Santorum Wins Hearts with Sincerity and Work Ethic

The lead article in today’s New York Times, “Dueling Romney, Santorum Surges in Iowa Caucuses,” recounts a remarkable political story of how Rick Santorum, the biggest of underdogs, came in a close second in the hotly contested Iowa caucus to kickoff the 2012 presidential elections.

With a shoestring budget and becoming the first candidate to visit all 99 counties in the State, Rick Santorum hung in there while competitors were considered by the voters and rejected. He always provided a pure image, and his conservative credentials were never in doubt.

The contest did not conclude until late last night with Santorum just behind Romney by a handful of votes. Romney was unable to even match his vote total from four years ago, and his decision to go all in to win the contest may have been a poor one.

Meanwhile, Newt Gingrich was hungry for bear after being devastated by negative campaign ads by a Super PAC run by Romney staff members. Romney’s claim of no control over the PAC was a tenuous assertion at best.

Now Newt will attack Romney in future debates while staying clear of Rick Santorum who has emerged as the conservative alternative. Even Chris Matthews of Hardball praised Santorum last night for a powerful victory speech.

This is starting to get interesting.