Conservative activists are looking to South Carolina as their last chance to stop former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney from getting the Republican presidential nomination. However, tea party supporters and social conservatives are at odds over who to support, according to
The Washington Post.
Some 150 evangelical leaders will meet in Texas Friday to figure out their next move and tea party activists are holding a convention weekend in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
“We’re aware that the vote is being split and how dangerous that is,” Joe Dugan, a supporter of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and an organizer of the weekend tea party event, told the Post. “We’re trying to encourage coalescing around one candidate, but tea party people are very independent minded.”
The Rev. Jim Garlow, who is part of the Texas meeting, called Romney “untrustworthy.”
“I’m not in panic mode, at least not yet,” he told the Post. “There’s still time, although the fuse is short.”
Social conservatives continue to have concerns about Romney’s Mormon faith and his past support for abortion rights, while tea party members worry about his background in finance that has recently come under attack from his GOP opponents.
Gary Bauer, a Santorum supporter, told the Post that “the longer that there are multiple candidates, the easier it will be for any front-runner, and that’s certainly the case for Romney.”
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