It's a sad day. Look's like his daughter has taken a turn for the worse! I sure hope she is ok, God Bless you and your family Senator!

He did say he is putting his support behind Romney which means Romney get's his delegates, the primary race is now over!

Washington (CNN) -- Rick Santorum announced Tuesday that he is suspending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination after a weekend of "prayer and thought."

The development means that Mitt Romney is now the certain GOP nominee to take on President Barack Obama in November, as Santorum was his main challenger. While Romney still needs to win several hundred delegates to clinch the nomination, Santorum's departure from the race leaves his path unhindered.

Santorum had canceled two events earlier Tuesday while adding an afternoon event that turned out to be his withdrawal announcement.

Hogan Gidley, the campaign's communications director, said the two morning events were canceled to allow Santorum and his wife, Karen, to "settle in at home" with 3-year-old daughter Isabella after her weekend hospitalization.

Known as Bella, the child was born with Trisomy 18, a serious chromosomal condition that interferes with development. Half of patients with the condition do not survive past the first week of life, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Campaign aides have acknowledged that the April 24 primary in Pennsylvania, the state he represented in Congress, was a must-win for Santorum's candidacy. But his once double-digit lead there slipped to single digits in a recent poll, and the cancellation of campaign events Monday and again on Tuesday morning stoked media speculation that Santorum might drop out in the face of front-runner Romney's commanding lead.

Meanwhile, a new poll Tuesday shows Romney trailing Obama in a head-to-head matchup, though voters remain split on which presidential contender is best equipped to handle the economy.

The survey, from Washington Post/ABC News, showed 51% of Americans would choose Obama if the election were held now, compared to 44% for Romney.

According to the polling data, Americans are divided on which candidate would best handle economic issues: Forty-seven percent favored Romney while 43% named Obama. When asked which man would be better at creating jobs, 46% named Obama and 43% said Romney. Both margins were within the poll's 3.5% sampling error.

Voters were less divided on other key issues. Fifty-three percent said Obama was best poised to handle international affairs, compared to 36% who said Romney. Conversely, when asked which man would do a better job of reducing the federal deficit, 51% said Romney and 38% said Obama.

In terms of likability, Obama held a clear advantage, with 64% of Americans polled saying the president was a more friendly and likable person, a nearly 2-to-1 advantage over Romney, who was at 26%.

The serious gender gap between the two candidates -- also seen in recent Gallup and CNN/ORC polls -- also appeared in the new poll. Obama had the support of 57% of women, compared to 38% who said they backed Romney, while the former Massachusetts governor had the backing of 52% of men, compared to 44% who backed Obama.

Among another important voting block, independents, the poll shows a much tighter race, with 48% backing Romney compared to 46% for Obama, also within the survey's sampling error.

Romney has used a huge advantage in money and organization to build his lead over Santorum and fellow challengers Newt Gingrich and Texas Rep. Ron Paul. In particular, the Romney campaign and the super PAC supporting it have spent millions of dollars on negative ads in the run-up to major primary and caucus votes so far.

On Monday, though, Romney's campaign pulled a television ad hitting Santorum while the former senator from Pennsylvania tended to his daughter in the hospital.

The sharply negative ad, which was to begin airing in Pennsylvania, highlighted Santorum's 2006 re-election loss in the state.

Romney campaign spokeswoman Andrea Saul said the decision was made "out of deference to Sen. Santorum's decision to suspend his campaign for personal family reasons."

Despite Saul's use of the word "suspend," Santorum has not formally suspended his campaign.

Santorum is Romney's closest rival but still has less than half of his delegate total, with Gingrich and Paul trailing far behind. However, the primary races after April 24 include states with conservative and Christian evangelical voting blocs that have backed Santorum so far.

Both Santorum and Gingrich have resisted calls to end their races in the face of Romney's substantial lead.

However, Gingrich admitted Sunday that Romney was the likely nominee.

"I think you have to be realistic," Gingrich said on "Fox News Sunday." "Given the size of his organization, given the number of primaries he's won, he is far and away the most likely Republican nominee."

