I was on the highway praying and said God tell me how to get [my house] lights on, and I pulled up to a stop sign and his bus was there," she said.

She followed the bus to the airport, where Romney was arriving from Manchester, N.H. She told staffers that she had been unemployed since October and was hoping to meet Romney.

The staffers directed Williams to a rally later that evening, and Romney ended up meeting her after the event. She told him her story as she fought back tears.

Williams said Romney told her to reach out to local officials for help. She said he also asked if she was living in a homeless shelter. Williams responded that she wasn't yet, but might need to.

"We need work," she said. "We need a president that will give us work."

The headline from the new CBS News/New York Times poll is pretty simple: Newt Gingrich is way out front in Iowa. But it's not all good news for the former speaker. Two-thirds of likely Iowa Republican caucus goers haven't made up their minds--and our poll indicates there could be problems ahead for Gingrich.

Bottom line: It may look like it's shaping up nationally to be two-man Gingrich-Mitt Romney brawl. But in Iowa, our poll indicates it could well be a four-person race: Gingrich, Romney, Ron Paul and a "true" social conservative like Michele Bachmann. And that means it as wide open as ever.

That's right. When you look past the horserace stuff (which you have to do since most voters say they haven't made up their minds), the poll is packed full of fascinating data about what Iowa voters are thinking and care about. It has some potentially ominous signals for Gingrich. It also has some good news for Paul--and surprisingly good news for Bachmann.

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UPDATED 11:24 a.m. ET

The settlement agreement between the National Restaurant Association and a woman who accused Herman Cain of sexual harassment was reached in September 1999--and was not signed by Cain himself, according to Joel Bennett, a lawyer for the woman.

Bennett, who has a copy of the settlement agreement, said four people signed it: the woman, two lawyers representing the association and Bennett himself.

Bennett said the agreement was resolved relatively quickly, about two or three months after she complained.

That means it may have been reached after Cain left the association, and Bennett said it's conceivable that Cain didn't even know about it.

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In the past few debates, the "Five Things to Watch" haven't changed that much. We all want to see how Rick Perry performs, whether Mitt Romney continues to deflect attacks, which one of the second-tier candidates shine or lands a blow, and so on--the usual stuff.

In tonight's debate, however, there is One Main Thing to Watch: the performance of Herman Cain.

If Cain continues to do well in these debates -- and avoids flip statements on things like electric border fences -- he's going to have a major impact on this race.

Already, Cain has shifted the dynamic in ways Rick Perry couldn't possibly have imagined when he announced he was running for president. Perry envisioned a two-man race against Romney, but so far he hasn't gotten the head-to-head matchup he wants.

Campaign insiders and strategists say privately that Cain has surprised them all by leaping over Perry in the polls. Cain, not Perry, is now neck-and-neck with Romney.

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TAMPA--Less than a week after Mitt Romney and Rick Perry squared off for the first time in a presidential debate, the two GOP frontrunners return to the stage here tonight in Florida for Round Two. As we said last week, Perry's comments on Social Security ("Ponzi scheme") and his refusal to back down have guaranteed it will be a major issue in the campaign--and certainly in this debate.

Here are five things to watch tonight:

1. Romney vs. Perry. In one corner is Mr. Establishment, your 1950s dad who's kind of boring and always wants to follow the rules. In the other is the Anti-Establishment hell-raiser, your 1970s uncle who likes a good brawl and doesn't bother with rulebooks. These two guys couldn't be more different--in tone, style and approach--and we saw that clearly last week, even in how they talked to each other. (Perry called Romney "Mitt," while Romney more politely called his nemesis "Governor.") After their clash at the Reagan Library on Social Security, though, Romney hasn't let up. In fact, just this afternoon, his campaign pointed out several of Perry's comments about the program and how it should be handled not by the federal government, but by the states. And the subject line? "Rick's Latest Retreat on Social Security."

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It's being billed as the first major Republican debate, with two front runners with very different styles going head-to-head -- and a third contender struggling to keep her footing. So when you're getting out the popcorn and heading for the couch to watch the Big Event, here are five things to be on the lookout for:

1. America, meet Rick Perry. It's already a cliché to say "all eyes will be on Perry tonight," but in this case (well in most cases) the cliché is true. As we like to say in Alabama, folks will be taking the measure of the man. This is his debut on a national stage. But don't expect a razzle-dazzle offense or heroics in the end zone, which we don't expect from Texas A&M, Perry's alma mater, anyway. All he needs to do is hang onto the ball and deliver a solid performance.

His advisers are saying they see this as a chance to introduce him to the nation, and they're planning to save the punches for subsequent debates. They're also are trying to lower expectations by insisting Perry doesn't enjoy debating, hasn't participated in many debates and that it's not a natural forum for him. That's a good political strategy, since short of a complete offensive and defensive breakdown, he will clear that low bar.

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For Republicans candidates seeking to unseat President Obama, there's one overriding issue: the economy. Polls have repeatedly shown that not only is the economy (and the corresponding issue of jobs) the number one concern for voters--but also that a majority of Americans disapprove of how the president is handling it.

And if they needed any encouragement, there's history to fall back on: No president has been reelected with unemployment numbers this bad since Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the Great Depression.

So today's grim unemployment report--the economy added only 18,000 jobs in June--was like shooting fish in a barrel for Republicans, and they all fired away. Within minutes of the report's release, the GOP presidential contenders were using words like "failed" and "failure" to describe Mr. Obama's performance and his policies.

With one exception: Jon Huntsman.

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There was notable and powerful moment in last night's South Carolina town hall meeting with Michele Bachmann, when she revealed she once suffered a "devastating" miscarriage that she said changed her life and priorities.

"After our second was born, we became pregnant with a third baby. It was an unexpected baby, but of course we were delighted to have this child," Bachmann said told the crowd, in response to a question from an audience member. "The child was coming along and we ended up losing our child. And it was devastating to both of us, as you can imagine if any of you have lost a child."

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MANCHESTER, N.H.--After two hours of talk and lots of interruptions from a moderator, here are the five things you need to know from tonight's GOP debate:

1. Bottom line: This debate was about Barack Obama: There was a lot of speculation going in that the candidates would start slugging it out with one another to break out of the pack. Not tonight. It was Republicans United vs. Obama. Here's a sample of what they said about the President: "He's failed at a time when the American people counted on him to create jobs and get the economy growing." (Mitt Romney) "The Obama administration is an anti-jobs, anti-business, anti-American energy destructive force." (Newt Gingrich) "Just make no mistake about it. I want to announce tonight. President Obama is a one-term president." (Michele Bachmann)

2. Mitt Romney maintains his status: Former Gov. Romney went into the debate as the presumptive frontrunner, and he left the debate as the presumptive frontrunner. If anything, he solidified his position as king of the hill--and none of the candidates came close to pushing him off.

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MANCHESTER, N.H.--With the first major Republican debate only hours away, the candidates have wrapped up their strategy sessions and are getting ready to take stage. At this point in the campaign, tonight is a chance for them to introduce themselves to voters--perhaps with a good one-liner--and try to avoid any missteps that will get replayed over and over.

But there are a few other things brewing under the surface that we could see tonight. So while we all wait for things to get started, here are the Top Five few things to be on the lookout for late on.

1. Will tonight's debate be like King of the Hill--that playground game you played in elementary school? With Mitt Romney firmly established as the presumptive frontrunner, the non-Romneys are going to have to start charging up the hill at some point to try to push him off. So far they're not running at him at full speed. If they don't make an effort tonight, Romney will be able to stay focused on taking shots at President Obama--and not get into a shoving match with the others. But there are some signals it could go the other way, which leads us to....

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