Houston, Texas:

41 threw his support behind John McCain today. George H. W. Bush and Barbara met with John and Cindy McCain before taking questions from the local and traveling press.
While 41 brings solid GOP cred to McCain, 43, the current president offers conservative bones.
In Tanzania today George W. Bush offered to help McCain in any way he could and predicted McCain will be the next President.
The first President Bush noted that NO-ONE in either party is as prepared to be commander in Chief than McCain
MOSHEH OINOUNOU has more on the endorsement. Click here for his take on it.

Click here to read embed producer, Mosheh Oinounou’s take on the anticipated endorsement.

Miami, Fl: McCain Victory Party……

It’s off to California for the debate in the Reagan Library….
Giuliani will arrive non stop in California 2 or 3 hours ahead of McCain tomorrow who will stop to refuel in Tx.
Giuliani has publicly said he is going to California, but conspicuously refused to answer questions about participating in tomorrow night’s debate at the Reagan Library.
McCain had planned a news conference upon arrival in California tomorrow.
That is now being re-looked at in order to coordinate a joint appearance.
Neither campaign will confirm or deny plans for an endorsement tomorrow.
But OTHER GOP sources say it is being arranged for tomor

Coconut Grove, Fl:

Things just keep getting worse for Giuliani. While the Real Clear Politics poll averages for Florida show Rudy’s precipitous slide in the polls, he suffers a humiliating backhand from the Governor of Florida. Despite Rudy’s incessant courtship of Charlie Crist, and Guiliani’s embrace of Crist’s National Catastrophic Disaster Insurance Fund, Crist decided to endorse McCain. Add the nod from US senator Mel Martinez (former RNC chairman) and McCain has won more establishment support in Florida in the last 3 days than Rudy has in a month.

Read the details on Fox News Embed blog…..

Update: Fox News has learned exclusively that Human Events, an iconic conservative publication has endorsed Fred Thompson. (per Serafin Gomez, Fox News Embed Producer)

To find out more about Human Events go to their website, click here

He won’t spill! Sean Hannity tried to pry it out of him to no avail. Taking calls for almost an hour Fred Thompson and Jeri Thompson were on Sean Hannity’s radio show today. While many of the candidates practiced and prepped for tonight’s debate, Thompson took questions from callers and Sean Hannity and played coy regarding a major endorsement he will receive tomorrow.

He said he thinks he has “a fair chance” here in South Carolina. He went on to say “South Carolina is where I stand.” He said he had a strong conservative consistent record which plays well here. “We have to do well here without any question.” He runs fourth in the South Carolina polls at 9%. Saturday, 19th will be the day of reckoning.

Tune into Fox News Channel 9pm tonight to see the final republican debate before South Carolina votes.

Dubuque, IA

Governor Romney nabbed a big endorsement this evening at a house party in Iowa. A surprise visit came at the beginning of the Governor’s speech when Santa Claus popped in and told the crowd of Iowa Christian Alliance members that although the group cannot endorse Romney, he would.

The Republican Presidential hopeful told Santa what he wanted for Christmas, “All I want is Iowa, New Hampshire, Wyoming, Nevada, South Carolina, Michigan, Florida and then a few more.”

Santa said he would keep the elves in the North Pole very busy this Christmas and then he threw his substantial weight behind the former Massachusetts Governor, “I want you to know that Santa Claus is endorsing you for the Presidency of the United States of America. God bless you Governor!”

Santa also brought a gift for the Iowa frontrunner, “I had to get a pair of mittens for Mitt!”

Romney seemed caught off guard and then amused by the impromptu endorsement at an otherwise subdued campaign event that focused on family values. The Romney campaign is lining up their next endorsement and sources tell me it could be the Tooth Fairy.

Click below to see Santa Claus and Governor Romney.

Hillary Clinton announced the backing of Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank, who will serve as an economic advisor to the campaign. Besides his important post as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Frank is also a champion of gay issues — and the only openly gay member of the House of Representatives.

