. >> senator santorum now gets a week that plays to his advantage. conservative-dominated contests in kansas, then mississippi and alabama. but what he won't get is a clear shot at romney. newt gingrich says santorum doesn't deserve it. >> we'll try to fix the audio on that and bring it to you later. joe johns on the trail tonight with rick santorum. the senator told the rally a short time ago he not only needs to win but win big. how much of that is a reflection of the delegate math reality, how much of it is an effort by santorum to send a message to gingrich? >> reporter: well, john, you know it's both when you really think about it. the math when you look at it. i'm not just talking about other campaigns looking at it. i'm talking about academics, college professors. it's very hard to see how rick santorum or a newt gingrich under current circumstances with both of them in the race actually gets to that magic number of 1144 delegates without somebody dropping out. so that's one thing. the other half of it, of course, there really is a message going out from the santorum people to the gin

kansas takes the spotlight in the republican race today. cnn is projecting that rick santorum has won the kansas caucuses. here's the totals here, check them out with nearly all the caucus votes counted, santorum won easily there. he has 51%. romney has a distant second at 21%. kansas is a conservative state with a strong evangelical vote, both playing to santorum's strengths. we bring in chief political correspondent candy crowley joining us live from washington. big picture here, romney and gingrich pretty much let santorum have kansas so his luck holds here. is this an important win? >> you know, i hate to sound like everybody else but the fact of the matter is they're all important wins at this point. this is probably important for santorum. he does pick up, we think he'll pick up the bulk of the delegate and if the numbers you just showed hold, romney will be the only other one in the bunch if he stays 20% or above he'll be the only one that gets any delegates out of kansas. what this does is it sets rick santorum up for what he wants to do tuesday, and that is win alabam

still, kansas played to santorum's strengths. political reporter shannon travis is in overland park, kansas, tonight. >> reporter: don, a win is a win, but let's talk about how senator santorum pulled it out here in kansas. i was at a caucus site earlier today speaking with some different voters. obviously, they want to oust president obama. this was a republican-only caucus, and they also talked about their concerns about the economy. but another thing keen in their minds were social issues, issues that senator santorum really pushes on the campaign trail. another thing, some of the voters were undecided on who to caucus for, but they felt like santorum has the passion that they want out of a presidential candidate. one other thing of note, ron paul attended the caucus site i was at earlier, and i caught up with him. even though he didn't pull it out, he talked about his strategy amassing delegates. take a listen at this. >> well, it's everybody's race to win. i'm sure even though romney's not here, he's always hoping for the bes

still, kansas played to santorum's strengths. political reporter shannon travis is in overland park, kansas, tonight. >> reporter: don, a win is a win, but let's talk about how senator santorum pulled it out here in kansas. i was at a caucus site earlier today speaking with some different voters. obviously, they want to oust president obama. this was a republican-only caucus, and they also talked about their concerns about the economy. but another thing keen in their minds were social issues, issues that senator santorum really pushes on the campaign trail. another thing, some of the voters were undecided on who to caucus for, but they felt like santorum has the passion that they want out of a presidential candidate. one other thing of note, ron paul attended the caucus site i was at earlier, and i caught up with him. even though he didn't pull it out, he talked about his strategy amassing delegates. take a listen at this. >> well, it's everybody's race to win. i'm sure even though romney's not here, he's always hoping for the bes

. >> conservative voters handing a vickty to rick santorum -- victory to rick santorum in kansas, taking a shot at mitt romney. >> we are not electing a ceo we are electing a commander and chief. there is one person with experience. >> latest numbers from associated press show he got 51% of the vote mitt romney came in second with 21%, gingrich 14% and ron paul 13% santorum's rivals skipping kansas, focussing on alabama and mississippi. gingrich banking on at least one of those as a win, romney taking up a victory in wyoming and winning in guam. romney not getting much traction in southern states so far. >> morning y'all. good to be with you. >> reporter: rivals saying romney has a southern charisma problem, never dining on a popular dish of grits. >> i am learning to say y'all and i like grits and strange things are happening to me. >> unlike one of my competitors, i have had grits before if you don't understand, grits, it is likely you don't understand the rest of the south either. >>> in 26 stateterritories, mitt romney holds a commanding lead in delegates he has more delegates than a

