Washington, Feb 22: Republican voters are facing a stark choice in the remaining state contests to pick a nominee to challenge President Barack Obama — a decision between the traditional, business-friendly Mitt Romney or the hard-charging social conservatism of Rick Santorum.
Former speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich has faded badly after a stunning rise in the polls earlier this year.
The fourth candidate, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, is plugging along in last place but accumulating delegate totals that could give him a significant voice in the party's late August convention where the nominee will be officially chosen.
Voters will choose between Obama and the eventual Republican nominee in a general election in early November.
As the U.S. economy shows signs of catching fire after languishing through two years of near-stagnation in the aftermath of the 2007-2009 Great Recession, Santorum is calculating that appeals to so-called ultraconservative values voters will play best through the remainder of the nominating contests.
Obama was seen as most vulnerable on the economy, but the recent declines in the U.S. unemployment rate and upticks in manufacturing and construction have begun the close that line of attack against the incumbent president.
So Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, has in recent days questioned the usefulness of public schools, criticized prenatal testing as a precursor to abortion and said Obama's theology is not "based on the Bible."
On Monday, he likened Obama to politicians who spread fear about new oil-extraction technologies "so they can control your lives."
The remarks contrast sharply with Romney's even-tempered emphasis on jobs, the economy and his resume as a can-do corporate executive. He served as Massachusetts governor and is a multimillionaire venture capitalist.
The Romney-Santorum divide will test whether social conservatives and supporters of the small government, anti-tax tea party movement can outperform the Republican establishment in key states such as Michigan and Ohio. Michigan votes Feb. 28, and Ohio on March 6.
The Republican party establishment is believed to be deeply concerned about Santorum eclipsing Romney, who still holds an edge in convention delegates and a huge financial and organizational advantage.
But conservatives have shown a deep discontent with his candidacy over his past, more moderate views on sensitive issues such as abortion.
It's not unusual for the Republicans to face intraparty struggles between conservatives focused largely on social issues such as abortion and school prayer, and those focused mainly on financial matters such as spending and taxes.
Sometimes the quarrels become loud and problematic, as when conservative commentator Pat Buchanan called for a "culture war" at the 1992 Republican national convention. President George H.W. Bush, already facing troubles, lost to Bill Clinton that fall.
Santorum, a staunch opponent of abortion and gay rights, surged past Romney in recent opinion polls of Republican voters after winning contests in Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri on Feb. 7. Several polls have shown Santorum leading in Romney's native state of Michigan, where his father served as governor.
The primaries in Michigan and Arizona on Feb. 28 mark the end of a lull in the state-by-state contests to choose delegates to the party's national convention in late August in Florida.
Romney and Santorum both campaigned Monday in Ohio, where their audiences, styles and messages produced distinctly contrasting atmospheres.
Ohio is one of 10 states holding nominating contests on March 6, or Super Tuesday.
Santorum appeared in Steubenville, Ohio, before a packed room including many students and employees of the town's Franciscan University. In his hour-long talk, Santorum never mentioned his Republican rivals.
Santorum aimed squarely at Obama as he discussed abortion, marriage, the church and family. When he touched on nonsocial issues such as energy and the environment, he couched them as epic struggles between reasonable conservatives and radical, sometimes devious Democrats.
"I refer to global warming as not climate science but political science," Santorum said to loud applause. He said Obama has "radical environmentalist policies" that reject robust extraction of oil and gas from many U.S. areas, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
In Cincinnati, on the opposite side of the state, Romney hit Santorum's spending record as a member of Congress but stayed away from the former senator's recent comments on social and other hot-button issues.
"One of the people I'm running against, Sen. Santorum, goes to Washington and calls himself a budget hawk. Then after he's been there awhile says he's no longer a budget hawk," Romney said. "Well, I am a budget hawk."
"When Republicans go to Washington and spend like Democrats, you're going to have a lot of spending, and that's what we've seen over the last several years," Romney added.
