What’s going on with the Republican campaign?

By Tom Quiner

The Republican establishment wants Mitt Romney to be their candidate.

Rank and file Republicans don’t.

Rank and file Republicans don’t want a man with fuzzy convictions and a demonstrated willingness to compromise and cave in to liberals.

The dynamic in this race is fascinating. Mr. Romney has the best organization and the most money of his remaining rivals, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Ron Paul. He has devoted a big chunk of his resources to destroying Newt Gingrich with a glut of negative advertising.

It may have worked. Mr. Gingrich’s campaign is reeling.

And yet two out of three Republicans don’t want the “Massachusetts moderate,” to quote Mr. Gingrich. They want a fiscal conservative, and that includes each of Mr. Romney’s rivals.

We are watching the steady ascension of Rick Santorum. The Republican compromisers, such as Bob Dole and John McCain, want Romney. But look how well their approach worked. Contrast that with a conviction candidate like Ronald Reagan who swept to two landslide victories.

Can Rick Santorum go all the way? I think he can. He has consistent convictions. He doesn’t have Mr. Gingrich’s baggage. He is strong and decent. And he’s smart as a whip. He knows how the system works.

I heard him speak this summer at a small gathering. He said if a Republican wins the White House, Obamacare CAN be undone.

Readers of this blog know of our embrace of Newt Gingrich. If Gingrich’s campaign can’t regain its footing, and it may still do so, Mr. Santorum is a candidate we can quickly embrace.

Rick Santorum proves the old adage: slow and steady wins the race.

1 Comment

  1. Jeane Bishop on February 8, 2012 at 8:28 pm

    I’m smiling!!

    “Can Rick Santorum go all the way? I think he can. He has consistent convictions. He doesn’t have Mr. Gingrich’s baggage. He is strong and decent. And he’s smart as a whip. He knows how the system works.”