kansas caucuses. a quick look at the numbers now. to show you how much he won by. a terrific showing by rick santorum. 53% of the vote out at the kansas caucuses. still waiting for some to come in, but cnn projected it earlier last hour based upon the vote that had come in. rick santorum wins kansas caucuses with that he wins at least 25 delegates. we're now estimating, not to be outdone, though, fred, earlier today mitt romney won the northern mariana caucuses arnds guam caucuses and walks away with 18 delegates in his pocket. the quick delegate update now. a quick look at that. the new fresh delegate update that we keep talking about in the race to 1144. we see from that, mitt romney still in the lead, 447 delegates, but rick santorum is now up to 195 delegates. fred, the race goes on and on and on. next stop, mississippi, alabama tuesday. >> okay. alabama and mississippi are definitely, i guess, on the bull's eye for newt gingrich who's hoping to do well in the south. in fact he decided to forfeit his visit to kansas to spend more time in mississippi and alabama. is that because some polls show th

kansas and wyoming held the republican caucuses today. the results were split. rick santorumcampaign there and gingrich pulled out to concentrate on the south. in wyoming, it was opposite. romney won that state and santorum was second. outcommitted voters outnumbered fans of ron paul and newt gingrich. >>> it's decades in the making and now to a push in congress, a group of world war ii veterans mean getting w he's more on the national heros, better known as the devil's brigade. >> reporter: good to see you. >> reporter: in 1942, this group of men were lumberjacks, miners and hunters to be a part of a first joint canadian and american team known by enemies and were fire returned, they were called the devil's brigade. >> i didn't feel like a defail, did you? >> no, i was too young to be a devil back then. >> they would be highly trained and motivated and pushed beyond the endurance of ordinary troops. >> reporter: the group of 1800 men suffered and killed 35. >> and this is a unit. >> this is the first time ever the two countries joined together in one military operation and o

santorum. the former senator from pennsylvania taking first place in the kansas caucuses by a wide margin. santorum reacting to the news a short time ago during a rally in missouri. we have had a very, very good day in our neighboring state of kansas. thank you. thank you for your help and your support. god bless you. god bless america. thank you. thank you. >> leading up to today's caucuses. santorum making it clear he had to win kansas to stay competitive. the latest numbers from the associated press showing he got 51% of the vote. mitt romney coming in second in kansas with 21%. newt gingrich with 14. ron paul with 13%. perhaps not much of a surprise though considering romney and gingrich largely did not campaign in the state of kansas. instead they focused on the two big southern primaries next week alabama and mississippi. romney winning just moments ago. the associated press calling wyoming for mitt romney. they have been caucusing there since tuesday. polls closed just an hour ago and now the vote is coming. in in socially conservative kansas it seems rick santorum stands to gain a l

. >> nbc news is projecting rick santorum the winner of today's kansas caucuses. good news for santorum in terms of momentum. but he and the other candidates face protests this weekend in alabama and mississippi. >> we had a very good day. >> with a strong showing in the kansas caucuses, rick santorum notched another victory and he is making the case he is the conservative choice. >> we have to have a candidate, a nominee who is a clear contrast with the president of the united states. >> rick santorum, it gingrich -- the contest is next week in mississippi. gingrich has to win one or both to keep moving forward. >> it is a big deal. if we win alabama and mississippi next tuesday, by next wednesday, this totally wild roller care -- roller- coaster race will be reset one more time and we will be on the way. >> for medtronic, a strong showing in the south is critical to show conservatives he can win. >> this president has not succeeded. this president has failed. that is why we will get rid of him in 2012. >> before the saturday caucuses, romney held up a three-one d

mitt romney pulled off a win in wyoming, and rick santorum won the kansas caucuses. santorum received 51% of the vote with romney getting 21% and gingrich in third with 14%. with the votes still being counted in wyoming, romney is the winner with46%, and santorum's 29%, and ron paul got 12%. david curley has the latest on the contests. >> thank you! >> santorum was campaigning in missouri but his eyes were on kansas. republicans voted in state caucuses with 40 delegates at stake. form snowstorm took the lion's share. >> we have had a very good day in our neighboring state of kansas. we are going to win kansas and the vast majority of delegates from kansas. >> reporter: mitt romney took a breather saturday after picking up 18 delegates in guam and the marianas island. romney, not expected to do well be in south is encouraged by polling in alabama and mississippi which holds important primary on tuesday. >> morning, y'all. i got started right with a biscuit and cheesy grits. delicious. >> if romney can win a southern state from his more conservative rivals that would bu

