On the campaign trail, February 2012

March 3, 2012

The following is the fourth in a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2012 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after a brief mention of some of the month's biggest stories.

In this month's edition on the campaign trail, the holds a primary in Missouri, Wikinews interviews a lesser-known Republican candidate focused on the  in Iran, and a Democratic candidate disputes a "one-dimensional" label.

Summary
In February 2012, three well-known figures announced third party runs. Comedienne announced she would seek the 's presidential nomination. Former Congressman opened a Constitution Party campaign. And former Louisiana Buddy Roemer proclaimed he would seek the Reform Party presidential nomination in addition to. Mitt Romney won the endorsement of businessman, and was victorious in the February 4. Three days later, Rick Santorum gained momentum with a sweep of three non-binding contests in, , and. Though Romney gained a victory in the, Santorum's momentum pushed him ahead. He led the polls in Romney's former homestate of Michigan, shot to first place in national opinion polls, and won the endorsement of former Senator and current Ohio, who retracted his support for Romney. Talk increased of someone else entering the GOP race if Romney lost Michigan.

Santorum's rise and the administration's new contraceptive mandate brought social issues to the forefront of the GOP race. The role of church and state gained prominence as Santorum remarked that hearing President 's 1960 speech on separation of two, "makes him throw up". After a poor performance in the month's final GOP debate, Santorum began to fall in the Michigan polls. However, members of the Democratic Party planned to vote for Santorum in the open primary, and Santorum ran robo-calls to Democrats asking for their support. In the end, Romney won in both Michigan and Arizona.

, who largely skipped Michigan and Arizona, focused early on the states, which hold their primaries in the first week of March. Ron Paul continued his run as well following a close second place finish in Maine. At the end of the month, rumors spread of a Paul-Romney alliance after an analysis of previous debates showed that Paul never attacked Romney directly, and after Paul's son Senator of Kentucky said "it would be an honor to be considered" as Romney's running mate. A spokesman for Ron Paul's campaign denied the rumors.

Missouri Libertarian Party primary results
In Missouri, the held its first primary of the 2012 election cycle. Parliamentary advocate James Ogle, the only candidate listed on the ballot, edged "uncommitted" 52.7 percent to 47.3 percent to win the majority of votes. This was something a Libertarian candidate could not accomplish during the 2008 primary, when "uncommitted" won a plurality. Ogle has operated and promoted a fantasy government project based on the of voting since 1993. It is known as the USA Parliament. Ogle believes his username for the project &mdash; Joogle, a combination of his surname and first and middle initials &mdash; served as a basis for the name of the search engine ; for his campaign, he uses the slogan "Go Ogle".

To appear on the Missouri ballot, Ogle paid a filing fee of $1000. He was the only Libertarian candidate to do so. Ogle thinks this happened because he is "accessible" in comparison to his opponents, "perhaps the other candidates couldn't be reached, and since there was about a 48 hour deadline to file the papers, they either didn't want to spend the $30 on overnight postage, they simply didn't know or else they didn't want to file." Other candidates for the Libertarian Party nomination, who missed the ballot, include former New Mexico, former air traffic controller , and activist.

Just before the primary, an article in the Missourian newspaper chronicled Ogle's campaign. He believes this contributed to his victory. In the story, he "was able to explain about ranked choice voting, the Libertarian's philosophy of the non initiation of force, smaller government and more liberty." In addition, the report mentioned Ogle's desire to be the running mate of Green Party presidential candidate Roseanne Barr.

According to Ogle: "the combination of all these events, somehow could have prompted more to ask for the Libertarian ballot when they went to the voting booth."

The non-binding primary is the only contest the Libertarian Party will hold before its nominating convention in May. California is also to hold a primary, but it is scheduled after the nomination. Ogle is to appear on the California ballot.

Republican focuses on Iran
Republican presidential candidate Hugh Cort, a psychiatrist and President of the non-profit American Foundation for Counter-Terrorism Policy and Research, describes his campaign's status as "wait-and-see". In December, he participated in the Republican Party's lesser-known candidates forum, and was included on the ballot. He received a total of three votes.

