Speaking at Brookings Institute in Washington, D.C., on Monday, the New Jersey governor said:

My politics tilt to the left yet by a quirk, I became a Ron Paul delegate in Vermont. Here's how it happened.

Just about everyone in Vermont thinks of himself or herself as an independent voter, including a goodly number of people in Vermont’s less than robust political parties that run the gamut, as Dorothy Parker said, from A to B.

Mother Jones has an interesting account of discord in the ritzy Hamptons, site of multiple Romney fundraisers. A land where millionaires are feuding with billionaires, it seems, over helicopter pads and mega-mansions. Here's an interesting tidbit on one of the most vocal opponents of the aforementioned helicopters:

Colorado is leading the way concerning several policies, and may eventually be a good model for other states for how to take divisive issues and hold positive and creative dialogue among the stakeholders (constituents). At least that is what I think thus far in our journey around the state. Colorado, in general, has a diverse mix of voters (713,506 Democrats; 829,259 Republicans; 668,182 Independents), which makes Colorado a swing State– a testing ground for ideas, and a stomping ground for independent thinking.

Announced Monday, the social network Facebook will launch a new application allowing users to share their vote with friends. The "I'm voting" app will let Facebook users endorse candidates and advocate issues directly on their Facebook profile.

Facebook will also partner with CNN to gauge real-time opinion of voters.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the US Treasury ran almost a $1 trillion dollar federal budget deficit for the first nine months of 2012.  While this is less than the deficit ran at this time last year, there is sure to be increasing scrutiny of over-spending as the Presidential race continues to heat up.

From the CBO: