Political pundits during this election year have often returned to a favorite topic: the impending demise of the Tea Party.

The National Journal in February headlined an article, “Failed Candidates and Faded Icons Reflect Tea Party decline.” That same month The New York Times claimed that the influence of the Tea Party is waning.

On television, MSNBC displayed the banner “weak tea” on screen as a studio desk full of experts debated whether the Tea Party’s influence is waning. Meanwhile ABC News’ website asked if the Tea Party is “over”?

A little more than three years after the Tea Party exploded onto the political stage and less than two years after the movement helped Republicans manage the largest turnover in the U.S. House in more than 70 years, even former GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich said on CNN that the Tea Party doesn’t have “the passion they had in 2010.”

But Tuesday’s Tea Party-engineered ouster of moderate Sen. Richard Lugar in Indiana, one of the longest-serving members of the Senate, proves that the movement still has plenty of muscle, which candidates this fall would be foolish to ignore. … COMPLETE STORY >>

Read Edward Lee Pitts’ complete Web Extra report.

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney added to his big lead in the race for convention delegates Tuesday by sweeping Republican presidential primaries in North Carolina, Indiana, and West Virginia, inching closer to the number of delegates needed to clinch the GOP nomination.

Romney won at least 60 delegates Tuesday, with 35 still undecided. Romney has a commanding lead in the race for delegates with 916. He is 228 delegates shy of the 1,144 he needs to clinch the nomination — a gap he could close by the end of the month.

The only other Republican still in the race, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, has 99 delegates. Paul won at least five delegates Tuesday, all in North Carolina

Romney won all 27 delegates at stake in Indiana and at least 33 of the 52 delegates up for grabs in North Carolina. Voters also went to the polls in West Virginia, with 28 delegates at stake, but delegate results were not expected on election night.

West Virginia elects individual delegates directly on the ballot. Each delegate is listed on the ballot — three in each of the three congressional districts and 19 statewide — along with the presidential candidate they support. With 112 candidates running for the 19 statewide spots, results were expected to be late.

North Carolina awarded delegates in direct proportion to the statewide vote, and Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich were on the ballot even though both have dropped out of the race. Santorum won at least four delegates and Gingrich won at least three.

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar has lost to a Tea Party-backed challenger in Indiana’s Republican primary, ending a storied political career that spanned nearly four decades.

Tea Party-backed state Treasurer Richard Mourdock won the Republican nomination Tuesday. He spent much of the campaign portraying Lugar as too moderate for the conservative state.

Mourdock will face Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Donnelly in November.

The 80-year-old Lugar had never faced a primary challenge in his Senate career and was slow to respond to attacks from conservatives unhappy with his voting record and longevity in Washington. Outside groups poured millions into the race and attacked Lugar on his record and whether he was legally registered to vote in Indiana because he did not maintain a home there.

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

By PHILIP ELLIOTT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former presidential hopeful Rick Santorum urged his supporters to back fellow Republican Mitt Romney’s campaign Monday in a late-night email that ignored that Santorum once called Romney the “worst Republican in the country” during their bitter contest.

Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania and a newly minted celebrity among conservatives, said that the one-time rivals would unite to deny President Barack Obama’s re-election. But in a nod that the wounds had not yet healed, he reminded his supporters of the deep differences between the two and that misgivings had not yet abated.

“The primary campaign certainly made it clear that Gov. Romney and I have some differences. But there are many significant areas in which we agree,” Santorum wrote, citing common ground in economic, social and foreign policy.

He added: “Above all else, we both agree that President Obama must be defeated. The task will not be easy. It will require all hands on deck if our nominee is to be victorious. Gov. Romney will be that nominee and he has my endorsement and support to win this the most critical election of our lifetime.”

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Newt Gingrich’s long goodbye from the presidential race became formal Wednesday, one week after he lost five contests by an average of more than 48 points and nearly one year after announcing his bid for the White House.

It was indeed a long goodbye: Staffers and even Gingrich himself leaked word of the planned formal suspension last week, and Gingrich even released a pre-withdrawal farewell video on Tuesday.

At the formal, formal withdrawal in Virginia on Wednesday, Gingrich stressed that “suspending the campaign does not mean suspending citizenship.” This suggests Gingrich will have a difficult time fully leaving the political stage during this campaign season.

And he did not give a full-throated endorsement of Mitt Romney.

“I’m asked sometimes, ‘Is Mitt Romney conservative?’” Gingrich said. “And my answer is simple: Compared to Barack Obama? This is not a choice between Mitt Romney and Ronald Reagan. This is a choice between Mitt Romney and the most radical leftist president in history.” … COMPLETE STORY >>

Read Edward Lee Pitts’ complete Web Extra report.

In his surprise address in Afghanistan marking the one-year anniversary of Osama bin Laden’s death, President Barack Obama on Tuesday night spoke about a transition of power that will see the final withdrawal of U.S. combat troops there by 2014.

The president outlined an agreement he signed with Afghan President Hamid Karzai that will put American forces in counter-terrorism and training roles with the Afghan military. He promised not to build permanent bases in the country and talked about seeing “the light of a new day on the horizon” in Afghanistan.

“Our goal is to destroy al-Qaeda, and we are on a path to do exactly that,” Obama said staring directly at the camera while being flanked by two imposing military vehicles.

But what Obama didn’t do was look in the camera and ask, “What path would Mitt Romney have taken?”

He didn’t have to do that because an Obama campaign ad released Friday starring former President Bill Clinton already had asked that question.

