Rick Santorum might be rising in South Carolina, but he’ll do well to finish third or fourth in New Hampshire. Maybe it would be better, then, to consider his success in Iowa not as the start of consistent momentum but a catapult over New Hampshire into South Carolina. Part of the reason Iowa came too late to help Santorum in the early Northeastern state (where he was never destined to do particularly well) is that, by the time the campaign cash started pouring into Santorum’s coffers, all the air time in New Hampshire was booked. Or so reports Jake Tapper:
Call it the perils of the late (albeit well-timed) surge.
Former Senator Rick Santorum told ABC News that although his campaign has raised more than $2 million since his strong showing in Iowa, the cash came too late to get any TV ads on in New Hampshire.
“We’ve raised a lot of money now but all the TV has been bought,” Santorum said, “there’s no place to get in. So you are sort of stuck having to run a grassroots campaign coming down the stretch. It’s hard to make up 39 points in five days with a grassroots campaign.”
Then again, Santorum had success in Iowa with the one-on-one approach. Five days might not be much, but they might be enough to gain him a few more points, which could, in turn, translate to a higher finish in South Carolina.
Or, hey, here’s an idea: Santorum could use this as an opportunity to be creative. Isn’t this the day and age of social media? It might be the time to cue a well-crafted Twitter and Facebook campaign. Maybe he could sponsor a turkey drop out of a helicopter a la Les Nessman from WKRP in Cincinnati. But don’t forget, Mr. Santorum, if you do decide to take my advice: Turkeys can’t fly.
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