Cheat Sheet - Gingrich: I'll Endorse Romney If He's Nominee

Today: Clinton Will Back U.N. Action on Syria, Carnival: Profit Hit After Shipwreck, Megaupload Data Could Be Cleared January 30, 2012 BACKHANDED 1. Gingrich: I’ll Endorse Romney If He’s Nominee In a surprising and backhanded compliment, Newt Gingrich said he would vote for Mitt Romney if the current leader in Florida (according to many polls) won the Republican nomination. Despite having lobbed continuous attacks against his opponent in the presidential primary, Gingrich admits he'd rather have Romney in the White House than President Obama. The former Speaker explained his potential endorsement on ABC's Good Morning America Monday. "I think reelecting Obama is a disaster and I'll certainly endorse the Republican nominee. But I think that Mitt Romney will have a very, very hard time differentiating himself [from Obama]," he said. Read it at ABC News Syria 2. Clinton Will Back U.N. Action on Syria U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday that she will support a United Nations resolution to push for a transfer of power in Syria. The resolution, backed by Britain and France, will begin Tuesday in New York. Russia said Monday that the Syrian government is ready to talk to the opposition fighters, but talks appeared to have failed while fighting raged in the capital city, Damascus, and in the outlying suburbs. Russia has resisted pressure from Western nations to back United Nations-imposed sanctions on Syria.  Syrian forces on Monday raided the Damascus suburbs that have been under the control of opposition fighters. Around 2,000 troops loyal to Assad, aided by 50 tanks and armored vehicles, entered the opposition-controlled neighborhoods at dawn. Activists say government forces killed at least 19 people. “It's urban war,” one activist told Reuters. “There are bodies in the street.” Read it at Al Jazeera English COSTA CONCORDIA 3. Carnival: Profit Hit After Shipwreck Who would want to go on a cruise now anyway? The Costa Concordia shipwreck is expected to cost parent company Carnival Corp between $155 million and $175 million in income, according to company officials. The disaster, which killed 17 when the ill-fated ship ran aground near Tuscany on Jan. 13, has decrease demand for the company. Carnival slashed its marketing activities in the wake of the tragedy, but believes the incident “will not have a significant long-term impact” on its business. Read it at Reuters BACKUP 4. Megaupload Data Could Be Cleared Users who put data on the site Megaupload could see their work deleted as soon as Thursday, U.S. prosecutors say. A U.S. Attorney’s office in Virginia has sent a letter to two storage companies, saying they may begin clearing the files this week, after federal prosecutors retrieved the data that they needed. The feds shut down the site and charged seven men, including founder Kim Dotcom, saying they profited from millions of illegal downloads of movies, music and other content. Megaupload’s attorney is working with prosecutors to try to keep the data from being erased. Read it at Associated Press Giving In? 5. Romney Might Remove NBC Ad Mitt Romney may be giving into NBC's request that he remove an ad that uses footage of the network's nightly news program. The candidate said he might consider removing the ad, which features anchor Tom Brokaw announcing, in 1997, that the House Ethics Committee would punish Speaker Newt Gingrich for ethics violations. But, he insisted on NBC's Today show, "Obviously this was not something taken from hidden files. This was on the evening news. So it should hardly come as a revealing piece for people who watch it." Brokaw has said that the ad made him "extremely uncomfortable" and that "I do not want my role as a journalist compromised for political gain by any campaign."  Read it at CNN Political Ticker SAFETY? Sudan: 14 Chinese Freed But Beijing doubts rescue of kidnapped workers. RECOVERY Santorum Resumes Campaign Says 3-year-old daughter had ‘miraculous turnaround.’ IN NEWSWEEK Karl Lagerfeld Is Overrated Why the iconic designer’s other ventures are a detriment to his creativity. CAFE Starbucks India to Open 50 Cafes By the end of the year. KILL THE CAR New Ferris Bueller Ad Released It’s a Honda commercial. GET The Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from across the Web. You'll love the featured original stories on politics, entertainment, and more from The Daily Beast's diverse group of contributors. GET The Yes List Weekly cultural recommendations from The Daily Beast. After Davos: Holding the Financial Beasts at Bay by Christopher Dickey Send Robots to the Moon, Not People by David Frum Google Targets Rival Facebook With Tough New Privacy Policies by Dan Lyons

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