February 7, 2012

Turning towards Santorum

By N. Richard Greenfield
Everyone paying attention to politics at this point in the cycle has read at least a dozen different mathematical calculations on how improbable it is for anyone other than Mitt Romney to win the Republican nomination for the presidency.  While some of those equations make sense, only one thing is certain: Mitt will definitely prevail if the field is not narrowed further soon. A primary/caucus ballot absent either Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich doesn't guarantee a victory for the not-Mitt, but the arrangement does allow for those very circumstances.  The math in Florida speaks to this: Mitt got 47% of the vote while Santorum (13) and Gingrich (32) got 45%. The problem is, as it almost always is in politics, that we are dealing with egos, not math.  But an objective look makes it clear, between Gingrich and Santorum, who should go and who should stay. Of the two candidates, it is Newt who has been mortally wounded.  In another era, he might be able to...(Read Full Article)