Ala. Hopeful Launches Long-Shot Bid for 2012

Dale Peterson, a tough-talking, rifle-toting Republican from Shelby County, Ala., launched a write-in campaign for president during the recent Conservative Political Action Conference, the Press Register reported Monday.

He said the other GOP hopefuls are “the same old repackaged retreads, with the same tired message.” He lambasted former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and other Republican stalwarts.

At CPAC, Peterson’s cowboy hats with “write-in Dale Peterson” written on them were a popular giveaway. In fact, ABC News named his hats one of the top giveaways at the conference.

While Peterson received only 1 percent in the CPAC straw poll, he’s not discouraged. He has formed his own "527" fundraising group, and said the Republicans have a “slim shot” at winning the presidency if they don’t change the dynamics.

Peterson ran unsuccessfully for Alabama agriculture commissioner last year and made a splash with Internet ads that showed him in his signature cowboy hat.