republican presidential contest held over the weekend, and the results showing a big win in kansas for rick santorum, but >>> good morning. another split decision in republican presidential contests held over the weekend. results showing a big win. in kansas for rick santorum. but mitt romney won the delegate in wyoming caucus. he picked up the majority in the american territories of guam, northern marianas and the virgin islands. romney is ahead at 37 #. then santorum and gingrich, ron paul far behind. remember, the magic number is 1,144. all of this with 48 hours of campaigning to go until republicans in the southern states of mississippi and alabama put their mark on this ongoing race for the republican nomination. here with us again from the campaign trail in mississippi is rick santorum. senator, welcome back. >> it's great to be back, david. thank you. >> well, you want your shop to go one on one with governor romney. what tips the scales to get newt gingrich out of the race? >> i don't know. you would have to ask him. we're going to keep on winning and competing. ever since nevada we finished

kansas declaring a winner. rick santorum sweeping the state's caucuses as the candidates slug it out in fight for the republican nomination. welcome to a brand-new hour inside america's news headquarters. >> heather: i'm heather childers. associated press is report weigh 88% of the precincts reporting. rick santorum has won the state with 53% following behind mitt romney with this percentage, 17%. newt gingrich, 16% and ron paul coming in with 13%. another big contest, of course, the wyoming caucuses with 44% in mitt romney leading so far, 47% and rick santorum with 34% followed by ron paul with 7%. so far no percentage in yet for newt gingrich. to break it all down we'll go to alicia in wichita, kansas. >> reporter: i talked to rick santorum. he says he feels good about what happened in kansas. he did come into the race among the favorite. they wanted someone that reflects that values. >> here is what santorum told me about that. >> i'm being attacked by my opponents in mississippi and alabama, as not being a conservative.

romney won wyoming and santorum kansas.hat are district of columbia with it but it changes the lives of partners in the role of full time caregivers. >> the golden years is when you can sit back, hopefully and exchange memories. that is the worst part about this disease. there is nobody who exchange memories with. >>> nancy reagan called you almost immediately. >> that the first call we had. >> she wanted more to talk to you, lydia than she wanted to talk to charles? >> of course. >> why? >> because she felt she had more to give me than she would have to give him. >> she said of our own experience with president reagan that the hard part is not being able to share memories together. did she tell you that? >> she didn't in so many words. i asked her, does he know you. she said, no. there was a loss in that no. >>> late peter jennings from an abc special. of course, alzheimer's takes many forms. it's impossible for caretakers to prepare for an unknown road ahead. li zaf gibbons mother died of alleged. thank you so much. you s

santorum punched forward to kansas, where gingrich has chosen not to compete. battle royal looms in alabama and mississippi where santorum is spending $1 million in each state hopes to win big enough to knock gingrich out of the race. >> we had a good night last night, but so did governor romney. that's why we have to start anew here. we have to do well here in kansas. no, we have to win here in kansas. >> santorum aides and the super pac supporting him now openly call on gingrich to but out so conservatives can unite behind santorum. gingrich knocked santorum's admission he took one for the team supporting "no child left behind." >> with all respect to my friend from pennsylvania, senator santorum, there is a big difference between being a good team member and changing the game. i am not going to washington to be a good team member. i am going to washington to change washington. >> romney hits the canvass tomorrow, and drop $1.3 million in the next six days to overcome gingrich advantage as southerner and santorum appeal with evangelical and tea parties. more

yesterday, santorum won kansas's caucuses, capturing at least 20 of the state's 40 delegates. victories, winning the u.s. territories as well as wyoming's caucus, which actually voted last week. santorum is currently third in polling in alabama behind romney and newt gingrich. he's also third in mississippi with gingrich holding a slight lead over romney before tuesday's caucuses. santorum and romney's victories does little to change the delegates standings. take a look. romney has a commanding lead with 377 delegates, more than the other three candidates combined. santorum has 146, gingrich at 112 and ron paul at just 31. the challengers need 1,144 delegates to secure the republican nomination. >>> with just a couple days until alabama and mississippi, each candidate is hoping to capture the southern states. nbc's david gregory joined us earlier today and says for romney, santorum and gingrich, a win for them on tuesday would mean very different things. >> it's a different threshold. i think for gingrich, if he's going to remain as something of a southern candidate, then he's

