Bachmann Iowa

Bachmann Iowa, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is not impressed with rival candidate Michele Bachmann’s cross state tour of Iowa. The Minnesota congresswoman launched a bus tour in mid-December and plans to make campaign stops in all of Iowa’s 99 counties.

Mr. Santorum has already stopped in all of Iowa’s 99 counties and defines his tour as “courtship,” while he argues that Ms. Bachmann is simply making quick stops without any real substance behind them.

“I respect the fact that she’s trying to get around, but we did a courtship, we didn’t speed date,” Mr. Santorum posited to reporters in Dubuque, Iowa, according to ABC News.

“We went out and talked to folks and had coffee with folks and sat with them and answered their questions. We spent, what, an hour and 20 minutes here. You know, we didn’t sort of run in and say, Hi, I’m great, vote for me. I don’t think that’s what Iowans are looking for,” the former Pennsylvania senator added.

The Des Moines Register reported Tuesday that the Minnesota congresswoman had 10 scheduled events, and was running late to all of them, forcing her to make shorter-than-expected appearances.

A CNN/Time poll released Wednesday showed that Mr. Santorum efforts in Iowa are paying off, as he surged past former House Speaker Newt Gingrich into third place among registered Republican voters in Iowa.

Ms. Bachmann finished near the bottom of the race with just 9 percent of the votes in the same poll.

The Minnesota congresswoman has not responded to Mr. Santorum’s speed dating accusations. However, Ms. Bachmann was critical of her former Iowa co-chairman, Kent Sorenson, who switched his support to Texas congressman Ron Paul Wednesday, citing Ms. Bachmann’s low chances of winning the Iowa caucuses.

After winning the Iowa Ames straw poll in August, Ms. Bachmann quickly in popularity both in Iowa and nationwide. In recent months, she and Mr. Santorum polled near the bottom of the race.

Dick Clark 2011

Dick Clark 2011, Dick Clark will be back this year for his 40th appearance on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.” According to the New York Times, the 82-year-old Clark has played a much smaller role on the annual segment since his stroke in 2004, but is still considered synonymous with the holiday.

ABC is celebrating the milestone with a special six-hour broadcast of this year’s “Rockin’ Eve,” the longest broadcast ever. This year, the broadcast will begin at 8 p.m. on Saturday and is scheduled to include a tribute to Clark and the show he created.

“It’s our way of looking back on 40 years,” said Mark Shapiro, chief executive of Dick Clark Productions.

Shapiro said he hopes the two-hour expansion will be a permanent one, and is not an indicator that Clark is leaving the show. When asked if 2011 would be his last year hosting “Rockin’ Eve,” Clark told the New York Times via e-mail, “I hope not.”

Clark’s tenure on the show was called into question in 2004 when he suffered a stroke, and Ryan Seacrest stepped in to help host. Seacrest has remained a fixture on the holiday special ever since, while Clark’s health continues to have some worried. The New York Times noted that the New Year’s icon missed a couple of numbers in the countdown in 2009.

Fireworks Safety Tips

Fireworks Safety Tips, The burn ban has been lifted, but conditions are still dry, and local fire departments want to remind the public that fires can spark quickly under these conditions.

Fireworks are still banned inside the Lubbock city limits and certain types of fireworks are still banned, including rockets and missiles with fins.

Lubbock County Commissioners lifted the ban just before Christmas and local fireworks stands could not be happier. The industry has lost millions across the state of Texas in the past year.

But business has been steady, and they hope to recoup some of the loss heading into the new year.

New Deal Fire Chief Randy Teeter has this reminder: “You still need to be away from grassy areas. Somewhere around plowed areas. Anywhere that is free from grass and anywhere that will burn. Even though we’ve had moisture, the grass is still dead. It will still burn irregardless of how much moisture we’ve had.”

Fire departments also want to remind the public to pick up their debris and make sure they dispose of it properly.

Gaga Boyfriend

Gaga Boyfriend, Lady Gaga, we’re happy for you and we’re gonna let you finish… but we found Taylor Kinney first. Just saying. Yes, Gaga and her “Vampire Diaries” boyfriend are allegedly getting a little more serious, shopping for houses in Pennsylvania and PDA-ing it up in public. Now that they’re getting all official on us, we have a feeling that Kinney’s star is on the rise — after all, look what happened to K. Fed, and he wasn’t even hot.

If you want to have something to contribute to the water cooler conversation, here’s what you need to know about Kinney. He’s from Lancaster, PA and he’s 31 years old. He’s got three brothers and went to West Virginia University for business. Though he’s had considerable success as a TV actor, he currently lives in a pretty run-down condo on the beach in San Diego (obviously, surfing is a priority) with three buddies.

Don’t let the surf-bum thing fool you, though — he’s got fine tastes. Last year, we chatted with him about a Salvador Dali exhibit. That’s right. He’s cultured. “I have such an appreciation for art,” he told us. “You know, when you’re a kid and you go to these museums on field trips, you don’t recognize what’s in front of you. You’re more interested in pinching the girl from your math class. Now I can appreciate it.”

He seemed a little too good to be true. “What if I was lying?” he laughed. “What if I was really in a bar on my sixth Budweiser?”

Times Square New Years Eve

Times Square New Years Eve, Giuliana Rancic is ready to say goodbye to the past and hello to her future. The “E! News” host, who recently underwent a double mastectomy, is set to join her husband, Bill Rancic, in New York’s Times Square on New Year’s Eve to usher in 2012.

“This has been a very difficult year for them. But they agreed months ago to host the Nivea ‘Kiss of a Lifetime’ contest, where America’s most deserving couple will join them in Times Square on New Year’s Eve for the year’s most spectacular kiss, and that’s exactly what they intend to do,” a friend of the couple tells me. “Of course, after Giuliana’s surgery they discussed moving forward with the event, and have decided there is nowhere they would rather be than standing strong and in love together to ring in the New Year.”

Giuliana, who will announce the Nivea contest winners on NBC’s New Year’s Eve telecast, has thanked fans for their prayers as she recovers from her surgery.

“My big surgery was exactly one week ago today (December 13),” she tweeted. “I’m recovering better than I had hoped thanks in big part to your prayers & love.”

Giuliana returned to work at E! after Christmas, receiving a warm welcome.

“Back at work today since surgery. Excited to be on set of @ENews. I’ve missed my 2nd family (co-workers and you guys!!!) #thankful,” she tweeted on Dec. 27.

The couple appeared on the “Today Show” Friday to give fans an update on Giuliana’s recovery, and Bill couldn’t have spoken more highly of his wife.

“She wanted to turn a negative into a positive. If you can save one life through this process, it’s worth it,” he said.

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