Perry Drops Out, Throws Support To Gingrich

What a difference a day makes.  Rick Perry dropped out of the running for the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday and endorsed Newt Gingrich as the "conservative visionary" in the race.

Two new polls out today show that in South Carolina, Mitt Romney's lead over Gingrich is shrinking. And Romney is now being forced to explain why he has money invested in the Cayman Islands, known as a tax haven for the very rich.

But what impact will an explosive ABC News interview with Newt Gringrich's second wife, Marianne Gingrich, have on the race? Among the revelations, The Hill reports that Marianne Gingrich says the former House Speaker wanted an  “open marriage,” but she refused.

The interview is set to air on Nightline Thursday night.

Gingrich has condemned the timing of the interview, telling the Today show that ABC's decision to air it just two days before the South Carolina primary was "wrong," and he accused the "liberal media" of trying to distract voters from what he called the failures of the Obama presidency.

In other election news, Iowa officials Thursday declared that the winner in the Iowa Republican caucuses is... no one. The final count puts Rick Santorum ahead by 34 votes, but the results of eight precincts are missing and will never be counted or certified.