Romney shifts strategy to general election mode

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is calling on the party to shift tactics and focus on Obama. The call comes as voters head to the polls in Wisconsin, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. 

MILWAUKEE, WI (Catholic Online) - Romney also gave a not-so-subtle hint to Santorum that he should exit the race during an interview with Fox News. The right thing for us, I think, is to get a nominee as soon as we can and be able to focus on Barack Obama. You have to remember that it was Ross Perot that allowed Bill Clinton to win." 

Romney later added, "My campaign is going to continue focusing on Barack Obama." 

Romney is hoping that by virtually ignoring his Republican rivals he can solidify his perception as the inevitable nominee and more importantly, he can start campaigning against Obama.

Republican strategists have worried that while the protracted GOP race has brought plenty of attention to the party, the expense of carrying on is cannibalizing time and money that might be better spent against Obama.

President Obama may be aiding the process by launching attack ads against Romney. The Obama campaign has already run ads in six key states targeting Romney as a big spender with ties to Big Oil." 

As Romney makes his shift, he leaves Santorum working the streets to glean every vote he can. Santorum has spent the past several days canvassing Wisconsin, hoping to rally conservative support to his campaign. Santorum is hoping for a come-from-behind upset in Wisconsin, although polls suggest such a win is unlikely. 

Even if Santorum were to pull an upset victory Romney would still pull farther ahead in delegates with expected wins in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Santorum is not on the ballot in DC.
Currently, Romney has 572 delegates to the Republican National Convention, half of the number he needs. Santorum has only 272 delegates. Gingrich and Ron Paul are effectively out of the race although both men continue campaigning. 

As the race shapes up between Romney and Obama, both men have amassed millions for the coming fight. Romney has $7.3 million on hand compared to Obama's $84.7 million. Still, Romney has shown an incredible ability to fundraise and he may very well close the gap as the Republican party unites behind his campaign.

Â. 

---

'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'