Though campaign officials still view Romney as the likely nominee, they have begun to consider the implications of a Santorum victory. They view him as a weaker general election opponent, but one who has shown an ability to connect with the population that is most disillusioned with Obama: white, blue-collar voters.
“Looking at the way the Republican race is unfolding, we’d be derelict if we didn’t begin looking at Santorum as a real potential opponent,” said Stephanie Cutter, deputy campaign manager for the Obama campaign. “We hadn’t been doing that, but circumstances have changed.”
Santorum has appeared increasingly confident of his prospects, campaigning heavily in Michigan — a state that until recently was considered a shoo-in for Romney — and touting his strong poll results in Ohio. Both are crucial swing states with large numbers of manufacturing workers.
He has centered his message on his social conservatism and blue-collar roots. But he has also tried to address his biggest weakness — the perception that Romney would do better against Obama. During a campaign stop Friday in Shelby Township, Mich., Santorum argued that he is more electable than Romney and represents a clearer contrast to the president.
“Do you want someone who can go up against Barack Obama, take him on on the big issues of health care . . . the Wall Street bailouts, cap-and-trade?” Santorum told several hundred people at a rally hosted by the Michigan Faith and Family Coalition. “Or do you want someone who can just manage Washington a little better?”
Santorum’s campaign further tried to reinforce his electability message by announcing Friday that Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, who previously had endorsed Romney, was switching his support to Santorum because he believed he could win against Obama.
Romney campaigned Friday in Idaho, attending a fundraiser and rally. And Obama, capped a three-day road trip with an appearance at a Boeing plant in Everett, Wash., where he outlined a plan to boost foreign exports.
Democratic strategists say they long had prepared for a winding and unpredictable Republican primary race, but Santorum’s surge caught them by surprise, partly because they did not expect Romney to face such a difficult path to the nomination.
Early on, Obama’s campaign officials had made it clear that they viewed Romney’s venture capitalist past as a liability. But they did not expect that Romney’s rival for the Republican nomination, Newt Gingrich, would use the issue to such great effect. Romney’s status as a front-runner was further threatened by his struggle to talk about his personal wealth and why he paid a lower tax rate than many middle-class Americans.
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