. >>> national political news, republican presidential hopeful rick santorum won in kansas while mitt romney took wyoming. newt gingrich is counting on the deep south to stay in the race for the white house. santorum's rival skipped kansas allowing him to win. and the candidates reviewing for mississippi and alabama. newt gingrich is counting on his fellow southerners to carry him on tuesday. >> if we can win alabama and mississippi tuesday night, we will reset the campaign for i guess the ninth or tenth time sometime on wednesday. >> meanwhile front runtier mitt romney, mississippi and alabama have been considered long shots new polling shows he is making significant gains there in the last couple days. >> and on face the nation new calls for newt gingrich to drop out of the republican race. bob schieffer interviews him and one big question, the tuesday primaries will they be his last stand? and the latest on president obama's latest campaign election. that's at 8:30 a.m. on cbs5. >>> 7:37. police in fairfield have arrested two men in connection with a double murder but they are look

this evening, rick santorum has won kansas. 40 delegates there. mitt romney and newt gingrich in a close there for second place there. romney did pick up victory earlier in the day. u.s. territories, guam, virgin islands. and look at this, mitt romney holds a commanding lead for the 1144 delegates needed for the nomination. so as the race now shifts to the south, the bigger question here tonight, is there any way the other candidates can wrestle this away from romney? we asked abc's david kerley to do the math and these numbers are pretty telling, david. >> it is pretty interesting, david. a win say win for santorum tonight, there's no doubt about it. but the math says that really he can't win the nomination. he can, however, help keep mitt romney from getting the nomination before the convention. santorum's big win in kansas was not a surprise and he wasted no time taking on romney. >> we're not electing a ceo, we're electing a commander in chief. and there's one person who has experience doing that. >> reporter: romney and gingrich ceded kansas

. >> reporter: rick santorum delivered the news to supporters in missouri. kansasoted santorum their favorite where gingrich and romney didn't campaign. and the associated press is stating romney -- the former house speaker signed autographs and asked for support as he works to jump start his campaign in the deep south. >> if we can win alabama and mississippi tuesday night we'll reset the campaign for the ninth or tenth time on wednesday. >> reporter: santorum is hoping a poor showing on tuesday will force gingrich to jump out consolidating the conservative vote that is now split between the two candidates. romney has a lead in the delegate count. he's looking for a strong show in the south after losing in georgia and south carolina to gingrich. >> i got started right this morning with a biscuit and cheesy grits. >> reporter: he's focusing on the caucus states as the best way to win delegates. >> romney padded his delegate lead when he won all nine on the island of guam. >>> a white powder scare inside of the office building in washington d. c. hazmat crews swept

. >> on the national front, presidential hopeful rick santorum wins in kansas while mitt romney takes wyoming. and newt gingrich, he is counting on his fellows down in the deep south to stay in the race for the white house. santorum's rival skippedded campaigning in kansas allowing him to win the state easily yesterday. the candidates are battling for mississippi and alabama and newt gingrich in third place is counting on his foal southerners to win come tuesday. >> we can win alabama and mississippi tuesday night. we will reset the campaign for the ninth or tenth time. >> for front runner mitt romney, mississippi and bm bam -- alabama had been considered long shots but new polling show significant gains. >>> 8:36 now and still to come, a look at the legal debate over the sheriff's domestic violence trial. >>> and the intimate details we are learning about his past. we checked with a legal analyst. >> playing dirty in football. the scandal gripping the new orleans saints. we are live next. th who >>> big cool down around the bay area this weekend. clouds move into the area and rain so

