Santorum - Romney and Gingrich 'Were Playing Footsies With The Left'

In this video, Santorum criticizes Romney and Gingrich by saying that they were playing footsies with the left. According to Santorum, the other two candidates were having a similar posture as the Democrats, but they didn’t admit to it. He says that Romney and Gingrich are criticizing Obama’s government but they would do the same if they were in power. Therefore, Santorum thinks that he is the only one that can do it differently and better. Thus, he believes he should receive the nomination from the republic party to run for president of the United States. 

 - Nathalia Moreira

Rubio Stays Neutral, but Defends Romney

In this article I found from the New york Times, it discusses how newt Gingrich plans to "attack and win" Florida by bad mouthing Mitt Romney's campaign for the Republican candidate for President. He said that "[I] discovered that Mitt Romney has picked up on Charlie Crist's campaign people." This tactic was purely used to turn the residents of Florida against Romney because the Republicans of Florida feel disgust towards Crist for leaving the Republican party to run against Rubio. Gingrich is also attempting to cash in on his momentum, and is doing so by telling the constituents in Florida that his is now working with a former adviser of Senator Marco Rubio of Florida. Thereby, making him the popular candidate in the Republican party in the eyes of the Republican's in office in Florida. However, Senator Rubio responded towards Gingrich's claims saying that he is not taking sides and that although he is indifferent in the race, he likes both Romney and Gingrich as conservative Republican candidates. I felt that this article was important to share because of its direct portrayal of the tactics one candidate can use to gain more support than another, and also because this deals with the political race in our own backyard. 

--Sean Ramras

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Diana's Take On Romney In Florida

This article gave me a deeper insight into how politicians attempt to persuade their audience. With Romney's knowledge of Florida culture and population, he downplayed his stance on illegal immigration when in Florida. This makes me think about both the education of the people and the tactics of the politicians. Normally, downplaying an opinion like Romney did could possibly earn the people's trust. Even those who opposed that idea may consider the fact that Romney did not seem to emphasize it, therefore, making it seem less important to him. However, Romney up-played the immigration stance during previous campaigns in other states whose populations agreed with him on that issue. This is why the people must be educated in all of the politicians' stances, and not simply rely on a television portrayal or one speech.

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Ron Paul Interview with CNN After South Carolina Primary

Ron Paul continues to show positive attitude regardless of his placing in the South Carolina Primary. Finishing 4th with 13%, he continues to advocate himself talking about how he is a good match against Obama and his foreign policy. One of the reasons he is happy is because he has 4 to 5 times more volunteers than he did when he was running 4 years ago; he also views this "loss" as a movement. He seems to now be focusing on Caucus states, and states where he can get a percentage of delegates.

- Jonathan Chang

Stefano: Ron Paul Commercial

This is the most intense commercial I've ever seen for promoting a presidential candidate. The video brings up the issue of occupying foreign lands. It compares the United States' occupation in the Middle East to another foreign nation like China or Rusia occupying the US, suggesting that the consequences would be identical. It's an interesting thought to imagine how Americans would react to the proposed scenario. I would imagine what the video predicts is very possible. It then ends with the message that the cessation of occupancy of foreign countries is not isolationism, but is opening the United States to friendship and honest trade with other countries.