Mitt Romney courts South Carolina veterans

Reporting from Conway, S.C. -- — Showing confidence in his strong position in New Hampshire, Mitt Romney wrapped up a swing through South Carolina on Friday morning – making strong appeals to the state’s substantial bloc of veterans to join his effort as he campaigned with John McCain, a former Navy pilot and prisoner of war, at his side.

A new poll released Friday shows Mitt Romney surging into the lead in South Carolina, where he finished fourth behind McCain in 2008. Despite that finish, McCain argued that South Carolina voters were consolidating behind Romney, noting that as recently as a few weeks ago no one would have predicted that the former Massachusetts governor would win the Iowa caucus – albeit by a slim margin.

“We’ve got some wind in our backs now my friends,” McCain told an audience of several hundred people at a restored peanut warehouse in South Carolina on Friday morning.

“I’d like to give you a little straight talk. He’s going to do well in New Hampshire. Not as well as the polls – it’s going to close up some – but he’s going to win in New Hampshire,” said McCain. “It’s going to come down, my friends, as it always does, to South Carolina. It’s going to be the same thing – whoever gets out their vote is going to win, and we’re not taking a single vote for granted.”

Among likely Republican voters in South Carolina, Romney leads with 37% support, according to a new Time/CNN poll. Rick Santorum has 19% support – up from 4% last month -- followed by Newt Gingrich, whose 43% support from last month has withered to 18%.

Romney, who continued his relentless critique of President Obama’s “crony capitalism” during events in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, is headed back to New Hampshire for a spaghetti dinner where he will be joined by conservative South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who the campaign is relying on to boost their fortunes in the Palmetto State.

On Sunday night, Romney will appear at a rally with two key backers, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, whose endorsement offered a lift to his campaign earlier this year.

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