Squeaker of a victory in hand, Romney looks to NH

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A squeaker of an Iowa victory in hand, Mitt Romney headed Wednesday into the New Hampshire primary - in his own political backyard - insisting that staying power sets him apart from runners-up Rick Santorum and Ron Paul and the rest of the GOP presidential field. He shrugged off the promise of sharper criticism from his rivals.

"I've got a big target on me now," Romney said, adding that doesn't faze him. "I've got broad shoulders. I'm willing to handle it."

The former Massachusetts governor was declared the winner of the leadoff presidential caucuses in the wee hours Wednesday by just eight votes, bringing down the curtain on an improbable first act in the campaign to pick a challenger to President Barack Obama in the fall.

Appearing hours after the caucuses had ended, Iowa GOP chairman Matt Strawn said Romney had 30,015 votes, to 30,007 for Santorum, whose late surge carried him to a near win.

Earlier, Romney added to his already-formidable national network by announcing the endorsement of Sen. John McCain, who twice won the New Hampshire primary and was the GOP presidential nominee in 2008.

In a sign of the acrimony ahead, Santorum said McCain's nod was to be expected, and jabbed at his rival. "John is a more moderate member of the Republican team, and I think he fits in with Mitt's view of the world," he said.

"Game on," declared Santorum, jaw set, after easily outdistancing several other contenders to emerge as Romney's unvarnished conservative rival for the primaries yet ahead.

Even before his victory was announced, Romney looked past his GOP rivals and took aim at Obama. "The gap between his promises four years ago and his performance is as great as anything I've ever seen in my life," he told supporters in Iowa's capital city.

On Wednesday, Romney portrayed himself as the best foil to Obama and said he had the national campaign team and ample fundraising needed to endure the march to the GOP convention this summer. "That's something I think other folks in this race are going to find a little more difficult to do," he predicted. Romney did interviews on all three network TV morning shows.