Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) says if Democrats want to find agreement on raising the debt ceiling, President Obama will have to pressure congressional leaders to make serious concessions on spending cuts. 

Hatch said he expects the new Republican majority in the House to vote to slash spending considerably in the run-up to the vote on raising the debt ceiling, which will place the ball in the court of Senate Democrats. 

"That means the White House will have to exert its influence over Senate Democrats to follow House Republicans’ lead to dramatically bring down spending," Hatch told The Salt Lake Tribune. "Getting our nation’s fiscal house in order and cutting rampant spending is the resounding message the American people sent last November. It’s time we come together to act on their call."

Hatch's tough talk comes as he stares down a potential primary challenge in 2012. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) has made noise about challenging Hatch from the right, and some Tea Party groups in the state have threatened a primary challenge as well.

Former Sen. Bob Bennett (R-Utah) fell victim to a Tea Party-backed challenge in 2010, failing to secure his party's nomination at the state party convention. It paved the way for Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), who has been one of the loudest Senate voices threatening a showdown over the debt limit. 

Lee told the Tribune that he is leaning toward opposing the debt ceiling increase, noting then-Sen. Barack Obama's vote against an increase in 2006.

"I don't understand that if it was irresponsible a few years ago, now that he's president, it would be apocalyptic not to do it," said Lee. 

On Thursday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner fired another warning shot over the debt limit — writing to congressional leaders to warn of catastrophic results from a failure to raise the ceiling when it comes up for a vote in early spring. 

The debt ceiling currently stands at $14.3 trillion, which could be reached as early as the end of March.

A new poll shows former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is the early Republican frontrunner in New Hampshire, where he holds a commanding 23-point edge over his closest potential rival — former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.   

The New Hampshire Journal poll, conducted by the Republican firm Magellan Strategies, found Romney comfortably at the head of the pack of rumored 2012 hopefuls with 39 percent of the vote. 

He's followed by Palin at 16 percent, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee at 10 percent, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at 8 percent and Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) at 7 percent. 

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty registers a disappointing 4 percent in the survey. That's barely ahead of former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), who comes in at 3 percent and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who polls just 1 percent.

To state the obvious — it's very early — but Romney's lead is still notable. So are Palin's favorability numbers, particularly among independent voters. The NH Journal poll measured a net positive favorability for Palin with self-identified independents — 50 percent to 41 percent. 

And while it didn't translate to a better showing against Romney, the poll also found her very popular with the GOP base in the state, which unlike in Iowa tends to be a bit more centrist. Fifty-nine percent of Republicans polled said they have a favorable view of Palin.   

Santorum, who moved closer to a 2012 run earlier this week when he announced his first staff hire in New Hampshire, is heading back to the state for another visit later this month and Pawlenty has a two-day visit to the state on his January schedule as part of his book tour.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is also heading to New Hampshire next month, but denied a report in The New York Post that he's huddling with political advisers and weighing another run for president in 2012. 

Massachusetts Democrats seem in no rush to launch their bids to unseat Sen. Scott Brown, a top target.

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) has ruled out making a bid for the White House next year. With a potential primary challenge looming, he says his focus will be on returning to the Senate.

Asked by Nashville radio host Steve Gill if a potential campaign for the GOP presidential nomination was in his "thought process for 2012 or beyond," Corker was firm. 

"It absolutely isn't," he said Thursday, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

"Look, I really feel like, you know, I’m making a difference in the Senate. I spend so much time trying to understand the issues. I feel like I've become a thought leader in many ways. I’m going to work hard in our state over the next couple of years to try to be reelected."

Corker is one of 10 Senate Republicans up for reelection in 2012.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) doesn't sound too happy about the prospect of a 2012 presidential bid from Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.).

"Well, it's a free country," Pawlenty told Politics Daily when asked what he thought of Bachmann's presidential trial balloon. "Anyone can run that's over the age of 35."

The Minnesota governor, who's about to embark on a book tour and has been laying the groundwork for a 2012 bid of his own for months, said he has "respect" for Bachmann and described his relationship with her as "cordial and positive." 

A Bachmann bid would likely divert attention from contenders like Pawlenty, who hold less of a natural appeal to the GOP base and Tea Party activists. 

If Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) opts to run for reelection in 2012 he will have a tough road ahead, even with members of his own party. 

New numbers from Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling found 48 percent of Republicans in the state would rather see Ensign step aside in 2012. Just 42 percent of Nevada Republicans want him to seek reelection.

And while Ensign currently trails all potential Democratic opponents, including Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) 45 percent to 42 percent, the poll found Rep. Dean Heller (R-Nev.) leading every potential Democratic hopeful in an open-seat contest. 

