COLUMBUS, Ohio | Sat Feb 18, 2012 6:19pm EST

(Reuters) – Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum challenged President Barack Obama’s Christian beliefs on Saturday, saying White House policies were motivated by a “different theology.”

A devout Roman Catholic who has risen to the top of Republican polls in recent days, Santorum said the Obama administration had failed to prevent gas prices rising and was using “political science” in the debate about climate change.

DETROIT | Thu Feb 16, 2012 6:10pm EST

(Reuters) – Republican White House hopeful Rick Santorum defended himself against attacks from Mitt Romney on Thursday as his hopes rose of dealing a heavy blow in Michigan to his main rival, who was the front-runner before falling behind in national polls.

Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator who has emerged as a major threat to Romney in the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, used a speech in Detroit to push a blue-collar theme in the state where the struggling auto industry has helped push up unemployment.

DETROIT | Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:14pm EST

(Reuters) – After weeks of skirmishes, the two leading Republican presidential candidates are locked in their biggest head-to-head battle in Michigan – one that tests Mitt Romney’s status as the favorite in the race and Rick Santorum’s ability to go beyond an insurgent campaign.

Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and private equity executive, and Santorum, the former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, have launched negative ads against each other in the big Midwestern state that holds its primary on February 28.

WASHINGTON | Fri Feb 10, 2012 9:51am EST

(Reuters) – Foster Friess, the wealthy investor who is fueling Rick Santorum’s presidential campaign, is enjoying his new-found fame.

“I am. You know why? I have a huge ego,” Friess joked in an interview with Reuters.

WASHINGTON | Wed Feb 8, 2012 1:18pm EST

(Reuters) – Rick Santorum’s underdog campaign for the Republican presidential nomination got something of a boost on Monday: a little respect from front-runner Mitt Romney.

After repeatedly attacking rival Newt Gingrich for weeks, Romney’s well-funded campaign shifted its aim toward Santorum, accusing the former Pennsylvania senator of having a “long history of pork-barrel spending.”

WASHINGTON | Wed Feb 1, 2012 4:40pm EST

(Reuters) – Whenever Republican U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney has been down and in need of an enforcer, one has been there.

Restore Our Future, the independent “Super PAC” that supports Romney’s campaign, has been a machine of destruction in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, swamping Republican rival Newt Gingrich with attack ads each time he has seemed to threaten Romney’s frontrunner status.

WASHINGTON | Sat Jan 28, 2012 6:53pm EST

(Reuters) – Within months after taking over as chief lobbyist at mortgage lender Freddie Mac in 1999, Mitchell Delk hired a prominent Washington insider to advise him on how to build support among conservatives on Capitol Hill: Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House of Representatives.

A key part of Delk’s strategy, as outlined in Federal Election Commission records, was to build goodwill in Congress by holding fundraising events for influential members of House and Senate committees that had oversight of Freddie Mac.

COLUMBIA, South Carolina | Sat Jan 21, 2012 11:10pm EST

(Reuters) – In the heart of the Bible Belt, Newt Gingrich, the winner of Saturday’s South Carolina primary, evoked comparisons to a familiar scriptural tale: Lazarus, the man who rose from the dead.

Only a week ago, many pundits had written off Gingrich’s chances in South Carolina, with Mitt Romney carrying a sizeable lead in early polling and Rick Santorum winning endorsements from influential evangelicals. Gingrich’s miraculous turnaround in the campaign’s final days shocked many political observers who doubted that he could overcome his negatives.

LEXINGTON, South Carolina | Fri Jan 20, 2012 8:40pm EST

(Reuters) – Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum made his closing argument on Friday to South Carolina primary voters: Vote for me because I won’t leave you hot and I won’t leave you cold.

Trailing in polls and failing to draw big crowds at campaign events, the former Pennsylvania senator pitched himself as the alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney and former House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich.

COLUMBIA, South Carolina | Fri Jan 20, 2012 11:13am EST

(Reuters) – South Carolina Republican operative Lee Atwater wrote the book on dirty campaigning before his death in 1991, but this year, another Atwater is stirring up the political scene with hours to go before the polls open here.

Her name is Sally Atwater, the 21-year-old daughter of the notorious campaign trickster. She is an undergraduate and is heading up Students for Newt Gingrich.