Compiled by ABC News Digital News Associates Jacqueline Fernandez, Jayce Henderson and Amanda VanAllen

PRESIDENT OBAMA The Washington Times’ Dave Boyer: “ Low ratings raise the bar for Obama” With Sunday marking the one-year countdown to Election Day 2012 and his approval rating stuck in the low 40s, President Obama will have to defy American electoral history if he is to win re-election. LINK

HERMAN CAIN Krissah Thompson and Sandhya Somashekhar: “ For Cain, some troubles as trade group chief” The board members of the National Restaurant Association knew they wanted Herman Cain to run their organization in 1996. He was a hero in the restaurant world, so they offered him perks, including a luxury D.C. apartment and weekly first-class tickets from Washington to Omaha, where his wife was living. LINK

USA Today’s Jackie Kucinich and Catalina Camia: “ Herman Cain goes after detractors in radio interview” As one of his accusers attempts to be freed from a confidentiality agreement, businessman Herman Cain went after his detractors in a radio interview Thursday and again accused political opponents of trying to tank his campaign. In the interview with Sean Hannity , Cain continued to hold Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign responsible for the release of a story about duel sexual harassment allegations against Cain during his tenure as the president of the National Restaurant Association in the late 1990s. LINK

The New York Daily News’ David Boroff: “ Herman Cain supporters compare GOP frontrunner’s sex harass scandal to ‘high-tech lynching’ of Clarence Thomas in new video” Supporters of embattled GOP frontrunner Herman Cain compared his recent sexual harassment scandal to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ racially charged confirmation hearing in a new political ad. The controversial video, obtained by ABC News, ends with Thomas’ closing statement from his 1991 hearing when he was forced to defend himself against Anita Hill’s allegations of sexual harassment, calling the accusation a “high-tech lynching.” LINK

Politico’s Jonathan Martin: “ Herman Cain accuser got $45,000 settlement” POLITICO has learned that one of the women who accused Herman Cain of sexual harassment at the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s received a payout of about $45,000 as part of her settlement — significantly more than the two or three months’ salary Cain initially recalled the woman obtained. The woman who received the approximately $45,000 is the staffer who Cain has acknowledged formally lodged a complaint about his behavior. LINK

RICK PERRY ABC News’ Arlette Saenz: “ Rick Perry Says He Owes No Apology to Cain” Texas Gov. Rick Perry said he owes no apology to Herman Cain after Cain and his aides accused the Perry campaign of leaking details about Cain being the subject of a past sexual harassment complaint. “No apology needed. We found out about this the same time that I suppose the rest of America found out about it,” Perry said in an interview with CNN’s John King. LINK

The New York Times’ Mike McIntire: “ For Perry, Use of Private Jets as Part of Job” On a July morning in 2008, Gov. Rick Perry of Texas and several aides boarded a plane for Washington to lobby on ethanol use, an issue important to corn growers and livestock owners in his state. LINK

MITT ROMNEY The Los Angeles Times’ Maeve Reston: “ Mitt Romney says reducing spending a ‘moral responsibility’” Portraying himself as a frugal turnaround expert who helped launch the Staples office supply chain, Mitt Romney told a New Hampshire audience Thursday night that he was uniquely qualified to whittle down the nation’s budget deficit and improve efficiency across government. Before a crowd of more than a 150 people (including many students from nearby Exeter Academy), Romney touched on his experiences at Bain Capital (the Boston private equity firm that he helped found), the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic games, and as governor of Massachusetts. LINK

The Boston Globe’s Shira Schoenberg: “ Huntsman unveils web ad attacking Romney as flip-flopper” In a never-ending attempt to tag former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney as a flip-flopper, Jon Huntsman’s presidential campaign released another web ad showing Romney’s alleged propensity to change positions. It is the second ad that Huntsman, the former Utah governor, released this week attacking Romney for shifting stances. LINK

OTHER The Wall Street Journal’s Patrick O’ Connor and Alicia Mundy: “ Donor Suit Shows Roots of Romney and Perry’s Rift” A five-year-old campaign-finance case could burst back into the spotlight at an awkward time for two current Republican presidential candidates. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney was chairman of the Republican Governors Association in 2006 when Texas Gov. Rick Perry was struggling in a re-election bid. LINK

The Hills’ Mike Lillis: “ Pelosi: House is ‘in play’ in 2012” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that Democrats have a good shot at winning the House in 2012. The former Speaker said her party — through smart recruitment and strong fundraising — is on pace to take back the lower chamber after just two years in the minority.  LINK

ABC NEWS VIDEOS “ Pro-Herman Cain Group Releases New Ad” LINK “ Mitt Romney Defends His ‘Consistency’” LINK    

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