This morning, CNN host Candy Crowley asked the former Presidential vier and fierce ex-cultural-warrior Rick Santorum if he'd ever serve in the Romney administration if offered a position. His response: "It is pretty much a flat no."More »

New York hasn't played a role in the GOP presidential primary since 1976 -- despite what Ed Cox has to say about it.

The New York state Republican Party is holding its annual dinner next week, at which now-former presidential candidate Rick Santorum currently is scheduled to be a guest of honor. However, now that he's bailed on his campaign, it's unclear whether Santorum will actually show up -- and that's because the New York GOP won't tell us.

We've called, emailed, and even sent smoke signals (alright, maybe not smoke signals) to the state's GOP asking whether Santorum would attend the dinner. Its response: crickets.

It doesn't matter to us whether Santorum shows up for the dinner, but it seems like something people who are coughing up $1,000 a plate for an evening  with Republican bigwigs might want to know (oh, and $1,000 just gets you in the door -- it'll cost you $5,000 to get a picture with any of the honored guests).

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Hey Rick:

I just heard you're ending your presidential campaign and thought I should probably write you because, well, I'm really going to miss you.

Yeah, we've certainly had our ups and downs over the past few months.

There were those times when you told me that rape babies were a gift from god; when you told me I shouldn't fight in combat; and when you told me I shouldn't have "sinful" contraception.

And remember when you said the separation of church made you want to barf -- and when you declared war on porn. What doozies!

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New York and Pennsylvania's April 24 primaries are fast approaching and while Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum have mainly eyed the Empire State's 95 delegates, the Keystone State's contest might ultimately decide Santorum's electability.

Indeed, the former Pennsylvania Senator suffered a shattering loss there during his 2006 reelection bid, putting to question his popularity in his home state. Santorum remains undaunted and is treating the race as "do or die." As detailed in the Los Angeles Times, he'll need "to make the most of local connections to survive what could be the final showdown of the 2012 G.O.P. contest."

Most of the time, politicians capitalize on their opponents' weaknesses. Right when Mitt could do exactly this and sink the G.O.P. nomination, he has pulled back.

Team Romney has just announced that the candidate will pull negative ads "out of deference to Senator Santorum's decision to suspend his campaign for personal family reasons." (Santorum's 3-year-old daughter was hospitalized on Friday.)

But is this necessary?

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First, another look at the numbers, because some people running for office don't seem to get it: Mitt Romney has 658 delegates compared to Rick Santorum's 281. You need 1,144 delegates to win the Republican ticket. At this stage of the primaries, the likelihood of Santorum sinking enough delegates in upcoming contests to beat his rival is virtually zilch.

Yet, Rick persists -- and slides toward the electoral embarrassment zone!

And he plans on keeping up this (wasteful) work in New York. Santorum -- and Newt Gingrich (who?) -- will court well heeled Republicans at a fancypants dinner April 19, five days before the state's 95 delegates are up for grabs. No matter than Romney is beating him by a 2-1 margin in the state.

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www.quickmemes.com

Wannabe presidential candidate Rick Santorum -- who the Washington Post has decided is edging "towards the embarrassment zone" -- apparently still thinks he can win the GOP presidential primary -- which is adorable. Sadly, that means he'll soon start campaigning in New York, where 95 delegates are at stake when New Yorkers head to the polls in the April 24 primary.

One of the stops on Santorum's quest to woo New York Republicans will be the New York Republican Party's Annual Dinner on April 19, just five days before the primary -- where he'll likely steal some of the thunder of the Dinner's keynote speaker, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (see our post on Jindal here).



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Young(er) Mitt

Remember a few weeks ago, when it looked like New York's April 24 primary might actually matter?

Well, even though the G.O.P. presidential candidate has yet to be definitively decided, national stats suggest that Mitt Romney has a very healthy lead, with 658 delegates compared to Rick Santorum's 281.

Still, for what it's worth, a Quinnipiac University poll released today does put Romney at a 2-1 lead over top rival Santorum in the scramble for the Empire State's 95 delegates.

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Rick Santorum, who earlier this week told Puerto Ricans to speak English if they wanted to become a state, has continued his tradition of saying wacky shit.

Now, not-so-slick Rick is calling for a war on pornography!

Apparently, vids of naked, consenting adults threaten the very fabric of American society, and the social conservative will not take that lying down.

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When Rush Limbaugh called Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke a "slut" and a "prostitute" on his radio show Feb. 29, it sure seemed like the end of an era might be upon us.

Public outcry prompted sponsors to pull support from the show, leaving many to wonder whether the conservative stalwart would have much longer to lash out against liberals and ladies.

To be fair, Rush did damage control issue an apology, but many saw the mea culpa as meaningless -- worthy of all-out mocking.

But as bad as Rush's gaffe might be -- and to be clear, it is bad -- you have to wonder: could this bolster Limbaugh's languishing career?

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A U.S. soldier killed 16 Afghan civilians in their homes when he walked off base. Following the attack he turned himself in. The reports of the number of casualties have been varied. In addition to the at least 16 dead, five were wounded. The victims include girls aged 6 or younger. "We don't know why he killed people," a villager told the New York Times. In February, riots broke out in Afghanistan after Korans were burned at an U.S. military base. [MSNBC, CNN, NYT]

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