GIVEN TIME & OBAMA.

Santorum's wins in the caucuses in all three states of Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado do not constitute a surprise to many people, because the Republican Party is having a constipation with the choice of a viable candidate that will pass for a president.

Otherwise, party members will not bypass Romney, who is the front runner in the party's nomination race for them to vote for in the three states. They have just done so in Florida, and in New Hampshire before that, so why will they stop now? To be positively frank, none of the four candidates qualifies for the standard of being president.

The party's hierarchy has been struggling with the thought that the field of the remaining contestants in the nomination race, comprising of Santorum, Romney, Gingrich and Paul, has persons, who have a whole lot in common; and those were fundamental flaws that were inconsistent with what independent voters, particularly, would prefer in a candidate.

No matter how much money the party spent on the campaign, in addition to the expenditures of the candidates themselves, plus the slush funds coming from the numerous PACs (Political Action Committees) and private contributors, the Republican Party could not go it alone to face the Democratic Party, which has a solid candidate with no social or political smear of any type to talk about in the person of President Barack Obama.

Besides being a sitting president, Obama has proved beyond all reasonable doubt that he has the strongest moral character required in a leader. He was also pragmatic, as his policies have been consistent with the promises he has made in the 2008 presidential campaign, for example, that he would stop the Iraq War and would bring United States troops home.

Also that he would provide health care insurance to millions of people, who were without; and he did.

Now, let us go through the other candidates for the U.S. presidency in the 2012 general election.

Santorum, despite his winnings in Iowa and in the other three states, has only the support of the extreme right of his party, and therefore he was not a smart bet to gamble on, due to his tight or stringent ideological beliefs.

Meaning that the conservative support that he had would dissipate, as he really has no wiggle room of any kind beyond the ideologies that his party catered to, which he has so much endeared himself; like being anti-abortion and in the defence of traditional life style, that marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Something that a great majority of Americans agreed with, one might confess; but there was a wonder, whether independent voters would be attracted to him.

Romney has been found to be dishonest in his business deliberations, as he was indulging in "tax shelters and safe havens" more than anything else all over the world, to cease from paying his fair share in taxes to the U.S. Government.

In other words, over the years, he has been an obnoxious businessman, who has acquired his wealth through nefarious ways, and also by avoiding paying taxes just like everybody else.

He was too nervous to have answered a question in one of the debates on the campaign trail, when he blared out his wife's medical records in public. Everybody in the world now knew what his wife was suffering from; something so confidential that should be between only herself and her doctors.

That showed a great deal of nervousness and insecurity, as well as a weakness in a man, who would say anything, when he was cornered by the media. It also demonstrated a lack of wisdom and integrity. America did not need a nervous type to be president.

Gingrich, with his astute intellectual and academic background, has so much marital and other social cum political problems, which would disqualify him, even though among the rest of his colleagues, he was the true conservative. Party loyalists would gravitate toward him for that reason; yet, because of the bismal "baggage" that he had, he would never be the party's choice.

Also, he has been a Washington insider for many years, it would be impossible to keep his promise that he would change how things worked in that city. He was "Mr. Speaker" for a very long time; so, why didn't any changes take place during his tenure?

Paul was regarded as an ultra isolationist, who would make the U.S. into an "island", and would cut all International connections to prove the country's sovereignty and independence.

He couldn't care less, whether Iran would produce nuclear weapons or not; and so long as America was "safe" in terms of minding its own business, the rest of the world could go to blazes.

He believed in the old Barry Goldwater adage of "extremism is no vice in the defence of liberty." and so he would be at a disadvantage, and as much as a prime political fodder that Obama needed to win a second term pretty easily.

He, Paul, would come down like a deck of tower of playing cards in front of American voters; because besides his isolationism, his policies, particularly his foreign policy, would make more enemies for the country.

So, you see, the Republican Party was tied up internally to such a degree that it would be very difficult for it to present a completely acceptable candidate; for no one that they would choose would be an equal match in the eyes of the public for the president.

On the one hand, no one was saying that Obama was superior to any of the candidates in any sense of the word, when it came to the fact that they were all human beings; however, on the other hand, his flawless character, and the indelible mark of being able to keep his promises, such as bringing U.S. combat forces home to their families would be cherished by voters.

In addition to that, he was making tangible strides to bring an end to the conflict in Afghanistan; and that would be another feather in his cap; yet, he must be given time to accomplish that.

When all that was said and done, winning his second term bid would be assured. In fact, it would be a cinch, which his detractors have discovered would happen; an idea they were not at all happy about.

So, the question then is; who will be your choice?