Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that won’t necessarily generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:
* The Republican National Committee’s winter meeting is underway in D.C., and the agenda includes a likely fight over “changes and reforms to the 2016 calendar.”
* A new CBS News poll shows President Obama’s approval rating at 46%, climbing nine points in the last three months.
* Similarly, a new Associated Press poll shows Obama’s approval rating inching higher to 45%, while his favorability rating has improved nine points since October.
* This seems like an effective idea to hghlight the overlap between the GOP mainstream and Tea Partiers: “Progressive group Americans United for Change is launching a new campaign that seeks to tie vulnerable Republicans in swing districts to the Tea Party.”
* To the great relief of Virginia Republicans, state Sen. Dick Black (R) has decided not to run for retiring Rep. Frank Wolf’s (R-Va.) seat. Black is perhaps best known for distributing plastic fetuses in the state Capitol during a legislative debate on abortion.
* Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council, suggested yesterday he’d consider running for the U.S. Senate in Louisiana if Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) is elected governor next year.
* The field of North Carolina Republicans running for the Senate is now up to seven candidates, with Republican Edward Kryn, a physician and political novice, entering the race yesterday.
* And in Illinois, Republican congressional hopeful Susanne Atanus raised eyebrows recently when she argued God is punishing Americans with autism, among other things, because He is “angry” with us for supporting abortion and gay rights.
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Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."