DARK HORSE

Trump Leads GOP 2012 Poll

Pledges to run as independent in rambling interview.

Does the Donald really have a chance? The numbers seem to suggest it. A new CNN poll shows Trump tied for first in the race for the GOP's 2012 presidential nominee, pulling even with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. Twelve percent of Republicans opted for Sarah Palin in the national poll, and 11 percent for Mitt Romney, who just announced his exploratory committee yesterday. As part of his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, the real-estate developer and alleged billionaire told The Wall Street Journal that he would “take the oil” from Iraq, returned to his recent “birther” theme, and reiterated his threat to tax China—whatever that means. What’s more, Trump says that if he doesn’t get the GOP nomination, he’ll run as an independent: “I think the Republicans are very concerned that I [may] run as an independent.”