CNN's latest estimate of the GOP delegate tally shows Romney with 659, Santorum with 275, Gingrich with 140 and Paul with 71. It takes 1,144 delegates to clinch the nomination.

New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware vote on April 24, in addition to Pennsylvania. In all, 231 delegates are up for grabs in the five states.

Gingrich has said he will stay in the race until the Republican National Convention in August, despite running a distant third in the delegate count. The goal for both Gingrich and Santorum at this point appears to be preventing Romney from reaching the 1,144-delegate threshold before the convention.

While all but conceding the GOP race, Gingrich said Sunday he won't give up on trying to influence the party's platform that emerges going into the general election.

"I think platforms matter in the long run in the evolution of the party," the former House speaker said. "And the party is more than just a presidential candidate -- it's Senate candidates, House candidates, state legislators."

Gingrich also said he has already talked to Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus about working in the fall "to help defeat Obama any way I could -- whatever the team thinks I can do to be helpful, I would do."

Beyond that, he said he wouldn't want to serve in a Romney administration and would rather "go back to a post-political career."

http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/10/politics/campaign-wrap/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

It was over 2 months ago..

We'll see, but Santorum didn't have enough "bound" delegates to make much difference in the actual delegate count.

When the other candidates say it's over, until then, it means nothing.

His delegates don't have to vote his wishes if he drops out. He can only offer his personal support or recommendation.

Not really, maybe about a month ago but now it's over.

The Santorum announcement solidifies what already essentially had become a two-man fight for the presidency in November, with Romney and Obama over the past couple of weeks refining their campaign rhetoric to attack and attempt to define each other.

The remaining GOP candidates – Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul – have vowed to stay in the race until the end despite having little money and fewer primary wins and delegates than even Santorum.

Romney has 661 delegates, compared to 285 for Santorum, 136 for Gingrich and 51 for Paul, on his way to getting the 1,144 by June to get the nomination, according to the Associated Press.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/04/10/santorum/#ixzz1riRDC400

Romney appeared at ease and upbeat during the event, even taking unplanned questions from the audience.

That could be because Santorum’s exit essentially clears the path for Romney to the nomination. Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul remain in the race, but neither has a viable path to attaining the 1144 delegates needed. The Republican Party is falling into step, immediately coalescing around him.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, a former supporter of Rick Perry and a rising star in the GOP, issued a statement offering support in “retiring President Obama.”

Pennsylvania Senator Pat Toomey, who had vowed to stay neutral in his state’s upcoming primary, also endorsed Romney at a local dinner, calling him “exactly the kind of leader our country needs to solve our fiscal crisis and restore American prosperity.”

With the internal battle among Republicans drawing to a close, Romney is now able to turn his full attention toward the general election.

http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2012/04/11/romney-praises-santorum-pivoting-general-election#ixzz1rhdKdqu8

You just don't get it do you?

RP swept the Missouri caucus last night by winning the St Charles delegate slate that had been taken over by Dokes and his bunch before.

His delegates won the chair and Sec positions as well as the complete slate of delegates wrapping up the county caucus delegate selection with RP delegates winning ALL counties going into the state convention. The same is happening in the majority of other states as well.

California, Texas and 1/2 the other states haven't even voted yet, Santorum has NOT committed his delegates to Romney, and Romney has NOWHERE NEAR the delegates needed as yet to say, or even think, he has the nomination wrapped up.

Learn the process and quit believing and preaching the MSM lies. Santorum has only "suspended" his campaign, NOT quit, and THAT decision will be known "down the road", maybe not until Tampa!

RP is the only "Not Romney" candidate left.... unless you still think ole Moondoggie Newt is gonna rise again

ST. CHARLES, Mo. — On the day Rick Santorum dropped out of the presidential race, it was Ron Paul — not presumptive front-runner Mitt Romney — who stole the show at the do-over Republican caucus in one of Missouri's largest and most conservative counties.

