TIME’s photo editors bring you the best pictures of the past week from the Beltway and beyond.
rick santorum
What You Missed While Not Watching the Last South Carolina GOP Debate
0 minutes. The CNN spaceship is set to launch, with blue gels on the lights that give the auditorium an alien aquarium vibe. It’s the 17th GOP debate of 2012 cycle. Roll the intro montage: “Welcome to the South, the heart of …
Romney Didn’t Win Iowa After All. Is It Too Late To Change the Story?
Remember that narrow, 8-vote win Mitt Romney scored in the Iowa caucuses? The one that launched him on a 2-for-2 run in the first two GOP contests, building his momentum and underscoring his case as the inevitable nominee? Turns out it didn’t happen. The final certified count in Iowa shows that it was indeed a close race—but that …
TIME/CNN Poll: Romney Still Top Dog, but Gingrich Gaining in South Carolina
GOP presidential front-runner Mitt Romney commands double-digit leads in South Carolina and Florida, but Newt Gingrich’s troubled campaign is showing signs of resurgence in the Palmetto State just three days before its pivotal …
Welcome to Low Country: A Compendium of South Carolina Political Ads
As GOP presidential rivals compete in the notoriously nasty primary race in South Carolina, negative ad season is reaching its climax. Here is a comprehensive guide to all the mudslinging currently underway on Palmetto State airwaves.
What You Missed While Not Watching the Fox News South Carolina GOP Debate
–5 minutes. Fox News host Bill O’Reilly sets the scene for the 16th GOP debate: “All Mitt Romney has to do tonight is not fall down or throw up.” Papa bear. A national treasure.
0 minutes. Big crowd. Curdling screams …
After Two Days of Debate, Evangelical Leaders Unite Behind Santorum
A group of 125 evangelical leaders met in Texas this weekend and after eight hours of conversation and a final ballot taken on 3 x 5 cards named Rick Santorum as their preferred GOP candidate. “I will have to admit that what I …
Super PACs Play a Leading Role in Republican Air War
Republican presidential candidates and outside groups which support them have spent $38.7 million on political advertising since last fall, according to data acquired by TIME.
New Hampshire Creates Big Expectations, if Little Drama, as GOP Race Wears On
Somersworth, New Hampshire
In a final, frantic day of campaigning before Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary, the six Republican presidential hopefuls sought to calibrate expectations for a race from which Mitt Romney’s healthy …
Road to New Hampshire: The Primary Campaign’s Final Days in Photos
TIME captures Republicans, reporters and rabble-rousers on the campaign trail as the Granite State prepares to vote.
Why Ron Paul Is Gunning for Rick Santorum
Meredith, N.H.
Ron Paul set his sights on Rick Santorum the moment it became clear that the Texas Congressman would take bronze to Santorum’s silver in the Iowa caucuses. “We got one of the three tickets out of Iowa,” a campaign chair told a crowd waiting to hear Paul speak on Jan. 3. “And there are only two candidates in this …
What You Missed While Not Watching the New Hampshire Republican Debates
–6 minutes. At St. Anselm College, ABC News asks former Utah governor Jon Huntsman to take the stage first. Texas Governor Rick Perry peeks from behind the curtain instead, followed by the others. Huntsman is last out. Typical. …
Santorum’s Path To and From Iowa
Johnston, Iowa
For most of the 2012 campaign, Rick Santorum struggled to be heard. He groused about his share of time in the debates, was hard to find on television chat shows and couldn’t afford advertising. But his …