While Clinton has no shortage of support in the GLBT community, there have been some rumblings that she’s not as open in  expressing her support for gay rights as some of her opponents. Prominent gay blogger Andrew Sullivan has said it’s difficult for him to imagine Hillary defending gay rights at an event that wasn’t attended mostly by homosexuals. Clinton did mention gay rights in her speech at the Jefferson-Jackson dinner in Iowa on Saturday, but it was only a glancing reference.

By way of contrast, Sullivan notes that Obama often boasts that he brought up the problem of homophobia in the African-American community in front of black ministers and in black churches, where such attitudes are commonplace. Sullivan writes that “Clinton would never, ever say such a thing.”

But don’t count Frank among those who think Obama and others would do more for gay rights in the White House. In a written statement, Frank said, “based on my work with her on issues involving discrimination, I am convinced that Hillary Clinton is the candidate best equipped to pass laws that will treat all Americans with dignity, fairness and equality no matter who they are or who they love.”

–Per Shushannah Walshe—

Hilton Head, SC

Pat Robertson’s surprising endorsement today of Rudy Giuliani is a disappointment for the Romney campaign. Other Christian conservative leaders including Bob Jones III of Bob Jones University and Paul Weyrich, co-founder of the Moral Majority, have recently endorsed Romney but neither is as big of a name as Robertson.

Romney continued campaigning in South Carolina today with a stop at a children’s museum in Columbia. He was focusing on education, but reporters were interested in the Robertson endorsement and Senator Brownback’s endorsement of John McCain. Romney played down Rudy’s big get saying, “I’m really pleased with the support I’ve gotten. I can’t get the support of everybody, but I was delighted to have Dr. Bob Jones support my campaign. Paul Weyrich earlier in the week has supported my campaign. So, you know, I can’t get them all.”

I asked Romney what he thought of someone as staunchly pro-life as Robertson endorsing a pro-choice candidate and he responded that, “Everybody has their own choice. . .I can’t get all social conservatives to endorse my candidacy. People choose a lot of different paths, but I expect I will continue to get good support and so will the other guys.”

Romney said he wasn’t surprised that Brownback chose to endorse McCain as they have worked together in the Senate. At a second stop in Hilton Head, SC Romney stressed that he did not believe Robertson’s endorsement would sway Christian conservatives to support a more socially liberal candidate like Giuliani. He said, “I don’t think the Republican Party will choose a pro-choice, pro-gay civil union candidate to lead our party.” Romney emphasized that the voters are the ones that will ultimately make the decision.

 – per Shushannah Walshe

Greenville, SC–

Governor Romney picked up an important endorsement yesterday when Paul Weyrich became the latest conservative leader to back his campaign. Weyrich is the co-founder of the Moral Majority and the founding president of the Heritage Foundation. He is considered by many to be the father of the modern conservative religious movement. Romney is making inroads with influential Evangelical Christians winning the straw poll at the Values Voters summit and also being endorsed by Bob Jones III from Bob Jones University. Even, with these gains many conservative Christians are worried about Romney’s Mormonism. The Southern Baptist Convention even considering it a “cult.”

In a statement issued by the campaign Weyrich said, “As he travels across the country, Governor Romney has outlined a blueprint to build a stronger America rooted in our common conservative principles. With a clear conservative vision to move America forward, he will strengthen our economy, our military, and our families.”

Christian voters I meet at events constantly want to discuss his religion and how it concerns them. Often they tell me they will still vote for Romney, but that it is a hurdle they have to jump. Romney’s religion is the biggest concern expressed to me when I talk to voters on a daily basis at his “Ask Mitt Anything” forums.

Romney often talks faith on the stump stressing that even though he practices a different religion that it stems from the same  “Judeo-Christian values.” These endorsements mean that many Evangelicals are joining Romney’s campaign instead of Baptist preacher Mike Huckabee. Huckabee is also very conservative in his social values, but his positions on illegal immigration have worried some Christian conservatives. This is something Romney mentions about on the stump discussing how Huckabee supported tuition breaks for illegal aliens.

Romney is in South Carolina today where he is in a statistical three-way tie with Fred Thompson and Rudy Giuliani. He also picked up the endorsement of State Senator Kevin Bryant. Bryant is a former Brownback supporter and was part of his South Carolina campaign leadership. The Romney camp is hoping this is just one of many Brownback supporters that come over to their team.