Posted on 03/11/2012 7:49:06 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
A group of conservative leaders pledged to raise a combined $1.78 million for Rick Santorum's campaign and SuperPAC after meeting privately in Texas this weekend with the Republican presidential hopeful, POLITICO has learned.
More than 200 conservatives from all over the country convened at the Houston Omni for a Friday fundraising reception for Santorum's campaign. They then met to plot strategy with the former senator Saturday morning, discussing how to overcome Mitt Romney's growing advantage in the GOP primary and fend off Newt Gingrich.
"The message was, 'we're all in,'" said South Dakota businessman and conservative organizer Bob Fischer, one of the event’s co-hosts.
Fischer explained that the $1.78 million represents money that, over the course of the weekend, individuals gave and pledged to raise for the campaign and SuperPAC. "It could be significantly more," he said. He declined to share the names of the donors writing large checks to the SuperPACs.
Santorum’s campaign has been badly outspent by Romney throughout the primary season and could use such an injection of cash. Such pledges are not always followed through on, but in the contribution limit-free, SuperPAC era it’s easier to raise money with a handful of deep-pocketed givers.
Many of those at the meeting were at the January gathering of conservatives at a Texas ranch where there was a vote taken to rally around Santorum as the chief conservative alternative to Romney.
Co-hosts in Houston included Fischer, Rebecca Hagelin, Richard Viguerie and Tim Lefever.
Also present were conservative leaders Tony Perkins and James Dobson.
“It was not a discussion of who to support, it was a consolidation of support,” said Perkins, differentiating the meeting with the January session. “There was a big push to raise funds. There was a sense of, ‘Now is the time to step up.’”
Perkins said Santorum’s comments Friday night at the closed-press reception were little different than what the candidate has been saying publicly.
Paraphrasing, Perkins said Santorum made clear he was in the race for the long haul and said, ‘We have a chance now and I need your help.’
Fischer dismissed Romney's lead in the delegate hunt and, suggesting a potential convention floor fight, said it was noted at the meeting that in some states delegates are only pledged on the first round of balloting in Tampa.
He indicated that Santorum was ready to go to the convention "if it's needed" and argued that the campaign was now "a two-man race."
But Gingrich’s continued presence in the race looms large for Santorum, especially ahead of Tuesday’s primaries in Mississippi and Alabama, where polls show the three candidates all drawing a significant share of the vote
“If they were to converge together you would have a majority,” said Perkins, whose Family Research Council has not endorsed in the race.
Saying it was Gingrich’s decision on whether to stay in the race, Perkins deemed the former speaker as “the most influential guy in American politics right now – he could be a kingmaker.”
Take a minute and actually think about this. If all primaries were proportional ones, your theory would work.
But they ain’t.
When the winner-take-all primaries heat up, Gingrich and Santorum splitting the conservative vote means that Romney wins the state and all the delegates and has the nomination locked up before the convention.
You must want Romney to win. Keep it up. You’ll get what you hoped for. Romney.
Great picture!
RE: Santorum’s record in the Senate.
Let’s look at some of his other accomplishments off the top of my head:
* As a Republican leader in the Senate, he was pivotal in the fight to confirm U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito ( he and the other Senator from PA, Arlen Specter, who at that time, did not turn turncoat).
* Rick Santorum opposed frivolous lawsuits against the gun industry by helping with the legislation (The Protection of Lawful Commerce Act) that would protect law abiding firearms manufacturers and dealers from frivolous lawsuits attempting to hold them liable for criminal acts of third parties.
* He was also co-author and floor manager of the landmark Welfare Reform Act which passed in 1996.
* Authored both the “Syria Accountability Act” and the “Iran Freedom and Support Act” which he successfully fought to pass in spite of initial opposition by President Bush.
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RE: He lost by 17 points IN HIS OWN STATE the last time he ran
That was at a time when REPUBLICANS LOST NATIONWIDE EVERYWHERE and both houses were taken over by the Democrats.
Bush LOST in PA by a HUGE MARGIN to John Kerry just two years before.
If you believe this is a political career ender, consider how Richard Nixon lost the presidential race in 1960 and then went on to lose the governor’s race in California in 1962 ( just two years later ). You know the rest of the story.
