Republican presidential hopefuls will debate for the first time tonight in New Hampshire. The Ticket will be live-blogging the debate beginning at 8pm EST.
Until then, here are the stories we took note of today but didn't give the full blog treatment:
• The Obama campaign pushed the White House to give a donor the appearance of access. (Huffington Post)
• Eric Cantor wants to strip Anthony Weiner's committee assignments. (2Chambers)
• Tim Pawlenty dials back on his health care attack against Mitt Romney. (The Note)
• A close ally to Sarah Palin begs her not to run. (Daily Intel)
• Weiner hasn't formally requested leave. (First Read)
• Someone is trying to help Rick Santorum with his Google problem. (Daily Intel)
• Michele Bachmann has hired another former Mike Huckabee aide. (Fox News)
• Robert Gibbs returns. (Ben Smith)
• Wither Blue Dog Democrats? (Hotline on Call)
• Ron Paul says his support among indy voters gives him an edge. (Des Moines Register)
(Photo of Newt Gingrich: David McNew/Getty Images)