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US Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum. - Source: Reuters
Rick Santorum's underdog campaign for the Republican US presidential nomination got something of a boost on Monday - a little respect from front-runner Mitt Romney.
After repeatedly attacking rival Newt Gingrich for weeks, Romney's well-funded campaign shifted its aim toward Santorum, accusing the former Pennsylvania senator of having a "long history of pork-barrel spending."
Santorum fired back by blasting Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, as a candidate who relies on destroying opponents to gain voters' support.
To Santorum's campaign and many of his supporters, the exchange left an unmistakable impression: Our guy is still a player in the Republican race - or at least enough of one to concern Romney.
"I love it," said Foster Friess, the billionaire investor from Wyoming who has given $381,000 to fundraising groups that support Santorum.
"It's phenomenal. Romney is taking him seriously. I think that is pretty thrilling."
Romney's attacks came a day before voters in Missouri, Colorado and Minnesota cast ballots in the latest contests in the state-by-state process to determine which Republican will face Democratic President Barack Obama in the November 6 election.
They follow some polls showing Santorum was leading in Minnesota
and was second to Romney in Colorado.
Among the Republican hopefuls, Romney has by far the biggest
organization, the most money and the most momentum after big
victories in Florida and Nevada.
Romney's wins have stemmed in part from an aggressive assault on Gingrich, a former House of Representatives speaker who, like Santorum, is trying to cast himself as the more conservative alternative to Romney.
Missouri's primary will be a "beauty contest" because no delegates to the Republican convention will be at stake. The delegates that will pledge their support to candidates will be awarded in caucuses on March 17.
Seeking the blue-collar vote
Santorum, a social conservative who has cast himself as a populist, defeated Romney by a razor-thin margin in the Iowa caucuses, the first contest in the 2012 nomination race.
Despite his strong performances in several televised debates, the rest of January was a disappointment for Santorum. Three weeks ago, Gingrich was suggesting that Santorum should drop out of the race.
But Santorum's mission has always been to outlast everyone but
Romney, and then present himself as the alternative.
Along the way Santorum has made a point of trying to appeal to
working-class voters, and in recent days has targeted that
demographic in Missouri and Minnesota.
He often talks about his hardscrabble upbringing, drawing a contrast with Romney, the son of a former Michigan governor who co-founded a private equity firm.
Romney has been clumsy in discussing his personal wealth, estimated at up to $250 million (NZD$299 million).
Gaining support
Santorum's campaign is touting a new poll from Rasmussen that shows him as the only Republican who could defeat Obama.
Those results aren't reflected in other polls, however.
A new Washington Post/ABC News poll indicates that 56% of Republican-leaning voters believe Romney is the Republican with the best chance to beat Obama, while only 2% think that of Santorum.
Still, while some conservative activists are beginning to rally around Romney, others are siding with Santorum.
Last week, Limbaugh's brother Rush, the popular conservative radio host, singled out Santorum for praise.
"Everybody is guilty of some transgression somewhere against conservatism, except Santorum," Limbaugh told his listeners.
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