MUST-READ OF THE DAY: OBAMA MAY HAVE JUST LOST CATHOLIC VOTERS... AND THE ELECTION

"President Obama just may have lost the election. The president signed off on a Health and Human Services ruling that says under ObamaCare Catholic Institutions—including its charities, hospitals and schools—will be required by law, for the first time ever, to provide and pay for insurance coverage that includes contraceptives, abortion-inducing drugs and sterilization procedures. If they do not, they will face ruinous fines in the millions of dollars. Or they can always go out of business. In other words, the Catholic Church was told this week that its institutions can't be Catholic anymore." - Peggy Noonan in the Wall Street Journal

• Administration explains end of Catholic exemptions - The Washington Times
• Ross Douthat examines and rebuts the defenses of Obama's intervention.

Romney has 20% lead in Nevada - USA Today

• Romney Is a Clear Favorite in Nevada, Arizona and Michigan; Ohio Is a Tossup - Nate Silver

Trump endorses Romney: "Mitt is tough, he's smart, he's sharp" - WSJ | Video

• I bring a lot of people with me, claims Trump - LA Times
• "Last Fall, a Fox News poll found that a Trump endorsement might actually hurt a candidate, rather than help; 31 percent of voters said a Trump endorsement would make them less likely to vote for a candidate, while 62 percent said it would make no difference, and just 6 percent said it would make them more likely to vote for a candidate." - Washington Examiner
• Mitt Romney should have declined Donald Trump's embarrassing endorsement - Toby Harnden

Where's Sarah Palin?

Cheri Jacobus at The Hill says Sarah Palin could have helped Romney with Tea Party voters but has failed to do so.

• "The most influential endorsement in the GOP primary may actually be Paul himself, said Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics. “Ron Paul’s endorsement will actually matter more than that of the other [former GOP] candidates, because he has such intense support,” Sabato said. “There is no doubt many of the Paulites would respond if given the call.”" - ABC

Conservatives hit Romney for "poor" comment

"A Wall Street Journal editorial today slams the GOP front-runner's "artlessness" in his words. Rush Limbaugh lamented on his talk show yesterday that Romney "comes across as the prototypical rich Republican." Conservative blogger Michelle Malkin called Romney's words "Facepalm" as she linked to the video, which has already gotten thousands of views on YouTube." - USA Today

Jonah Goldberg: A case for Romney

At TownHall.com, Jonah Goldberg makes the case for Romney: "Romney is not a man of vision. He is a man of duty and purpose. He was told to "fix" health care in ways Massachusetts would like. He was told to fix the 2002 Olympics. He was told to create Bain Capital. He did it all. The man does his assignments. In this light, voting for Romney isn't a betrayal, it's a transaction."

• Within his latest Washington Post column Mike Gerson lists Romney's strengths and weaknesses.
• Congressional Republicans are worried Mitt Romney’s propensity for verbal gaffes will hurt him in the fall - The Hill

Gingrich wants proportionate allocation of Florida's delegates - WSJ

• Romney says he should have challenged allocation method BEFORE vote, not after - Fox

Unlike Gingrich, Reagan made peace with the GOP establishment - Bill Schneider for Politico

Gingrich Versus Santorum - Robert Costa finds that neither of the 'Not Romneys' are willing to stand aside and allegedly unite conservatives - NRO

• Santorum more competitive against Obama than Gingrich - Weekly Standard
• Nevada tea partiers not coalescing behind a single candidate - Daily Caller

Should Senate Republicans run on an anti-Obama message or with their own agenda?"

"McConnell and other influential senators believe the party should avoid putting out a detailed platform and focus squarely on Obama’s record, while a range of junior senators — and some veterans like Sen. John McCain — think the conference should lay out a Contract with America-type agenda." - Politico

House Republicans pursue small accomplishments, not big reforms in 2012 - New York Times

Obama's foreign policy successes have come when he has followed Bush policies; his failures have come when he has struck out on his own - Shadow Government blog

Obama doesn't just have an uphill struggle in Virginia, Florida and Nevada but also, more worryingly for Democrats, in Pennsylvania and Oregon - National Journal

A new Pew Research Poll released this afternoon about party affiliation provides clear proof that a long-awaited shift among Jews away from the Democrats may have begun - Commentary

"In 2012 the GOP can capi­tal­ize on this shift by nominating pro-Israel candidates (a certainty at the presidential level, where Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich are all strong backers of the Jewish state) who have a sober approach to our economic problems. In some sense these former Democrats are like the swing voters at large: They don’t want a scary ideologues; They want problem solvers who are going to turn around the economic climate. Both parties should take note, and not take the Jewish vote for granted this year." - Jennifer Rubin

The ranks of the Blue Dog Coalition thinned even more with Rep. Heath Shuler’s retirement announcement today, immediately calling the group’s future into question - Roll Call

• "Shuler is in his third term and he has repeatedly expressed concern about the lack of influence moderate and conservative Democrats had in the smaller Democratic caucus in this Congress" - Roll Call | NPR

And finally... Ten Things You Should Do If You’re An “Anybody But Mitt” Republican - HotAir

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