Criminy wrote:
I don't get it personally. Ignoring his stance on a variety of things I don't agree with, how do people support him when he doesn't file the proper paperwork? It's not like he missed one or two, it has been a tremendous amount considering his apparent popularity.
He wasn't popular though until Iowa after Cain dropped out and Perry made a fool of himself at the debates and Gingrich was on his popularity roller coaster. Santorum, by all appearances, got into the race just to raise his national profile and try to restore his political image after losing his senatorial re-election campaign by 20 points in 2008. He didn't work to build a national campaign and by the time it looked as though he'd need one, he didn't have the manpower or money for it. Ballot petitions take people in those areas to canvass for signatures, those people require coordination which means a central state office ($) with paid staffers ($$). Compared to Romney who has done nothing but run for president since 2007 with the backing of party establishment types to build a strong infrastructure. It's the difference between someone who decides to go to college and meets with the adviser each semester, has a list of all the required classes and what would transfer, etc and someone who just ***** around and picks random classes each year until it's nine months to "graduation", he still hasn't taken his science requirements and he's begging professors to let him enter their full classes.
Part of it is still his own direct doing, though. Even after his rise, he thought he could be "different" from those "Washington types" with a decentralized campaign. I know GOPers just hate conventional wisdom and what the experts say and stuff but there's a reason why analysts look at this stuff when guessing who has the best chances. As for why he still gets support, I suppose it's a healthy mix of (A) has no idea this stuff is going on, (B) buys into "He's just running a different campaign from those career politicians", (C) he isn't Willard 'Mitt' Romney and (D) is really against butt sex.