Nevertheless, Cort's main area of concern is the in Iran, which garnered significant press in February. Iran, which claims it is enriching uranium for peaceful purposes, blocked International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors from monitoring a site suspected of containing nuclear weapons research. Increasing western sanctions against the country have resulted in threats from the government that it will cut off oil exports to Europe and/or close the strategic. This talk has affected the price of crude oil. Commentators have suggested that war is looming. Cort, who has written a book entitled The American Hiroshima: Iran’s Plan for a Nuclear Attack on the United States, which he gave to Mitt Romney, believes Iran already has a nuclear weapon and that an attack on the United States is "very likely to happen in the very near future." He tells Wikinews that if "Iran does detonate some nuclear bombs in American cities, I would consider continuing my run for President, under the assumption that perhaps America would like to elect someone who knows something about counter-terrorism."

How should the president address the nuclear situation in Iran?
 * Hugh Cort: The President should say that America will help Israel to take out Iran’s nuclear sites. He should also prepare America for the possibility that Iran may have nuclear bombs already here, giving instructions on how to cope if a nuclear bomb should go off.  Although some would say not to take out Iran’s nuclear sites for fear of retaliation from Iran, if we let Iran get nuclear weapons, they will then make much more devastating nuclear bombs, such as plutonium bombs with a 5 Megaton yield (350 times the size of a ).  With the bombs that Iran may already have now, they could damage America, but America would survive.  If they are allowed to make the bigger bombs (for example 100 Megaton bombs) they would destroy America.  Remember, Iran’s leaders have a suicide bomber’s mentality—they do not fear death.  In fact,  has said the role of Iran is to be a martyr, in order to bring about the destruction of America and Israel which will usher in the coming of his messiah, the "12th Imam", or "".  The leaders of Iran are religious fanatics who will not listen to reason.

How did Mitt Romney react when you handed him your book?
 * Hugh Cort: I did not personally give my book to Mitt Romney—a friend of mine in Florida did. She said he took it seriously, as have two  of Alabama, several Senators, and many others.  When I met in the  in the White House compound with the Senior Director for Counter-Terrorism of the, Nick Rasmussen, he took our research very seriously.

Which of the presidential candidates is best equipped to handle the Iran situation?
 * Hugh Cort: I believe the Presidential candidate best able to handle the Iran situation, other than myself, is Newt Gingrich, closely followed by Rick Santorum, closely followed by Mitt Romney. All three would do a much better job than Obama.  Ron Paul, unfortunately, although he is good on the economy, is a dismal failure in foreign policy and is totally naïve on the very grave threat of the Iran situation.

More than one-dimensional?
Democratic presidential candidate is best known as an anti-abortion advocate. However, he says he is not the "one-dimensional" character portrayed in the press. He tells Wikinews that in addition to his activism, he has experience in theology, foreign policy, and music. Terry finished second in the in February and ranks above all primary challengers to President Barack Obama. He received some media attention this month for attempting to run  in Chicago that showed aborted fetuses. A (FCC) ruling prevented him from showing the ads since he is not on the Illinois Democratic primary ballot. However, after the Super Bowl, Terry was able to target the ads in Oklahoma. He will be on that state's ballot, and federal law requires stations to show paid advertisements for "legally qualified candidates".

After this and a February 22  report that conservative icon planned to speak at a Terry fundraiser, Wikinews caught up with Terry.

"I have obtained a one-dimensional personality in the news", says Terry, "I have a Masters in Diplomacy and International Terrorism from ...I have a BA in Theology. A BA in Communications from the SUNY []. A daily TV show seen in 44 markets. [And] I have lectured at the Vatican."

He mentions that he authored two papers on Islamic terrorism, which are accessible from his campaign website. These are titled, "How do the words and deeds of Islamic terrorists, or Muslims who call for acts of terror and violence, emulate the words and deeds of Muhammad?" and "Is Islamic Shaira [sic] Law Incompatible With International Laws of Human Rights for Freedom of Thought, Conscience, Religion and Expression?"

Terry adds, "I used to be an accomplished musician." His songs "I'm Cryin for you Baby", "I Do", "Te Deum", "United We Stand", and "Let Those Cookies Burn" can be heard on his website.