NBC: Romney Wins Illinois Republican Party [Romney Wins Big In IL]

MSNBC ^ | March 20, 2012

[Steelfish]

NBC: Romney Wins Illinois Republican Party By Michael O'Brien, msnbc.com

Mitt Romney won the Illinois Republican primary with some ease on Tuesday evening, allowing him to likely add at his advantage over his rivals in the tally of delegates needed to secure the party's presidential nomination.

NBC News projected that Romney had won the contest, the lone presidential primary taking place on Tuesday, shortly after polls closed. The primary offered Republicans maybe their best chance yet of a genuine one-on-one battle between the former Massachusetts governor and Santorum, his chief competitor for the Republican nod.

[ScottfromNJ]

Enough with the GOP RINO establishment. Time for a third party conservative candidate.

[Steelfish]

You bet this was a “must win” for both Romney and most certainly for Santorum, so this now officially ends the primary contest.

[TheRealDBear]

I would be shocked if Illinois didn't go huge for Romney, as that would indicate some life among Illinois conservatives.

[ought-six]

I voted for Newt. A protest vote, I know.

[napscoordinator]

I saw that tonight too. I guess we might as well get ready for a Romney Nomination and watch our prime opportunity to get rid of one of the worst President in history go down the drain.

[JCBreckenridge]

Neither do I.

The early call is totally frontloaded Mitt.

[bergmeid]

We need to focus on the Senate and keep the House. I couldn’t care less who gets the Oval Office. Vote conservative all the way down to the local dog catcher.

[entropy12]

In Illinois Newt would not have mattered. Combined Rick+Newt votes would still lose to Mittens if Newt hangs around 7%. However in southern states such as MS & AL it mattered for obvious reasons. It looks like in IL anyway, Newt did not campaign and his share did not all go to Rick.

[cripplecreek]

I do look forward to the desperate screeching from the GOP when they realize that Mitty can’t win.

[Engraved-on-His-hands]

time for Newt & Rick to exit so we can focus on the task at hand. The sooner the better.

The task at hand? Perhaps. But voting for either Romney or Obama will not be the task at hand for me.

With Romney and Obama as the nominees, social conservatives have nowhere to go. I will not vote for either. The biggest enemies of social conservatives are liberal Republicans. I will not continue to support my enemy. (And make no mistake about it: Liberal Republicans are the enemy of social conservatives.)

They want our votes but not our values. As for me, they will not longer have my votes either.

[Diogenesis]

Romney should resign and save America.

Poser backstabber at work:
"I bet you $10,000 I can glue this thing on the roof
of my wife’s second Cadillac."

[cripplecreek]

We need to focus on the Senate and keep the House.

Thats my plan.

[JCBreckenridge]

Uh, no.

IL was a must-win for Romney, not Santorum.

Why on earth is IL a must win for Santorum?

[Steelfish]

Delegates and momentum- vital for Santorum

[JCBreckenridge]

The vote in so far is almost all Cook + Lake (Chicagoland).

Almost nothing is downstate.

[Christie at the beach]

Why on earth is IL a must win for Santorum?
Duh-to stop Romney, remember...

[cripplecreek]

With Romney and Obama as the nominees, social conservatives have nowhere to go.

The GOP is like a drunken abusive husband always promising things will get better.

[NavyCanDo]

Santorum will win Louisiana, that is a given, but after that there is a long run of Romney states and some big prizes to be had. It is over for Santorum. His contributions will quickly dry up. And Newt right now is in it for much the same reasons as Paul.

Not the way I was hoping to see this play out when we had a full debate stage of candidates, but dang it, come November I am still an Anybody But Obama voter. Sending that disrespectful America-hating A-hole back to Chicago is still and must remain the Prime Directive

[JCBreckenridge]

No, it’s not.

Santorum can still win without it.