A political tip sheet for the rest of us

WASHINGTON — A political tip sheet for the rest of us outside the Washington Beltway, Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012:

DAY'S DEVELOPMENTS:

— RIDING THE WAVE: California. Washington. Ohio. Michigan. All are on Rick Santorum's itinerary this weekend, as he looks for money to keep his powerful breakthrough fueled through an upcoming string of races. Santorum will be sticking to his strategy of campaigning in states with high delegate yield and a strong conservative base. He's skipping Maine, for example, to look ahead to Michigan and Arizona, as well as the 10-state Super Tuesday contests coming up March 6. The day after his three-state sweep on Tuesday, his aides fanned out to build campaign organizations from scratch in key states.

—GINGRICH: In his only public appearance the day after his drubbing in Colorado and Minnesota, Newt Gingrich said nothing about his standing in the Republican presidential race or his rivals for the nomination and made only a passing reference to President Barack Obama. Gingrich changed the subject to foreign affairs and issued a dire warning about Iran's potential nuclear capabilities. He told a Cleveland audience the U.S. could pay a terrible price if Iran develops nuclear weapons and said that's why it's important to have the strongest possible national security. "This is not science fiction," he said.

—WHITE HOUSE-ROMNEY: White House spokesman Jay Carney called Mitt Romney an "odd messenger" for attacks on Obama over an administration mandate requiring church-affiliated employers, such as hospitals or charities, to include birth control in the health care coverage offered employees. The rule has caused an election-year furor for Obama. Romney has accused the president of an "assault on religion." Gingrich and Rick Santorum have criticized the rule, too. But Carney singled out Romney. He said a virtually identical policy exists in Massachusetts, where Romney was governor, and that it was ironic for Romney to criticize Obama over it.

— MAINE-LY ROMNEY AND PAUL: Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are the favorites in Maine. No wonder: They're the only ones who have campaigned in the state. Republicans have been caucusing there since last Saturday, with results to be announced this Saturday. At stake are 24 delegates. Romney plans a last-minute visit at the end of the week to try to avoid a fourth loss after Tuesday's shellacking by former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri. Paul, the libertarian-leaning Texas congressman, is looking for his first win.

DELEGATE TRACKER: