With Texas Governor Rick Perry dropping out of the race and Rick Santorum declaring a belated victory in the Iowa caucuses, Thursday marked a day of big game changers in the GOP presidential contest. With one day left until the South Carolina primary, frontrunner Mitt Romney is slipping in the polls as Gingrich picks up more support, including an endorsement from Perry. As the Republican race gets tighter and attacks become even more brutal, how is President Barack Obama preparing for his campaign for 2012? 

On Wednesday, President Obama delivered his economic address for 2012 in Ohio. He spoke about the payroll tax cut, plans for dealing with predatory lending, and officially announcing his appointment of Richard Cordray to head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. But where do the current Republican candidates stand on personal income taxes, health care costs, Medicare, Social Security, and jobs?

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki will meet with President Obama at the White House on Monday to discuss the future of the relationship between the two nations. With the upcoming withdrawal of American troops from Iraq after nearly nine years on December 31, the two nations have pledged to remain close. What that means remains to be seen, as questions persist over Iran's influence in the region as well as the stability of Iraq's government.

In a possibly historic move, the Obama administration announced its dedication to promoting LGBT rights around the world. In a memorandum from the president, and a speech from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, the administration equated LGBT rights with human right, vowing to spend $3 million to finance LGBT rights organizations. "In reality, gay people are born into — and belong to — every society in the world," Clinton said to an audience of representatives of 47 nations, who gave her a standing ovation. (Watch the speech after the jump.)

President Obama called for a shoring up of the country's middle class and criticized the concentration of wealth in the U.S. during a speech Tuesday in Osawatomie, Kansas. The town was the site of Theodore Roosevelt's famous "New Nationalism" speech, which, a century earlier touched upon many of the same themes as President Obama's address. But Obama's speech comes on the heels of the Occupy Wall Street movement, the GOP Primary, and the inception of his 2012 presidential campaign.

30 years ago, the first cases of AIDS were reported in the United States. Since then, more than 25 million people worldwide have died from the disease, and more than 34 million people are currently infected with HIV. Being diagnosed with HIV used to be the equivalent of a death sentence. But over the past few years, anti-viral drugs have become less expensive and more effective in fighting the disease, allowing life to go on for millions.

Traditionally thought of as a Republican stronghold that most past Democratic candidates haven't even bothered with, the Obama campaign is actively courting Arizonans for 2012. The campaign has opened offices in Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff and recruited a Latino candidate for Senate. The state's booming Latino population, combined with the state legislature's crackdown on illegal immigration, has opened the possibility for a bluer Arizona.

President Obama begun a tour of the Pacific Rim with a stop in his home state of Hawaii over the weekend, where he met with leaders from the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation. There are 21 countries in APEC, and the president is using this opportunity to stress the importance of America's relationship with countries in Eastern Asian — most importantly, China. But while President Obama is shaking hands with Chinese President Hu Jintao, GOP candidates here at home having been calling China the bad guy.

In a rare moment of bipartisan agreement yesterday the Senate passed a small segment of President Obama's jobs package that aims to help unemployed veterans seeking jobs. Financial incentives of up to $5,600 will be offered to employers who hire veterans unemployed for longer than six months. The hope is that it will help the thousands of veterans unable to find employment. 

There were a number of big stories out of Washington late this week. On Thursday, the Obama administration announced that it would delay making a decision on construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline until after the 2012 elections. The pipeline, which would stretch 1,700 miles from Canada to the Gulf Coast, was opposed by environmental activists who said it threatened a major source of drinking water in Nebraska. Meanwhile, in Congress, the Senate unanimously passed a bill to help veterans find jobs and the "super committee" continues to debate a debt reduction plan.

In the age of slick PR machines, it is difficult to get a sense of a candidate's real personality or feelings on an issue. But with microphones all around them, private conversations and off the cuff remarks sometimes slip out. On Tuesday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy was the most recent leader to land in hot water. The Takeaway looks at some of the biggest political gaffes made when the microphones were left on.

Election Day 2012 is officially one year away, and if one thing is certain, it is that Americans' disapproval of government is at an all-time high. A recent New York Times/CBS News poll found that 89 percent of Americans do not trust the government and 84 percent disapprove of Congress. The numbers are reason for alarm on both sides of the aisle. As he tries to secure a second term, President Obama must contend with a possibly lethal combination of high unemployment numbers and low approval ratings. The news is not much better for Republicans. Seven out of ten Americans believe the GOP's policies favor the rich.

President Obama's announcement that U.S. troops in Iraq will be home by the holidays hit home for thousands of soldiers and families across the country. After 8 years and 4,400 American deaths, the U.S. will completely pull out of Iraq by the end of the year, with the exception of a force remaining to guard some U.S. facilities in the country. The conflict in Iraq changed the definition of what it means to be a soldier in the U.S. military, and what it means to be a reservist. More reservists were used in combat and support roles in Iraq than ever before in history.

On Friday, President Obama announced that all U.S. troops will withdraw from Iraq by the end of the year. The U.S. had a long-standing agreement to withdraw its combat troops from Iraq by the end of 2011, but officials from both countries had discussed the possibility of maintaining a residual force of tens of thousands of troops to train Iraqis and fulfill other duties. Those plans fell through when Iraq refused to grant American troops legal immunity in Iraqi courts.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) declared President Obama's jobs bill dead on arrival on Monday. Cantor said the House would consider elements of the bill, but refused to consider the entire $447 billion package. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, talks about the latest episode of political theater on Capitol Hill.

President Obama journeyed to Denver, Colorado on Tuesday, three years after he visited the city to accept his party’s nomination for the White House, and spoke at the 80,000-seat football stadium to excited supporters. This time, the president was in Denver to drum up support for his $450 billion jobs plan. Obama hopes Congress will pass the bill and create jobs for the millions of Americans out of work.

President Obama's approval ratings are at an all-time low. August's Gallup poll numbers showed that only 41 percent of American adults approve of the way Obama is currently handling his job. Some of the largest declines in approval come from African-American and Hispanic voters — groups that formerly voted for Obama. On Monday, The Takeaway discussed Obama’s increasing problem, which could stem from his positions on immigration reform with Gustavo Arellano, author of the syndicated column "Ask a Mexican."

On Monday's show, we talked about President Obama's declining poll numbers, especially among blacks and Latinos. We asked our listeners to rate the president's performance. Jake, from Detroit, wrote:

I still like President Obama but regret voting for him. He is the incorrect one to focus on, though — we need to shake off the offshore banking cartels and the ones with interest in the private Federal Reserve.

August's Gallup poll numbers showed that 41 percent of American adults approve of the way Obama is currently handling his job, an all-time low for the President. And some of the most significant declines in approval come from Latino voters — a group that was formerly solidly supportive of the President.

President Obama's approval ratings are at an all-time low. August's Gallup poll numbers showed that 41 percent of American adults approve of the way Obama is currently handling his job. Some of the largest declines in approval come from African-American voters — a group that formerly voted for Obama.