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Santorum's Smashing Surprise
The Weekly Standard ^ | March 25, 2012

Posted on 03/25/2012 4:07:51 PM PDT by Steelfish

Santorum's Smashing Surprise By ROBERT STACY MCCAIN on 3.24.12 The underdog's big win in Louisiana renders ridiculous Romneyworld's demand that he step aside.

HARAHAN, Louisiana -- Rick Santorum scored his 11th victory of the 2012 campaign Saturday, defeating Mitt Romney by a surprisingly wide margin in the Louisiana GOP presidential primary, and the media immediately went to work dismissing this victory as insignificant and inconsequential.

The size of Santorum's Louisiana victory, however, made it hard to dismiss. While polls had shown the former Pennsylvania senator leading by double digits, no one had imagined that he would win by more than 20 points. Yet with 98 percent of precincts reporting, Santorum had 49 percent to Romney's 27 percent -- and if the margin had been much larger, Santorum would have gotten all 20 of the delegates at stake in the primary. That caused some Santorum supporters, who gathered at the Fox and Hound tavern here to celebrate their victory, to wonder why former House Speaker Newt Gingrich -- who finished third with 16 percent of the vote Saturday -- remains in the race.

One local coordinator for Santorum stepped outside the tavern, lit a cigarette, and said, "Newt's killing him. … Without Newt, we'd be at 60 percent."

Gingrich has now admitted that he can't possibly win the nomination, but continues to campaign, and to disparage Santorum in speeches and media interviews. Newt seems oblivious to the reality that by pulling conservative votes away from Santorum, his continued presence in the race only helps Romney, the moderate whom Gingrich has predicted would "lose badly" to President Obama.

But his third-place finish in Louisiana, following his March 13 defeats in Alabama and Mississippi, is likely to make Gingrich increasingly irrelevant to the outcome of future contests.

(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Politics
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To: Lazlo in PA

Can’t understand voting for any of those that had dropped out or were no longer in the race for some reason or other. But there were other races people were voting on besides just the presidential primary.


21 posted on 03/25/2012 4:35:20 PM PDT by deport (..............God Bless Texas............)
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To: Steelfish
"While Gingrich is being reduced to dust by Republican primary voters and continues to act the fool."

You might want to review the volume and content of your posting history over the last months or so, then tell me who's acting the fool. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but santorum is not the second coming of Christ. He is not even a good warm-up act for spector.
22 posted on 03/25/2012 4:43:47 PM PDT by JoSixChip (santorum is Mr Rogers without a spine. Check his record, not his rhetoric.)
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To: JoSixChip
I have no problem with Santorum as far as his conservative credentials, though his voting record is not perfect. But like you said, Obama will slaughter him. He has not even come close to winning any of the GOP debates. The only one he was even noticed in was the one he lost his temper. And he's not a great public speaker. His victory speeches put up against Romney's or Newt's are dull and poorly written.

And I really wanted him to be my candidate since the day he entered the race, but he failed to excite me once he got in. I do admire his wife Karen though. She would make a terrific Fist Lady. Her book, Everyday Graces: Child's Book Of Good Manners, has been a family favorite for a number of years. But as for Rick, he'll never have the opportunity to make her First Lady. Not this election anyway.

23 posted on 03/25/2012 4:46:49 PM PDT by NavyCanDo
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To: JoSixChip

The kool-aid is for those who find it nourishing even after their candidate is toast.


24 posted on 03/25/2012 5:00:49 PM PDT by Steelfish (ui)
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To: Steelfish
"The kool-aid is for those who find it nourishing even after their candidate is toast."

Or those who keep drinking even after the glass is empty.
25 posted on 03/25/2012 5:04:54 PM PDT by JoSixChip (santorum is Mr Rogers without a spine. Check his record, not his rhetoric.)
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To: JoSixChip

Newt is holding out for the ones that matter,after california we will see a new Newt,its his after california strategy.


26 posted on 03/25/2012 5:27:50 PM PDT by Craftmore
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To: Steelfish

Gingrich has now admitted that he can’t possibly win the nomination, but continues to campaign, and to disparage Santorum in speeches and media interviews. Newt seems oblivious to the reality that by pulling conservative votes away from Santorum, his continued presence in the race only helps Romney, the moderate whom Gingrich has predicted would “lose badly” to President Obama.


27 posted on 03/25/2012 5:39:21 PM PDT by NavVet ("You Lie!")
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To: NavyCanDo

Less than a month ago Gingrich was telling the world that he was going to wipe the floor with Santorum in the South and cruise on to the nomination.

The South belonged to Gingrich, don’t you remember?

Surprise. It don’t.