>> and if you want to watch for any kind of a tipping point, it might be santorum's win in kansas. nd also the fact that in alabama, there's a state supreme court race which has drawn judge roy moore, the ten commandments judge. that might help santorum, too. >> this really is the fight about who is most conservative. alabama, mississippi, stronghold, conservative state, whoever whether it's one or more than one candidate to win those primaries, will that mean that the base will more likely kind of throw it's support behind that candidate? how important are these southern states? >> well, if mitt romney doesn't win solidly in these states, it's not the end of the world for him. i mean this looks kind of awful, talking about grits and biscuits. >> it's charming too, isn't it? >> it's charming in its way, so if he pulls the vote that it looks like he might. >> if, say, romney ends up being the nominee just because of his delegate count right now, people are feeling like he's in a pretty good position, if he doesn't do well in the southern states, what happens come the fall? is it just

s a win for rick santorum in kansas. ntorum getting 51 percent of the vote in kansas and 33 of the sphates 40 delegates. front runner mitt romney picking up 7 in wyoming. he had victsry virgin island and guam and. police in washington state arrested a man accused of stabbing a judge and shooting a sheriff's deputy. 34 year old suspect steven cravis managed to get away. she didn't know what happened. she later contacted police. why and deputy are out of the hospital and recovering tont. i am patti ann brown and back to john stossel. for all of the latest headline log on to fox news.com. governms thousands of new laws ever year. the feds added 80,000 pages of laws. and state and local laws we're drowning in rules. >> this could lead to the police locking me up. given the police have the power to lock me up, or shoot me, it's important that we be able to keep an eye on them. >> fortunately that is easier today even our phones have cameras and camera is a powerful tool, watching the watcher. >> you are going away. >> the prob

the victory in kansas, overwhelmingly showed that people are looking at rick santorum has the consistent conservative. 51% of the people in kansas caucus for rick santorum, that shows that he is the consistent conservative that matches up with their views and values. we seeing that the people are looking at a two-man race. this is rick santorum versus mitt romney. the tea party loyalists and the conservatives are realizing that rick santorum is the one who will carry the conservative torch. he has done so in the past. we will see that also, come tuesday in alabama and mississippi. no doubt. >> this week, there were a growing number of calls calls fm campaigns and supporters of a certain campaign, but for different conservative leaders, for the former speaker to drop out and throw support to rick santorum. no indication that that is anywhere near happening. but rick santorum said he won't call on anyone to drop out of the campaign. if you win in albarack obamaa and mississippi, will you call for him to drop out? >> no. i think that each candidate has to decide on their own. but going back

to get out before alabama and mississippi and rick santorum wins alabama, mississippi, kansas, and missouri, who knows what will happen in hawaii. and say that happens, are we in a position to where we are talking about rick santorum as the nominee and mitt romney as the vice president? how do you reassure? how do you reassure party elites and the centrist mass of americans that you know what, actually, you are not just the man on dog guy, and you are not the guy who can't be googled or the guy who lost by 18 points for being a social conservative that they took mr. charisma bob casey over you and you will have the competent vice president financial guy with and the guy you can patch it up with. you could be a statesman. >> well, that could happen. >> and if -- >> that is not going to happen. >> and i think that newt gingrich would be a good guy on the ticket. >> we, it is then "island of the misfit toys." >> and he would be the modern day alternative to dick cheney. >> oh, no. >> and you have to focus on the competence issue, and you are focusing on newt's inable to get on the ticket in hi

to get out before alabama and mississippi and rick santorum wins alabama, mississippi, kansas, and missouri, who knows what will happen in hawaii. and say that happens, are we in a position to where we are talking about rick santorum as the nominee and mitt romney as the vice president? how do you reassure? how do you reassure party elites and the centrist mass of americans that you know what, actu actually, you are not just the man on dog guy, and you are not the guy who can't be googled or the guy who lost by 18 points for being a social conservative that they took mr. charisma bob casey over you and you will have the competent vice president financial guy with and the guy you can patch it up with. you could be a statsmaesman. >> well, that could happen. >> and if -- >> that is not going to happen. >> and i think that newt gingrich would be a good guy on the ticket. >> we, it is then "island of the misfit toys." >> and he would be the modern day alternative to dick cheney. >> oh, no. >> and you have to focus on the competence issue, and you are focusing on newt's inable to get on the tick

