Two simple reasons for Newt’s SC victory:
#1 The people loathe Obama and how he has wrecked our country
#2 The people loathe the main stream media for protecting Obama and the Leftists.
And Newt articulates this loathing better than anyone
Nothing more; nothing less than this
Paul, Santorum, and Gingrich, all, provide an anchor for their responses to issues within their own personal historical understanding of our Constitution. That kind of response informs voters, reminds them that in America there is a firm foundation upon which to stake out one's position on issues.
Romney, on the other hand, rushes to pile up words on top of words, smiling, blinking and stuttering, focusing on his accomplishments, and then throwing in what appear to be carefully memorized familiar phrases from patriotic songs and Reaganesque utterings. That is unsettling to voters who feel their children and grandchildren will not enjoy the "Blessings of Liberty" unless someone who understands the Founders' ideas retakes the Executive Branch of their government.
That person may not be perfect, as King David was not perfect, in his personal life. He may have a whiny voice, as Congressman Paul does. He may, at times, appear apprehensive, as Santorum does.
But, if he appears to understand the fundamental principles of the Declaration of Independence which resulted in a written Constitution to protect the liberty of individuals and "chains" (Jefferson) on the delegated powers of men and women in government, as those three do, then one of them should be the one who should go up against the leader of those who are placing "chains" on individuals and building a slavemaster government which will end freedom as we know it.
In the Fall battle of ideas, a deep and abiding knowledge of constitutional principles must trump the deep commitment and strategies of the current redistributionist and his ideology.
To say that the entire state of South Carolina is so lacking in knowledge and perception that those voters simply had a visceral hatred of Obama and the media which caused them to defeat Romney is no better analysis than Brit Hume's simplistic "analysis" following the vote.