28 posted on 03/25/2012 6:13:36 PM PDT by Houghton M.
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To: NavVet

Scozzafava.
Pelousy’s couch.

Newt would rather have Romney if he can’t have the nomination himself. Some critter in the manger, as I recall.


29 posted on 03/25/2012 6:15:13 PM PDT by Houghton M.
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To: JoSixChip

You wanna talk tone? Take a look at your own tone in your posting history.


30 posted on 03/25/2012 6:17:20 PM PDT by Houghton M.
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To: NavVet; Lazlo in PA; Kenny; dforest; napscoordinator; American Constitutionalist; Yaelle; ...

Regrettably, we get Romney BECAUSE of Gingrich. Had he withdrawn after Santorum’s spectacular one day trifecta, Romney would most likely have been defeated in MI (where he won by 3% and Gingrich siphoned off 7% of the votes. Subsequent internal polling data tells us that nearly 60% of Gingrich’s votes would go to Santorum) and in crucial OH where Santorum lost by under 1% Gingrich spirited away 14% of the vote. Unlike Bachmann, Cain, and Perry before him, who quit when they lose elections and their polling numbers take a dive, Gingrich goes on for his own ego and this is the guy who after just one flash-in-the-pan win in S. Carolina demanded that Santorum withdraw. His $2.50 gal/gas within two years and proposal for “permanent moon based colonies within eight years” went up in flames in his own southern backyard and now finishes 3rd place in LA and deprives Santorum of a large haul of delegates. What rationality accounts for this and the continued anti-Santorum posts we keep encountering?


31 posted on 03/25/2012 6:20:03 PM PDT by Steelfish (ui)
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To: JoSixChip

Your a Paul bot and Rombey now too !
Take your Romney talking points to a website that allow your lies .


32 posted on 03/25/2012 6:26:13 PM PDT by ncalburt (NO MORE WIMPS need to apply to fight the Soros Funded Puppet !H)
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To: JoSixChip

Your a Paul bot and Rombey now too !
Take your Romney talking points to a website that allow your lies .


33 posted on 03/25/2012 6:26:13 PM PDT by ncalburt (NO MORE WIMPS need to apply to fight the Soros Funded Puppet !H)
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To: Lazlo in PA

A Paul bot carrying out orders to smear Rick for Mittens .


34 posted on 03/25/2012 6:34:26 PM PDT by ncalburt (NO MORE WIMPS need to apply to fight the Soros Funded Puppet !H)
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To: Steelfish

Good article, but it’s in the American spectator and not the weekly standard.


35 posted on 03/25/2012 7:33:43 PM PDT by Yaelle (Santorum 2012 - our sole chance to stop the Rominee)
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To: Steelfish

Yes. Where is the realism on FR? People are falling over a cliff like lemmings with Gingrich. There is no reason for Newt to stay in this race. He only helps Romney, state after state. It doesn’t matter how great you think he’d be. You could vote for Sarah Palin too. It will do about as well. Come on. If you don’t want Romney, you need to throw your support to Santorum.


36 posted on 03/25/2012 7:41:09 PM PDT by Yaelle (Santorum 2012 - our sole chance to stop the Rominee)
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To: SoDak

I don’t think it’s the fact that he won, but how large his margin was.


37 posted on 03/25/2012 7:43:12 PM PDT by murron (Proud Mom of a Marine Vet)
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To: Steelfish

Thanks.


38 posted on 03/25/2012 7:58:59 PM PDT by AmericanInTokyo (Feigning past support for a candidate (w/no posting history of it), then suddenly "withdrawing it"?)
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To: Yaelle

Prediction. When (if), the Speaker “pulls the plug” and suspends, you will find a number of Newt supporters going straight ahead to ROMNEY even if there are anti-Romney Conservatives still in the race. That to me will speak volumes. I suspect some will come and help us with Santorum, as well. Certainly they will be most welcome. I have tried my best not to piss them off...probably the ones I DID piss me off were the ones first offensive to me, some of them actually quite PSYCHOTIC. (OK a bit of hyperbole here, but there you have it). ;-)


39 posted on 03/25/2012 8:03:16 PM PDT by AmericanInTokyo (Feigning past support for a candidate (w/no posting history of it), then suddenly "withdrawing it"?)
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To: JoSixChip

You are mad indeed, nominating Santorum is the only possible way to stop Romney, Newt agrees in his own words, so take up your problem with the RNC, because that is the way they rigged it.

Repeat after me, a vote for Newt is a vote for Romney, because Newt can not now or ever be elected President, our wishes make no difference in the outcome.

Where I live it won’t matter so I will write inPalin.


40 posted on 03/26/2012 12:06:36 AM PDT by itsahoot (Tag lines are a waste of bandwidth, as are my comments.)
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