St. Charles County Republicans reconvened Tuesday, weeks after the initial caucus was canceled amid rules disputes and claims of favoritism. This time, things went more smoothly at the gathering of about 900 voters inside the St. Charles Convention Center. There were plenty of disagreements, some jeering, some booing, some heated comments. But unlike the March 17 caucus, the event never dissolved into chaos.

One thing remained the same: Despite his front-runner status, Romney still failed to generate much support. Instead, slates of Paul supporters were picked for 2nd and 3rd District congressional caucuses later this month (the county straddles the two districts) and the statewide GOP convention in June. Even a late attempt by Santorum and Romney supporters to align fell short of topping Paul.

St. Charles County is Missouri's third largest, behind only St. Louis and Jackson counties. And it is solidly Republican, making its caucus one of the most important in the state. But the county's first attempt at a caucus turned ugly.

Paul and Romney supporters were upset at the March 17 caucus over county GOP Chairman Eugene Dokes' decision to recognize only one nomination for caucus chairman, a Santorum supporter. Some at the original caucus also were upset when St. Charles County organizers banned the use of audio and video recording devices. Two Paul supporters were arrested when they were ordered to leave but refused to do so.

But the dynamics of the race have changed dramatically since mid-March, the most dramatic turn coming just hours before Tuesday's caucus when Santorum announced he was suspending his campaign.

It was clear early that the caucus was going Paul's way when Brent Stafford was elected chairman. He was one of the Paul supporters arrested March 17.

Paul supporters made it clear that they welcomed Santorum people to their side. Outside the convention center, 29-year-old Brandon Kelly marched with a sign supporting Paul that read, "Santorum Supporters Welcome."

Kelly said Paul supporters still believe he can overtake Romney for the nomination because of Paul's strength in caucuses.

"He's not giving up," Kelly said. "We have the majority. The media has it wrong. I think he's being undercounted in terms of delegates."

The do-over caucus was part of what has been a bizarre political year in Missouri. The state hosted a presidential primary in February in which Santorum was the overwhelming winner — but it didn't count. It was little more than a straw poll.

The state is choosing most of its 52 delegates for the national convention in Tampa through the caucus system. The St. Charles County caucus was the last of Missouri's nearly 140 local caucuses.

Now that Rick Santorum is out of the race, what happens to his delegates?

Santorum has 285 delegates, according to the latest ABC News delegate estimate, second to Mitt Romney's 661. He captured the majority of them by winning 10 states-11 if you count Missouri's nonbinding primary, which the candidate counted in his bowing-out speech today.

But some of those delegates were never really "his." ABC estimates that 78 Santorum delegates, from his wins in states that don't "award" their delegates - Iowa, Colorado, Minnesota, and North Dakota, would have been free to support any candidate at the Republican National Convention in Tampa.

Another two of Santorum's delegates were Republican National Committee superdelegates, who will attend the convention by virtue of their positions in the party, and are also free to support whomever they choose in Tampa.

Santorum won seven more delegates from unbound caucus states Washington and Wyoming.

He won another 10 delegates from Illinois, where they would not be required by state or national-party rule to vote for Santorum in Tampa, either, although Santorum's campaign presented their names and qualifying signatures to the state board of elections.

That leaves 188 Santorum delegates heading to Tampa. They'll be required to vote for him, unless he chooses to release them, according to state-party rules.

Even if Santorum endorses Romney, that doesn't mean he can gift all of his delegates to his former rival. Should Santorum elect to release his delegates, they'll become free agents, able to support whichever candidate they choose.
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As you see,straw poll awards of delegates don't mean much.

The fact is that Ron Paul is sweeping up the delegate slots in ALL of those open caucus states heading into their state conventions.... where the states delegates are selected for the Tampa convention.

The same math applies to the Romney delegates, so in truth, he has NOWHERE NEAR the 600+ delegates the MSM is reporting him to have.

RP is drawing crowds in the THOUSANDS to his rallies! Romney barely draws hundreds, Newts book sales and photo tour is practically non existent now with only selected appearances being mostly special dinners and fundraisers to the elite (trying to pay his $1.3 Million dollar campaign debt deficit!)

