New pecking order in GOP field

Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa

Suddenly facing two serious rivals, GOP front- runner Mitt Romney declared Monday his business background sets him apart in the presidential race and dismissed the buzz over emerging challengers as “the political winds of the day.” Rick Perry insisted no one could go “toe to toe” with him, and rising star Michele Bachmann tried to turn her Iowa straw-poll victory into gains against both men.

In less than a week, the slow-to-begin race for the Republican nomination has accelerated and undergone a dramatic shift, essentially becoming a three-way contest for the chance to challenge President Barack Obama next year.

Romney, who has been riding high for months while other Republicans have been struggling to emerge from the pack, now finds himself facing two significant foes in Perry, the Texas governor who formally entered the race only Saturday, and Bachmann, the Minnesota congresswoman who won the Iowa straw poll that same day.

“It’s a wide-open race,” Gov. Terry Branstad declared after a five-day stretch that saw every Republican presidential candidate show up in his state, where party caucuses kick off the GOP nomination fight next winter. While Perry entered the nomination battle, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, exited, further reshuffling the deck.