Santorum's Symbolic Sweep

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeIt's Rick Santorum's turn in the political spotlight.  The former Republican Senator from Pennsylvania staged an upset of sorts Tuesday, winning caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado and a primary in Missouri.  Mitt Romney, the acknowledged GOP front runner, finished out of the money.  Ron Paul, the party's resident libertarian, had his best showing with a second-place finish in the Gopher State.  And Newt Gingrich was a no-show in the Show Me State because he wasn't on the ballot there.

That's impressive for Santorum, but it doesn't mean a whole heck of a lot in the long run because these were non-binding primaries and caucuses.  No delegates were won here.  That will be decided at a later date, and by then the nomination could be wrapped up in Romney's favor.

So what happened to Romney?  Can you say overconfidence?  He won Minnesota in 2008, but visited the state only once this time (in Eagan) and got glitter-bombed by some activist.  Also, voters are starting to react to the millions of dollars Romney and friends have spent on negative advertising in primary states, most of it used to tear down Gingrich.  Not to mention gaffes such as betting $10,000 with one of his debate opponents, and saying on TV that he doesn't really care about the poor.

Santorum spent more time than the other candidates in Minnesota, visiting sweater factories and suburban mega-churches, building support as a real conservative alternative to Romney.  As in Santorum is Christian and Romney is not.

It's been reported that more than 45,000 Republicans attended the caucuses in Minnesota Tuesday, far fewer than four years ago.  The reason few people give a rip about caucuses is that they exclude all but the most politically committed in the guise of public meetings, and both Republicans and Democrats want it that way.

So what does voting for Santorum say about Republicans in Minnesota?  That they're a bunch of backward hicks who want to keep women barefoot and pregnant, who don't want to pay taxes, and who believe God is on their side?  Then maybe most Minnesotans were better off staying home.

Meanwhile, President Barack Obama's job approval ratings are improving, and so is the economy.  But he's not just sitting back and letting the GOP candidates stumble through the primaries.  The President has just allowed a Super PAC to be formed on his behalf, after vowing never to use one.  He had to, really, because taking the high road while negative ads put up by the Romney campaign are all over TV is just wishful thinking if he wants a second term.

And it's still a long way to November.