Today - two more examples of the surreal quality to it all.
Herman Cain - under incredible scrutiny for allegations that he's harassed several women and the most recent claim from a woman who says she was his mistress for 13 years - now says he'll have a big announcement tomorrow. Will he or won't he drop out of the race?
He says he'll let us know Saturday.
Today he talked about his situation at a speech - and it's just hard to imagine that with all this baggage, Cain will stay in. But then again, it's politics, and maybe he figures the worst is behind him?
His fellow Republicans may not believe that, however. He's down to just 8 percent support in Iowa. And in one poll of Iowan Republicans, asking about the candidate most likely to have a scandal in the White House, the Des Moines Register reports that Cain's numbers rose from 25 at the start of a four-day poll to 47 percent by the end of the polling process. So nearly half of Republicans in Iowa - who hold caucuses next month - believe he's the most likely to have a scandal if elected to the Presidency.
Then there's this bit of otherwise jaw-dropping news from the Republicans: The moderator of a GOP candidates' debate next year will be - drum roll please - Donald Trump. The man who has over the years toyed with running for the Republican nomination - and who may still have his eye on it, who knows? - is going to be in the moderator's seat that might not be unlike his role as host of Celebrity Apprentice.
Interestingly, many of the candidates have come to New York City seeking an audience with Trump - ala some kind of political guru.
You can't make this stuff up.
We'll have the latest on the Presidential pre-primary season, tonight at 11.
We'll also have the latest unemployment numbers - with the rate dropping to 8.6 percent, the lowest since March, 2009. It's true that some jobless folks have simply stopped looking and so aren't counted any more - but employers did add 120,000 jobs last month. That's good, but not nearly enough to make up for the last few years of job cuts.
We'll also have the fallout from our controversial story yesterday about the Israeli government's advertising campaign urging Israeli citizens to not marry Americans. Accept their money to support Israel, of course, the ad implies - but just don't marry 'em.
The reaction was predictable- and angry. Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the campaign to end.
And for all those looking to buy headphones for holiday presents this year, Consumer Reports tonight gives us the 4-1-1 on the devices. And are those celebrity-endorsed headphones any better than the others? Their story, at 11.
We'll also have any breaking news of the night, plus Meteorologist Lee Goldberg's weekend AccuWeather forecast, and Rob Powers with the night's sports. I hope you can join Sade Baderinwa and me, tonight at 11.
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