This is because the GOP establishment, which includes the "conservative" media, are all in for their guy Mitt, since he won't rock the boat.
Does anybody here really think that the staffers at NRO, or Matt Drudge, or Ann Coulter, or any of the other "conservative" Manhattan set want to see any actual conservative - or even someone likely to stick to conservative principles more often than not - be elected? No way. Remember, even through 8 years of successful conservative governance, Reagan still had his Rockefeller Republican critics who were convinced that his insane cowboy policies were harming the country. These folks are simply not connected with reality.
Frankly, it may be time to break the GOP once and for all, and start afresh with a new conservative party that will reach out to conservative Dems and to independents who care about the little guy instead Mahattan elites. If the GOP establishment doesn't have anything left to be an establishment over, then it has no more power.
Buckley was a good Republican. He wasn't a Conservative as we would define one today.
You seem to have serious problems dealing with reality. Santorum CANNOT win the primary, ABSOLUTELY CANNOT. No rational person could think so. Even most Ron Paul supporters seem to have realized that Ron Paul can’t win at this point, which makes you less rational than a Ron Paul supporter. One thing Santorum can do is help ensure a Romney victory by staying in the race, which makes conservatives who support him or give him money even more ignorant of reality.
Another point where you ignore reality...you rate candidates on “fidelity” but support Cain and blame the media for him getting out of the race. The main was giving money to a woman that his wife did not know about and calling her regularly. As soon as this came out in the news, he got out of the race. Nobody who was innocent of charges like that would drop out of the race over them. And if they were innocent, the fact that they would run away based on false accusations instead of defending themselves would most certainly disqualify them as presidential material. But Cain was obviously guilty of at least some of the accusations, something that should be obvious to anyone with the capacity for rational thought. Since I’m a Christian, I will gladly support him as President in the next primary IF he comes clean, apologizes, stops his behavior and repents. Any Christian who would fail to forgive him or Newt for their past indiscretions is a CINO (Christian in Name Only) and does not understand basic biblical principles as exemplified by parables like that of the Prodigal Son.
Sorry, my reply in post 64 was meant for AmericanInTokyo.