Romney courts 'voices of conservatism'

MINNEAPOLIS -- Republican hopeful Mitt Romney said Sunday he was counting on the "voices of conservatism" and a non-binding caucus in Maine to propel him to within fighting distance of frontrunner Sen. John McCain, who has opened a double-digit lead in polls before Tuesday's pivotal votes.

Speaking on ABC's This Week, Romney said his win in Maine "shocked" McCain, who had been endorsed by the state's senators, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, both widely viewed as moderate Republicans. The results showed Republicans were "staying in the house that Reagan built," Romney said.

Romney reiterated a litany of McCain positions he says are out of the mainstream of their party, including votes against drilling for oil in the Arctic preserve and President Bush's tax cuts and for campaign finance bills and "amnesty" for illegal immigrants.

Asked about the McCain campaign accusations that he has changed positions on issues such as a 50-cents-a-gallon gas tax that Romney now rails against at campaign stops, the former Massachusetts governor rejected what have now become familiar charges of flip-slopping.

"They have stretched, twisted and completely walked away from the truth," Romney said.

Romney is scheduled to travel Sunday to an event in suburban Chicago, attend a Super Bowl kickoff party in St. Louis and then fly on to spend the night in Nashville.

"I expect to win some. I expect to lose some," Romney told reporters Saturday on his campaign plane as he flew to Minneapolis from Salt Lake City, where he attended the funeral of Mormon leader Gordon Hinckley. "I don't think it's going to be over as of Tuesday night. … I intend to keep on battling."

Romney said that since losing last week's Florida primary and after an often raucous debate in California in which McCain forcefully accused Romney of favoring a timetable for troop withdrawals from Iraq, his campaign saw a surge in contributions. In one day this week, Romney raised $374,000 online. A week ago, he said, a typical one-day take would have been $50,000.

The candidate credited the "coalescing of conservatives and mainstream Republicans" in the last two days as "a very significant development" that could yet reshape the race.

While McCain has racked up endorsements from governors and other high-profile Republicans on a wholesale basis since his Florida victory, the conservative commentariat of radio and TV have rallied to Romney. Long-time fan Rush Limbaugh was joined this week by Fox News personality Sean Hannity and right-leaning radio talkers Laura Ingraham and Lars Larson. Conservative commentator Ann Coulter went so far this week to say that if McCain, who has angered conservatives with his stands on immigration, taxes and other issues, were the GOP nominee, she would vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton.

" I don't think you can buy as much advertising" as radio talk show hosts have provided for free, he said.

"There's an increasing recognition that this is a race between two very different philosophies for the Republican Party and for the country," Romney said. "That will augur more and more to my benefit. I don't think my party wants to take a dramatic departure from the house that Reagan built as that which Sen. McCain would represent."

Romney expressed confidence that the deepening housing meltdown and nascent recession will trump McCain's advantage on nationalsecurity. "The resolution of Iraq will become more clear in people's minds but the lack of resolution in the economy will become more of a concern,"he said.

The candidate spoke hours after attending the funeral of Gordon Hinckley, president of the Mormon Church. The gathering of church faithful took Romney off the campaign trail at a critical time and rekindled the issue of whether a Mormon could win the White House. Polls show many evangelicals uneasy about voting for a Mormon.

Romney, who gave a speech about faith in December to defuse the issue, said he didn't think his religion was an issue anymore.

"People are settled one way or another," he said, adding with a smile, "Most people have moved on to my other weaknesses."