Romney to kick off general election fight Tuesday
(CBS News) In the ten months since Mitt Romney launched his bid for the Republican presidential nomination on a farm in New Hampshire, his campaign has experienced highs and lows. Back in the Granite State on Tuesday night, he'll come full circle as his campaign seeks to end the primary season and launch the general election fight.
He won't yet have the 1,144 delegates needed to officially clinch the nomination, but after five northeastern states cast their ballots today, Romney's campaign is expecting to have won a large enough amount of delegates to claim the mantle of presumptive Republican nominee.
"We're bringing the nomination process to a close, and will kick off the general election," said Ryan Williams, a spokesman for the Romney campaign.
Continue »Romney makes an early play in North Carolina
(CBS News) Mitt Romney is the prince of punctuality. Tardiness being the ultimate affront to the successful businessman, he'd rather sprint to campaign events or skype in from his bus so as not to be a moment late at all costs. Tomorrow, he'll be delivering a speech in North Carolina early. Three months early, to be exact.
Romney is delivering an address tomorrow that his campaign is calling a "prebuttal" to the Democratic National Convention, which will take place the first week of September. The speech is supposed to highlight President Obama's failed policies and failed promises from the last convention. This is not a new theme for Romney, but according to one member of his campaign, the optics of the speech -- which will take place on a Charlotte rooftop overlooking the Bank of America stadium where Obama will accept his party's endorsement -- are just as important as the message.
Continue »Trump fundraiser to raise $600K for Romney
Updated April 17, 9:15 a.m. ET
Ann Romney is not only raising her profile of late, she is also raising some money -- serious money.
The wife of presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney turned 63 today, and tonight she is in McLean, Va., outside of Washington, fundraising for her husband's campaign. Tomorrow, she will be in New York City for a birthday luncheon hosted by Donald and Melania Trump, which has netted over $600,000 for the Romney campaign, according to a Trump spokesman.
The impending Manhattan event has proved so financially successful, says Trump spokesman Michael Cohen, that the Romney campaign asked Trump to host a similar fundraiser when Romney secures the Republican presidential nomination. According to Cohen, tickets to that event would sell for $50,000 and 50 donors have already expressed interest in attending.
Continue »The ascension of Ann Romney
Affable Ann
Typical events for her during the summer and fall of 2011 were occasional and quiet ones, such as an October appearance at Martha's Exchange restaurant in Nashua, NH, where she spoke to about 50 diners, most of them women. There she described getting to know her future husband, Mitt, during her teenage years, and eventually going to college together at Brigham Young University (where they only overlapped for one course after she quickly deemed him to be a brainiac and exclaimed "Oh shoot! Why am I taking a class with this guy!")
Remarking that "life isn't always a bowl of cherries," Romney described her bouts with cancer and Multiple Sclerosis. The latter disease had stricken her so quickly and severely that she told the crowd even lifting an envelope was incredibly painful - she could not open the mail. Fearing she might be wheelchair bound and unable to tend to their household, Ann said that Mitt told her "'I don't care - I can eat toast and cereal for the rest of my life'" and expounded, "'I'm not going to leave your side, I'm not going to abandon you.'"
Continue »Romney racks up more endorsements as Santorum exits
It was another super Tuesday for Mitt Romney, as many notable Republicans got behind him and Rick Santorum exited the presidential primary race.
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, who had previously backed Texas Gov. Rick Perry for president, released a statement shortly after Santorum dropped out saying he supported Romney in his efforts to "retire" President Obama, and encouraged his party to look forward toward the general election.
"It's time for all Republicans to focus their energies on the fall campaign which will give Americans a fundamental choice between Obama's lurch toward European style big government and the Republican alternative of a thriving private sector with a smaller government," wrote Jindal.
Continue »Romney veepstakes: Will personal connection be key?
Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis. introduces Mitt Romney at the Grain Exchange in Milwaukee, April 3, 2012.
(Credit: AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)For Mitt Romney, the Wisconsin primary has looked at times like a buddy movie with Paul Ryan.
The front-runner and House Republican congressman have been together non-stop. They've attended fish fries, interrupted each other at town halls, even gagged each other on April Fools Day (Romney on the receiving end).
At the root of it all, a shared emphasis on conservative values, health care reform and tax plans has permeated every appearance. When asked to describe his plans for changing the tax code on Monday, Romney handed the mic to Ryan, saying "I heard the congressman answer this question better than I can last time we chatted. So I'm going to have him describe, just for a moment, his plans on the tax code, which are very similar to my own."
As Romney rakes in delegates from Wisconsin, Maryland and Washington, D.C.'s primaries on Tuesday, and party ranks close in behind him as he approaches the magic number of delegates needed to win the nomination, the focus will turn to the general election and Romney's first big test: Who he will pick as his running mate?
Continue »Marco Rubio endorses Romney
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., center
(Credit: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)Florida Senator Marco Rubio threw his support behind Mitt Romney for the Republican Party nomination.
On Fox News' Hannity, the freshman senator noted Romney's 25-year career in the private sector, as well as his perceived ability to beat President Obama in November, as the reasons for his support. "We have got to come together behind who I think has earned this nomination, and I think that's Mitt Romney," Rubio said.
Rubio, a popular Cuban-American, has been a highly sought after endorsement by the Republican candidates, which he acknowledged tonight.
"I think all the candidates in this race have a lot to be proud of. They have offered a lot to the debate. But I can't buy into this idea... the only way they can win this race is having a floor fight in Tampa in August," Rubio said referring to the Republican National Convention to be held in Tampa. "And I think that is a recipe to deliver four more years to Barack Obama."
Continue »Rivals allege "dirty tricks" by Santorum voters
Republican presidential candidate former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum speaks as his wife Karen, right, listens during a primary night watch party Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012, in St. Charles, Mo.
(Credit: AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)The campaigns of Mitt Romney and Ron Paul have filed a complaint alleging "serious and prejudicial misconduct" by supporters of rival Rick Santorum at the March 17 Missouri caucus that they say amounted to "voter suppression."
The complaint, filed with the state Republican party and several caucus officials and dated Monday, demands that the state party refuse to recognize the delegates from Jefferson County, where the campaigns say the improprieties took place.
At that caucus site, the complaint says, Santorum supporters deliberately delayed the proceedings when they realized they were outnumbered by a combination of Romney and Paul supporters. After the Romney and Paul voters left in frustration, the proceedings were allowed to resume, and by that time, Santorum voters had the majority, the complaint says.
Continue »Romney staffers robbed last week in San Diego
(CBS News) Last Friday evening, a car holding personal items belonging to two of Mitt Romney's campaign staffers was broken into in downtown San Diego.
According to the police, two laptops, two iPads, one iPod, a briefcase and clothing were taken from the SUV. The break-in occurred between 9:30 and 11:30 p.m.
San Diego Police Department Lieutenant Andra Brown said that the investigation is ongoing, but authorities believe it to be random.
"There's nothing to indicate that these victims were victimized for any reason other than it was a car break in and they had a car," she said.
Continue »Romney, Gingrich blast Obama for hot mic comments
The two leaders, attending the two-day Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, held their last official meeting before Russian President-elect Vladimir Putin takes office in May. The conversation was picked up by the microphones as reporters were entering the room for remarks by Obama and Medvedev at the end of their meeting.
Republicans in Congress have accused Obama of seeking a deal with Russia that would not stand up to electoral scrutiny -- a view shared by the two presidential contenders.
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