to get out before alabama and mississippi and rick santorum wins alabama, mississippi, kansas, and missouri, who knows what will happen in hawaii. and say that happens, are we in a position to where we are talking about rick santorum as the nominee and mitt romney as the vice president? how do you reassure? how do you reassure party elites and the centrist mass of americans that you know what, actually, you are not just the man on dog guy, and you are not the guy who can't be googled or the guy who lost by 18 points for being a social conservative that they took mr. charisma bob casey over you and you will have the competent vice president financial guy with and the guy you can patch it up with. you could be a statesman. >> well, that could happen. >> and if -- >> and i think that newt gingrich would be a good guy on the ticket. >> we, it is then "island of the misfit toys." >> and he would be the modern day alternative to dick cheney. >> oh, no. >> and you have to focus on the competence issue, and you are focusing on newt's inable to get on the ticket in his own state, virginia. and failu

to get out before alabama and mississippi and rick santorum wins alabama, mississippi, kansas, and missouri, who knows what will happen in hawaii. and say that happens, are we in a position to where we are talking about rick santorum as the nominee and mitt romney as the vice president? how do you reassure? how do you reassure party elites and the centrist mass of americans that you know what, actually, you are not just the man on dog guy, and you are not the guy who can't be googled or the guy who lost by 18 points for being a social conservative that they took mr. charisma bob casey over you and you will have the competence behind you and the competent vice president financial guy with and the guy you can patch it up with. you could be a statesman. >> he's on the short list. absolutely. >> that is not going to happen. >> and i think that newt gingrich would be a good guy on the ticket. >> we, it is then "island of the misfit toys." >> and he would be the modern day alternative to dick cheney. >> oh, no. >> and you have to focus on the competence issue, and you are focusing on newt's inabi

. >> reporter: conservative voters in the heart land handing a victory to rick santorum in kansas. ntorum easily winning saturday's caucuses there and taking a shot at romney. >> we are not electing a ceo we are electing a commander and chief. >> reporter: the latest numbers show he has 51% of the vote. romney came in second with 21%. gingrich with 14% and ron paul with 13%. santorum's rivals skipping kansas instead focusing on tuesday's primary states. mitt romney taking up victory in wise. romney not getting much traction in the southern states at all. rivals saying romney has a southern charisma problem. never dining on a popular dish of grit. >> i'm learning to say y'all. and i like frits and things are strange things are happening to me. >> unlike one of my competitors i have had grits before. if you don't understand grits it's like lily you don't understand the rest of the south. >> reporter: after primary and caucuses mitt romney holds a commanding lead in delegates. he has more delegates than all three of his rivals combined. >>> our election coverage continues on ktvu.com j

. >> rick santorum is mi victory in kansas.epublican republican hopeful picked up some 33 delegates in saturday's gop caucuses. today's caucuses were held in kansas and wyoming and the virgin islands. mitt romney is the projected winner in wyoming. he leads the overall race for delegates with 442. santorum has 213 followed by newt gingrich with 107. ron paul has 46. 1,144 delegates are needed to win the republican nomination. reports tonight, the wins today come just ahead of an important contest in alabama and another one in mississippi. >> rick santorum delivered the news to a pumped up crowd in missouri. >> we are going to win kansas and the vast majority of delegates in kansas. >> kansas vote favored santorum where mitt romney and newt gingrich did not campaign. >> i'm voting for rick santorum. i like his stance on social issues. >> romney had a good day. the associated press is reporting he won the wyoming caucuses. gingrich spent saturday barn storming in alabama. the former house speaker signed autographs and asked for s

kansas republicans hold their caucus today. we're a few days from some key primaries that could shake up the race again. santorum is ahead in kansas. romney picked up delegates overnight. >> reporter: while all of us were sleeping, mitt romney picked up another 18 delegates. he'll probably add nine more today. he won well in guam and the mariana islands. 40 delegates in kansas. polls show that kansas will be santorum territory. all this leading up to tuesday. to what have become a couple of big races. mississippi and alabama. who would have thought those two races could have a big impact on the republican race. they will. >> and romney knew this would be a tough round for him coming up on tuesday. any states he's likely to pick up at all? >> reporter: he was not expected to do well in mississippi or alabama. he's looking like he has a chance in alabama. and, of course, newt gingrich said he would go through the southern states and win. some question as to if he can survive if he doesn't win. romney could pick up a southern state, that could change this. it will be a big day on tuesday. >> a lot of people wonderi

