Santorum moves ahead in Michigan  —  Rick Santorum's taken a large lead in Michigan's upcoming Republican primary.  He's at 39% to 24% for Mitt Romney, 12% for Ron Paul, and 11% for Newt Gingrich.  —  Santorum's rise is attributable to two major factors: his own personal popularity …

Santorum's Turn  —  At the moment Rick Santorum appears to be overtaking Newt Gingrich as the principal challenger to Mitt Romney.  Santorum has won more contests than Gingrich (who has won only one), has more delegates, and leads him in the polls.  In at least one poll, he also leads Romney.

Severe Conservative Syndrome  —  Mitt Romney has a gift for words — self-destructive words.  On Friday he did it again, telling the Conservative Political Action Conference that he was a “severely conservative governor.”  —  As Molly Ball of The Atlantic pointed out, Mr. Romney “described conservatism as if it were a disease.”

Santorum Surges to Tie Romney  —  Race takes another turn as Santorum gains 14 points since winning Feb. 7 GOP contests  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum are now statistically tied for the lead in Republican registered voters' preferences for the 2012 GOP nomination — 32% to 30%, respectively.

NJ Senate OKs gay marriage bill in milestone vote  —  TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey lawmakers gave their blessing to legalizing gay marriage for the first time Monday as the state Senate passed a bill that would allow nuptials for same-sex couples, despite Gov. Chris Christie's insistence that he will veto such legislation.