Romney lacks REAL support, the voters want a "non-Romney", conservative candidate, and Moondoggie Newt ain't it!

You might want to start liking personal freedom and the thought of not being at war with the world, because the "Big government, war machine, banker establishments" days are numbered when Ron Paul is elected!

One alternative is what our present dictator is preparing for.... MARTIAL LAW.... stopping the election and siezing totalitarian control, riots in the streets, America under siege from within!

Why does he "need" the power of his new executive orders? Why is the DHS buying MILLIONS of rounds of ammunition to distribute to local law enforcement under FEMA directives? Why are US troops training more and more in "civil" crowd control?

Does anyone ACTUALLY look for news outside the MSM to see the reality of these events? The Treyvon Martin case shows that MOST don't!

But what do I know? I'm just a food hoarding, emergency bags packed, conspiracy theorist who doesn't want to be caught with his pants around his ankles...... and I do live in Florida, the hurricane state....

One COUNTY! Come talk to me IF he ever wins an entire state like EVERYONE ELSE in the race did!

What has winning a straw poll beauty contests got to do with winning delegates? Not much in most cases!

You simply refuse to accept the truth!

Here are some factors to keep in mind.
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The widely reported Associated Press delegate tabulation is way off and this is driving all of the television commentary. For example, the vaunted New York Times has made no effort at a delegate count of their own, they rely fully on the AP.
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Keep in mind, the AP reported 40 people at a Ron Paul event in Hudsonville, Michigan when photographs showed two thousand. They reported 1,000 people at an event in Missouri while their own AP photograph of the event, which captured only part of the audience, numbered 2,500. And they make no effort to correct any of this.
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As of today, the Associated Press awards Romney with 12 delegates in Iowa, 12 in Maine, 14 in Nevada, 9 in Colorado and 30 in Washington. Don’t they wish. They also awarded him only 7 in North Dakota where he came in third place behind Rick Santorum and Ron Paul but captured even more at the ND State Convention than they had reported. In fact, even today, the AP chart reads exactly the same, even though the numbers are dramatically different.

Keeping in mind that this changes weekly, you would be wise to calculate that Mitt Romney has about 106 delegates less than what the national media is now showing. Santorum, even before dropping out, had about 16 less. This includes adding delegates that the media incorrectly withheld from Santorum and then subtracting its false calculations. Now add 98 delegates to Ron Paul. And you have the real picture of where it stands today.
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There is something else.

Many of the delegates who have already been selected to go to Tampa and are pledged to vote for Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich are actually Ron Paul activists who were chosen as delegates because they showed up and got elected as such, not because they committed to any of the candidates. We don’t yet have a complete count on any of this but it is substantial. We are in the process of taking over the GOP at many precinct and county levels. That is translating into power at the state conventions where the delegations are chosen. The GOP establishment is trying to block this by telling their people not to vote for anyone under thirty years of age or anyone who is Hispanic, but Ron Paul people are filling those delegate slots.

This means that the convention floor in Tampa will be loaded with Ron Paul supporters. And it means if Santorum releases his delegates many of them will vote for us because they were never Rick Santorum supporters in the first place.

I do hope this means Ron Paul has a shot. I can't imagine the majority of the nation wants Romney or Obama..

No, YOU refuse to accept the truth. Ron paul has 50 delegates and Romney has close to 700. I don't care how much you wish and click your heals, that's not gonna change. As much as I hate to say it because I don't like the guy, Romney is the nominee and I am supporting him because we need King Barry out of office.

Money and power can "fix/change/corrupt" a lot of rules, but short of that, RP has an EXCELLENT chance of being the nominee.... and he can definately beat Owe-Bummer, as national polls show he is the only one who can!

Get a clue LP! You don't understand the process in the least obviously!

He can "win" delegates in a straw poll vote, but those delegates are chosen at a later process and MANY are RP supporters, bound ONLY BY THE 1ST VOTE.

Regardless of that, most states have "open" delegations regardless who wins the straw poll vote, and RP delegates are filling those spots!

If you got your info somewhere other than Faux, you might get at the truth of the matter!