ROMNEY STRATEGY:
ROMNEY TRASHES AND BURNS RICK AND NEWT
HAVE ROMNEY SUPPORTERS TRASH RICK AND NEWT
HAVE ROMNEY SUPPORTERS TRASH RICK AND NEWT SUPPORTERS
ASK RICK AND NEWT SUPPORTERS TO VOTE FOR ROMNEY
REALLY?
NEWT STRATEGY:
HAVE NEWT SUPPORTERS TRASH RICK
HAVE NEWT SUPPORTERS TRASH RICK SUPPORTERS
ASK RICK SUPPORTERS TO VOTE FOR NEWT
?
Most of Rick supporter said they would vote Newt if Rick did not get in, but we have Newt supporters saying they would NEVER vote for Rick. Rick is nothing like romney or obama. He has LESS baggage than Newt, yet we are suppose to go with Newt. Maybe we should say no romney no newt???
RE: I just hope Obama doesn’t remind The Rev. Father Rick that when he was a U.S. Senator that the GOP had control of the House, the Senate and the White House and WE STILL HAVE ABORTION.
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How is that going to work for Obama? Santorum is just going to tell him that the priority in the early 2000’s were both the economy ( getting out of the DOT COM bust ), and terrorism and homeland security. He can also remind Obama that HE is the biggest impediment to the pro-life cause and it would be easier if we had a pro-life president than a pro-partial birth abortion president.
He can also remind the rest of the country that Obama was the ONLY Illinois Senator to oppose the born alive baby’s act that was presented by their legislature then. A bill that even Nancy Pelosi and Barbara Boxer supported at the Federal Level.
The topic of abortion is a no win for Obama because he can be exposed for the baby killer he is.
Sadly, too little, too late. The American people want a “winner” even if they don’t know who can win.
In which case you might as well allow ROMNEY to glide to the nomination.
Winner-take-all primaries are Puerto Rico (Romney wins, no matter what), Utah (Same), Maryland (Same), Delaware (Same), D.C. (Same), New Jersey (Same), and Pennsylvania (Rick’s Home State). Only Wisconsin could go either way.
Not a ONE of those Romney states goes Santorum if it is a two-man race, not ONE.
Didn’t I read something similar to this about three weeks ago except it was somewhere near Dallas? Isn’t this the same group?
All I can say is this — If Santorum can’t even win Pennsylvania, he will have proven that he can’t win the general elections.
>> Most of Rick supporter said they would vote Newt if Rick did not get in, but we have Newt supporters saying they would NEVER vote for Rick.
And Paul supporters won’t vote for Romney if Santorum supporters refuse to support Newt assuming Romney trashes Rick when he really means to trash Newt, and Rick starts puking, Newt starts dancing...
No,Newt and the Newtereds must wait till California,Im really really sure he can turn it around then.If only everyone “including Obama”would just quit and get out of Newts way,,,,really
I’m not supporting Romney, but if it comes down to him and Santorum, I’d rather it be Romney in the general. At least he stands a better chance against the Kenyan. I’d rather not have Rev. Rick who’d lose in a landslide for being a goofy theocrat.
You must be kidding me!
Romney would be a disaster in the general election! The Obama campaign has been preparing for Romney for over a year. Why do you think the media has been shilling for him? He’s the dream candidate for Democrats to run against: a stiff, white, upper class CEO tailor-made for Gordon Gekko comparisons for them to play their class warfare games.
And the minute he gets pressured for being “severely conservative”, he’ll revert back to his moderate self and alienate the base.
And if you think for a minute the left won’t engage in an orgy of Mormon-bashing, you’re dreaming.
I’ll happily take Newt or Santorum any day over Romney.
Who are these “conservative leaders” I’ve never heard of, and why are they deciding things for me?
Been a conservative my whole life and have not spent any time regarding any of those names as a “leader” of my beliefs.
Why do you only want to talk about condoms and abortions?
What are they deciding for you? They're pledging to give their own money to help Santorum. How does that even affect you?
If you have never heard of Richard Viguerie, Tony Perkins and James Dobson, you need to get out more.
Wahhhhh!!!! Those pesky Christian Conservatives are screwing up our election! Wahhhhh!
One of them wrote a book about George W. Bush...betraying the conservative cause..that may not fly with Texas voters and Perkins has been accused of affiliation with hate groups by the southern poverty center...they are all three christian conservatives.(You know who Dobson is..Focus on the Family)
I prefer Chuck Norris and Gov Perry supporting Newt.
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