Heller leads Berkley 51 percent to 38 percent in a hypothetical 2012 match up. 

Ensign has not yet indicated whether he will run for another term in 2012 following a scandal over his affair with the wife of a former campaign aide. 

Last month, the Department of Justice dropped its probe of Ensign over allegations that a cover-up of the affair was at work in a $96,000 payment made to the parents of Ensign's former mistress. The Federal Election Commission also dropped an investigation into the matter late last year. 

The Las Vegas Sun's political guru Jon Ralston predicted Wednesday that Ensign would not run in 2012, setting up a contest between Heller and Berkley. 

Even if Ensign decides to seek another term, he could still face a primary challenge from Heller, who has publicly suggested that Ensign remaining in the Senate could detract from the needs of the state. 

Ensign and Heller recently broke on the tax cut compromise reached by President Obama and Senate Republicans. Ensign opposed the deal, while Heller supported it. 

The poll also found that Republicans overwhelmingly regret their choice of Sharron Angle to be the party's nominee against Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) in 2010. A full 68 percent of Nevada Republicans said they should have nominated someone else. 

House Republicans' campaign arm sought on Thursday to raise money off the possibility that Nancy Pelosi could become House Speaker again someday.

In an e-mail to supporters, National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) Executive Director Guy Harrison "urgently" warns readers about a comment Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) Chairman Steve Israel (N.Y.) made on Wednesday.

"The new Chairman of the DCCC, Rep. Steve Israel, has decided to take a page from the NRCC’s 2010 strategy and make failed, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi one of the central themes of this election cycle — that’s right, he has said he wants to return the Speaker’s Gavel to Nancy Pelosi," the e-mail reads.

Israel said his goal is to win the 25 seats Democrats need to return them to the majority in 2012, and make Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) the Speaker again.

Republicans enjoyed success during the campaign by criticizing Pelosi at every turn. The Republican National Committee launched a national "Fire Pelosi" bus tour, and vulnerable Democrats faced questions about whether they'd support Pelosi as Speaker.

In making Boehner's ouster in 2012 a top priority, Democrats are doing the same as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who said just after the Nov. 2 election the GOP's most important goal is making President Obama a one-term president.

The statement by Israel and the e-mail by Harrison comes a day after the new Republican majority Congress was sworn into power. 

Democrats received an electoral drubbing in November because they lacked the courage to defend their healthcare reform legislation, according to Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D).

Democrats rarely mentioned the legislation on the campaign trail. Even popular provisions, such as one that required members of Congress to buy the same health insurance available to other Americans, weren't widely talked about.

Speaking to Democrats in Omaha on Wednesday, Rendell said members should have been proud of their votes for the bill.

"We Democrats have become a party that is scared to talk about what we believe in," he said, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

"It's time to be bold again. We lost in November being scared of our shadows," said Rendell, who wraps up his second term and will leave office later this month.

Many strategists expect much of the 2012 campaign to revolve around the battle to implement or repeal the healthcare bill passed in March of last year.

A North Carolina Democratic activist is set to challenge Rep. Mike McIntyre (D-N.C.) from the left in 2012.

Citing McIntyre's centrist voting record and opposition to the healthcare law, Democrat Del Pietro announced the primary challenge Wednesday. 

"Democrats are just furious with McIntyre and I really think this is going to be his last term," said Pietro, who accused McIntyre of abandoning the core principles of his party. "A lot of Democrats in this state are furious with the Blue Dogs in general, so I think we can get the base fired up."

McIntyre, who survived a challenge from Republican Ilario Pantano in 2010, ran to the right and emphasized his independence from then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the Democratic leadership. 

One of just a small handful of Blue Dog Dems who survived the midterms, McIntyre doesn't appear worried about his left flank. He was one of 20 Democrats to vote against Pelosi on the House floor Wednesday. 

He is also a likely "yes" vote on healthcare repeal when the Republican measure comes to the floor next week. McIntyre has previously said he favors a full repeal of the law. 

A spokesman for McIntyre did not respond to a request for comment on Pietro's entry into the race.

Pietro, a former pharmaceutical sales rep and current business counselor, describes himself as "progressive on some issues, but conservative on others," particularly with regard to terrorism and military matters. 

He also said he's confident that he can raise the money needed to take actually pose a challenge to McIntyre. Pietro said he intends to lean on Democratic small donors nationally who want "a true Democrat in office."  

The political newcomer's background is far from problem-free, though, and he's trying to preempt the negative press by fessing up to two previous drunk-driving arrests and a bankruptcy filing two years ago.

Pietro was found not guilty in one case, while another was thrown out by a judge.   

Pietro told the Wilmington Star News, “I just made a mistake and I accept responsibility for it, and I've moved on since then.”

-Updated at 1:20 p.m.