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March 7, 2012 Usually by this time in the nominating contests, the GOP has given its heart to its hero, and it's lights out for the rest. But once again, the GOP of 2012 refused to read the usual script.

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February 23, 2012 Televised debates are always about expectations, and by this measure the night belonged to Mitt Romney. Flashing once again the combative style he showed last month in Florida, Romney took the fight to Rick Santorum and made the former senator look like, well, a former senator.

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February 21, 2012 Attracting the votes of women was already the No. 1 affliction for the Republican Party in 2012. Nominating a candidate who personifies the gender gap in American politics is not a likely antidote.

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February 8, 2012 The results of Missouri's "beauty contest" primary and caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado may be poor indicators of the sentiment of most Republicans and independents. Instead, they show the ardor of the fraction of voters who turned out — and the potency of the abortion issue in national politics.

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February 5, 2012 Some highly improbable events lately have embarrassed the host states in the presidential nominating process, including Nevada, which held its caucus Saturday night.

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February 1, 2012 ANALYSIS: Despite a sweeping victory, it was not all sweetness and light for Mitt Romney in the Sunshine State. Lacking a hero, many conservatives may have stayed home. Turnout this year was down from the primary of 2008 by 10 percentage points, more than 280,000 votes.

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January 27, 2012 From his assault on food stamps to his eviscerating of the news media, Newt Gingrich literally brought crowds to their feet during last week's debates in South Carolina. For a moment, you could almost hear the rebel yell. But Florida has been a different matter.

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January 25, 2012 ANALYSIS: There were appeals to what unites Americans, and even to what may unite the warring parties in Washington. But the spirit and bite of the address were in the throwing down of the gauntlet.

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January 24, 2012 ANALYSIS: It would be too much to say Romney had turned his ship around. But at least he righted it again after the knockdown it suffered in South Carolina

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January 22, 2012 It may have been the rudest gesture South Carolina has shown the national GOP since Fort Sumter.

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January 19, 2012 How embarrassing for Iowa GOP officials. How embarrassing for Iowa Republicans as a party. How embarrassing for Iowa. But who told the world to hold its breath earlier this month, awaiting the latest word on who had edged ahead in the Iowa caucuses? That would have been us. The news folks.

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January 17, 2012 The former Utah governor had a bankable blend of looks, charm, money, conservative karma and international street cred. Best of all, perhaps, was his ability to sit down with a big-time journalist and talk a good game.

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January 15, 2012 In a gathering in Texas this weekend, evangelical Christian leaders and activists threw their collective weight behind presidential hopeful Rick Santorum. Instead of demonstrating their power, though, the 11th-hour endorsement may well be a revelation of their weakness as a force within the GOP.

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