Romney wins 2012 straw poll of conservative activists

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -

Mitt Romney won a presidential straw poll of Republican conservative activists on Saturday in a boost to his suddenly hard-fought battle against Rick Santorum.

Romney won 38 percent support among the 3,408 who voted at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

Santorum, who swept three contests last Tuesday and has emerged as the chief threat to Romney, was second at 31 percent.

Former House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich won 15 percent to come in third, and libertarian Ron Paul took 12 percent of the straw poll, which was conducted online during the three-day conference.

Romney's Iowa Win Now "Split Decision"

Funny what money can do 

Thought Mitt Romney won the Iowa Caucuses?

Not so fast. The state's Republican Party will certify the vote as a "split decision" between Romney and Rick Santorum, citing missing data from eight precincts.

The party had previously named Romney the winner, by a narrow eight-vote margin. But a subsequent count put Santorum up by 34 votes, and the missing data is believed to have been beneficial to Romney.

In the end, officials said, there are just too many holes in the certified total to name a winner.

Abortion Question

Former Sen. Rick Santorum says it is surprising that the nation's first black president is willing to deny civil rights to fetuses.

Santorum, who is a potential Republican presidential challenger to President Barack Obama in 2012, linked civil rights with abortion during an interview posted Thursday with the Christian Broadcasting Network. Santorum, who lost his 2006 Senate re-election bid in Pennsylvania, is an outspoken critic of abortion rights.

Santorum notes that for decades, slavery allowed African-Americans to be treated like property. And he says fetuses are denied the right to life because they are considered property.

Santorum says he is disappointed that Obama, a former law professor, refuses to treat fetuses as humans under the Constitution.