SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE - AT 11:42 P.M. ET:

CHRISTIE MULLING? – Ace political reporter John Fund tells us that there are signs Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey may be rethinking his emphatically stated decision not to enter the GOP presidential sweeps.  Christie, a tough-talking, effective governor, is a favorite among many conservatives.  As readers of Urgent Agenda know, I've long been skeptical of Christie.  While he polls strongly among men, he polls poorly among women, who often see him as a bully.  Polls in New Jersey say that Christie would lose his own state to Obama.  A colorful, blunt-talking governor does not automatically translate into a viable presidential candidate.  Governors control roads and bridges.  Presidents control nuclear weapons.

SARAH RISING? – A stunning new McClatchy-Marist poll has Sarah Palin within five points of Barack Obama in a 2012 presidential matchup.  Palin now trails 49-44%, after being behind more than 20 points in the same poll earlier this year.  Her progress comes from the fact that she now leads among independents.  Ironically, Rudy Giuliani would lead Obama 49-42%; Obama would lead Romney, 46-44%; Obama leads Perry 50-41%.  We stress that this is one poll.  We'd have to see these results verified by other polls to believe that it represents more than a snapshot in time.  Giuliani and Palin, of course, aren't even candidates.  Palin has suggested she'll have a decision soon.  Rudy may get in after the election.

WHOOPS – President Obama has often used the term "The New Foundation" to describe his policies designed to transform America.  Loyal reader Linda Gordon points out that the phrase comes from a line in the old Communist hymn, the Internationale:  "The earth shall rise on new foundations."  Now, we're not charging anything here, not at all.  As Linda says, it's no doubt pure coincidence.  But you'd think one of those brilliant scholars in the Obama White House would have recognized the line and guided the president away from any personal embarrassment.  We assume, of course, that there might be personal embarrassment.

NOT MUCH MORE GREEN IN GREENLAND – In another fumble for the Church of the Global Warming, the Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World, one of the most authoritative atlases, is retracting a claim in its new edition that Greenland has lost 15% of its ice cover in the last 12 years.  The actual number is reportedly closer to 0.1%, a dramatic difference.  The retraction comes in the aftermath of "Himalayagate," another global-warming scandal in which it was claimed that the Himalayas could be glacier-free by 2035 due to global warming.  The claim has been withdrawn.

September 20, 2011