WASHINGTON

Bachmann not worried about slide in Iowa poll

Michele Bachmann says she’s not worried that a new Iowa poll puts her fourth among GOP presidential candidates.

She won a straw poll in the state in August, was born in Iowa and is counting on a strong showing in the January caucuses.

The Minnesota congresswoman once led national public opinion polls, but got only 8 percent support in the new Iowa poll from the Des Moines Register.

She told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that she’s campaigning heavily in Iowa and isn’t worried about “day-to-day snapshots” of the race.

Perry: Obama not credible as commander in chief

GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry says President Obama hasn’t listened to his commanders in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that’s cost him credibility as commander in chief.

Obama has announced that U.S troops would leave Iraq by the end of the year, effectively ending the war that began under the administration of President George W. Bush.

Perry told “Fox News Sunday” that making those plans public endangers troops still in Iraq. The Texas governor said Obama has “lost his standing” as a commander in chief.

Cain attributes rise in polls to ‘connection to the people’

Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain says his “connection to the people” is why he’s pulled ahead in some polls.

A new Iowa poll shows Cain with 23 percent support, while early front-runner Mitt Romney is at 22 percent.

Texas Rep. Ron Paul, a libertarian-leaning Republican, placed third at 12 percent, followed by Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann at 8 percent. Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ex-House Speaker Newt Gingrich polled 7 percent each, and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum got 5 percent.

Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman  was supported by only 1 percent.

Perry says debating skills don’t drive governing style

Rick Perry on Sunday sought to reassure GOP primary voters concerned about his wobbly presidential debate performances, saying what counts is how a candidate would govern.

“We got a great debater, a smooth politician in the White House right now, that’s not working really good for America,” he told “Fox News Sunday.”

The tough talk came as Perry, driving for front-runner status as the most viable conservative in the wide-open field, manages the fallout from his debate performances and all of the GOP candidates fight to lead the pack in Iowa just two months before the first voting of 2012 begins there.

Cain campaign denies sexual harassment report

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain’s campaign denied allegations Sunday that he was twice accused of sexual harassment while he was the head of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s.

In a statement to The Associated Press, his campaign disputed a Politico report that said Cain had been accused of sexually suggestive behavior toward at least two female employees.

The report said the women signed agreements  that paid them  to leave the association and barred them from discussing their departures. Neither woman was identified.

The report was based on anonymous sources and, in one case, what the publication said was a review of documentation that described the allegations and the resolution.

Cain’s campaign said that the allegations were not true, and amounted to unfair attacks. Asked if Cain’s campaign was denying the report, spokesman J.D. Gordon said, “Yes.”

ATLANTA

Cain tells CBS he’s ‘pro-life from conception, period’

Republican Herman Cain on Sunday said he opposes abortion even in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is at stake, contradicting previous statements in which he favored some exceptions.

The stand he staked out on CBS’ “Face the Nation” comes as he tries to clarify his position on an issue closely watched by social conservative and evangelical voters, who are among his strongest supporters.

In a 1998 interview with Nation’s Restaurant News, he described himself as “pro-life with exceptions.”

In a recent interview with CNN, he said the government should not tell women what to do in cases of rape and incest. Afterward, his campaign issued a statement saying he was “100 percent pro-life.”

Cain told CBS he’s “pro-life from conception, period.” Asked whether that includes instances of rape, incest and life of the mother, Cain said, “Correct. That’s my position.”