MANASSAS, Va., Jan. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Richard A. Viguerie, Chairman of ConservativeHQ.com, issued the following statement regarding the results of the Iowa Republican Caucus:

"The Republican establishment is in a major panic tonight.  The Iowa caucus results show the volatility of a campaign that appears to open the door to new candidates (from the right and the center) to enter the race--all but guaranteeing the race will be settled at the Republican National Convention.

"Mitt Romney's Nelson Rockefeller-like strategy of ignoring conservatives met its limits tonight.  After five years of campaigning, and spending tens of millions dollars, Romney is almost exactly where he was in 2008--at 25% of the vote.  Romney's failure to grow his base and close the deal with conservatives tonight will undoubtedly renew the establishment's search for a new candidate to replace the flagging Romney.

"Conservatives are likewise eyeing all of their options in the wake of the Iowa GOP presidential nominating caucuses, where some 75% of Republicans voted for a conservative alternative to the establishment's chosen candidate, but no one candidate was able to unify the conservative vote and put Romney away.

"No matter how Romney's establishment allies try to spin it, tonight's results show conservatives have strengthened their opposition to Mitt Romney's candidacy.  The fact that conservative candidates garnered three times as many votes as Mitt Romney did speaks volumes about how narrow and shallow Romney's support is and the likelihood that the nomination will not be settled until the GOP Convention in Tampa. 

"The vast majority of Republican primary voters want to vote for a principled, small government, constitutional conservative.  With 75% of the vote available, the door is now open to a new conservative standard bearer who can unite the party in the way Romney has failed to do."

NOTE TO EDITORS:  Richard A. Viguerie pioneered political direct mail and has been called "one of the creators of the modern conservative movement" (The Nation) and one of the "conservatives of the century"(Washington Times).  He is the author of Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause.

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PRESS RELEASE from Log Cabin Republicans
January 4, 2012 1:10 a.m.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 4, 2011 Contact: Christian Berle

(Washington, DC) - Log Cabin Republicans statement on the results of the Iowa caucuses, in which Governor Mitt Romney and Senator Rick Santorum essentially tied.

"While there is no clear winner in Iowa tonight, the long-term victory over Barack Obama will require a Republican who can unite and expand the Republican Party," said R. Clarke Cooper, Log Cabin Republicans Executive Director. "Of the candidates who participated in the Iowa caucuses, Governor Mitt Romney was one of the best on issues affecting LGBT Americans. By contrast, Senator Santorum rose by appealing to a uniquely socially conservative electorate. The divisive social issue politics which helped Santorum's campaign in Iowa will only hurt him in New Hampshire and beyond as voters learn more about his record. Winning the White House will require the politics of addition, not division. It is very early in what promises to be a long and drawn-out nomination process, and Log Cabin Republicans are confident that ultimately our party will select the candidate with the best chance to win the White House. Rick Santorum is not that candidate. As the nomination process moves forward, Log Cabin Republicans suggest all of the candidates reject Santorum's politics of division and win by focusing on the issues that matter most to Americans - jobs and the economy. If using gay and lesbian Americans as a wedge can't score enough political points to win more than 25 percent in Iowa, it certainly won't help the Republican nominee in November."