rick santorum today won the kansas caucuses beating mitt romney by 30%. ntorum was expected to do well in kansas because it's also a giant square. >> all right, everybody. top of the hour, 6:00 on the east coast, good morning. it is monday, march 12th, and we've lost an hour. wake up, wake up, wake up. with us onset, msnbc contributor mike barnicle. you're back. i haven't seen you in a while. >> i haven't been here in a while. >> okay. that makes sense. msnbc political analyst and visiting professor at nyu, former democratic congressman harold ford jr. and former chief strategist to the mccain/palin campaign, steve schmitt. we'll talk about the movie coming up. and in washington, chief foreign affairs correspondent and host of "andrea mitchell reports," andrea mitchell. very important day to have you on, as well. thank you for coming onboard early. we've got a lot to talk about. we're going to look at the races obviously, politics over the weekend. we saw santorum win kansas, romney take wyoming and some of the territories and we're looking ahead to tuesda

rick santorum won in kansas, while mitt romney took wyoming. as brian mooar reports, the next significant test comes this tuesday. >> reporter: rick santorum notched another victory and he is making the case, he is the conservative choice. >> and we have to have candidates. a candidate, a nominee. who can get up and and draw a clear contrast. with the president of the united states. >> reporter: rick santorum, newt gingrich and ron paul, the saturday caucuses in kansas and wyoming were another chance to play delegate catch-up, but the contest this next week in alabama and mississippi are about survival. gingrich has to win one or both to keep moving forward. >> it's a big deal. we win alabama and mississippi next tuesday, by next wednesday, this totally wild race will be reset one more time and we will be on the way. >> morning, y'all. >> reporter: for mitt romney, a strong showing in the south is critical to show conservatives he can win. >> this president has not succeeded. he has failed and that's the reason we're going to get rid of him in 2

santorum is expected to win kansas. does winning kansas equal any momentum? >> i think it helps santorum. it certainly doesn't hurt him. i think he can use the delegates assuming he wins kansas which we expect. this is about expectations and we expect rick santorum to win kansas, so he will. i know my colleagues and i are looking forward to the contest later this week in alabama that will give us a better idea of who is in the presidential game and if we are getting down to two final candidates really, in these next couple of weeks. >> let's move on to the gop holding his own.itt romney in alabama he's in second place trailing newt gingrich by just one point, look at that. 21% to 20%. and then the latest poll in mississippi, and romney is trailing by four points at 35% to 31%. we keep hearing, erin, about the south not being romney territory. do you think this is the romney camp lowering expectations or do you think his competitors are being overly optimistic? >> i think it's both, and you pointed to two polls, but there have been a number of polls out in alab

mitt romney and rick santorum went toe to toe again today, battling for delegates. this time in republican caucuses in kansas and wyoming. and once again, the results point to a long and uneven road to the nomination. tonight, nbc news declares santorum the winner by a comfortable 30%. and romney is the projected winner in wyoming and he won contests today in guam and the other u.s. territories. while this is increasingly being seen as a two-man race, newt gingrich is counting on some big primaries this coming week in his native south to propel him back into the hunt. that's where we start tonight. nbc's ron mott reports from alabama. >> but we have had a very, very good day. >> reporter: before tuesday's big southern primaries in mississippi and alabama, rick santorum got another run through his victory speech after winning kansas today. >> things have an amazing way of working out. >> reporter: as he returns south, santorum is set to challenge newt gingrich on what the former speaker hopes is his home turf. looking for a surge of his own to bring a bit of zip back to his campaign as the pace of the race be

santorum was not here. ron paul was the only candidate in kansas today. but rick santorum campaigning in missouri. we have him talking about his win here in kansas. take a listen. >> a great win. awesome win. feeling great. >> reporter: you know what, don, quick and to the point. >> short and sweet. >> a win is a win. a win is a win heading into tuesday. you know what, he -- a lot of people are wondering how well he will do in mississippi and alabama. but he pulled it out here in kansas today. >> we talked about social issues. can you drill down on that? what issues specifically seem to dominate in kansas? it had to be the economy as well. everyone is cornncerned about that. >> reporter: everyone is concerned about the economy and a lot of people at this conservative caucus want to oust president obama. that's their number one concern. but social issues. people feel like rick santorum speaks with passion when he talks about the issues that he cares about. obviously these are things that he has been drilling down now on for years now. we know his position against gay marriage. we know he is against