The charges and countercharges over the politicization of the anniversary of bin Laden’s death had been flying around even before Obama used the power of his office to make a surprise visit to Afghanistan to address the nation from there. The developments show that nothing likely will be sacred during this election battle. … COMPLETE STORY >>

Read Edward Lee Pitts’ complete Web Extra report.

By PHILIP ELLIOTT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rick Santorum wants to ensure the GOP’s policy platform represents conservatives’ interests. Newt Gingrich wants help retiring his campaign debt and repairing his reputation.

Both Republicans are expected to endorse their former rival Mitt Romney – and signal to their backers to fall in line behind the party’s presumptive nominee – but each wants assurances that Romney will deliver for them. Neither is rushing toward the task.

Meanwhile, it doesn’t appear that Rep. Ron Paul of Texas is going to go that way. Paul is still in the race and hasn’t yet recognized Romney as the party’s nominee. The tea party favorite and former Libertarian presidential nominee seems unlikely to endorse given deep differences with Romney on economic and foreign policy issues.

Romney plans to meet Santorum on Friday and Gingrich plans to endorse him this week, an end-of-primary dance that happens every four years once the party settles on a nominee.

Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, quit the race April 10 but has stopped short of publicly embracing Romney as the GOP’s standard bearer after a bitter primary season that featured Santorum calling Romney “the worst Republican in the country” to run against Obama.

Not long after, Santorum was telling CNN’s Piers Morgan about Romney, “It’s very clear that he’s going to be the Republican nominee and I’m going to be for the Republican nominee and we’re going to do everything we can to defeat Barack Obama.” Morgan could not goad him into a proper endorsement.

Gingrich all but bowed out last week, saying: “It’s clear Romney is the nominee and the focus should be on defeating Obama. We should not focus on defeating ourselves.”

He plans to officially end his campaign in the coming days and endorse Romney.

Romney, for his part, has been working to bring the party together after a bruising primary season, and nods from Santorum and Gingrich could help mend those wounds. Both Santorum and Gingrich have fervent followings among conservatives who make up the base of the party and who generally view Romney skeptically because of his positions on a host of issues.

Romney has changed his position on bedrock issues such as abortion and gay rights. He supported the 2008 Wall Street bailout that angered conservatives and paved the way for the rise of the tea party. And he signed a healthcare overhaul as governor that provided the groundwork for Democrats’ national law that requires all Americans to buy insurance or face a fine. Romney’s healthcare overhaul in Massachusetts required healthcare coverage.

That’s the primary issue Santorum plans to discuss Friday when he meets privately with Romney.

“We want to make sure he doesn’t replace it with any kind of mandate,” Santorum adviser Hogan Gidley said. He added, “Rick just wants to have a candid, open conversation about making sure the folks in the 11 states that voted for him, and the conservative movement, have a voice in the Romney campaign.”

Advisers caution that an endorsement – or a public appearance for that matter – is unlikely to immediately follow Santorum’s private meeting with Romney.

For Santorum, there are political considerations if he is to keep the door open to a future presidential run. He has tremendous sway among conservatives, and is mindful of his personal political brand. Embracing a candidate whom some conservatives don’t trust could backfire in the long run because many of Santorum’s supporters voted for him in hopes of preventing Romney from winning.

So, people close to Santorum said, he wants assurances from Romney that the party’s platform would represent conservatives’ interests, and that Romney would govern as a conservative.

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

UPDATE: By PHILIP ELLIOTT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two advisers to Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich say he will formally end is campaign next Tuesday and will likely endorse Mitt Romney.

Gingrich had pinned his hopes on a surprise showing in Delaware but fell short.

He had been hinting in recent days that his campaign was nearing an end. His decision to officially shut down the effort comes as Romney has a lock on the GOP nomination.

Gingrich’s advisers spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the situation.

UPDATE: CRAMERTON, N.C. (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich is all but conceding that his White House campaign is over.

He said Wednesday that he expects Mitt Romney will be the GOP nominee and called on the party to unite behind the former Massachusetts governor.

Gingrich did not formally withdraw from the race but said he is now campaigning as a “citizen.” He did not explain what he meant.

Gingrich spoke at a civic club in suburban Charlotte, N.C., the morning after Romney swept primary contests in five states.

OUR ORIGINAL REPORT: CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Newt Gingrich says he plans to finish a week of campaigning in North Carolina but acknowledges that he needs to look realistically at where it stands.

Gingrich spoke Tuesday night to about 100 supporters in Concord, N.C., as he learned that he was losing another handful of Republican presidential primaries. He promised that his campaign will do what is best to fight for conservative principles and beat President Barack Obama in November.

Gingrich trails Mitt Romney in convention delegates and fundraising, yet he has vowed for weeks to campaign until the party’s late-summer convention in Florida.

Gingrich is carrying more than $4.3 million in debt and has been spending more money than he is taking in.

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

UPDATE: Mitt Romney has completed a five-state sweep of Republican presidential primaries, adding a victory in New York to earlier wins in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware.

UPDATE: MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Armed with a fresh slate of primary victories, Mitt Romney is urging Americans to “hold on a little longer.”

The former Massachusetts governor told New Hampshire supporters that Tuesday marks the beginning of a new campaign focused solely on President Barack Obama. He accuses the Democratic president of “false promises and weak leadership.”

Romney spoke Tuesday night as he scored Republican primary victories in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware and Pennsylvania in the first contests since Rick Santorum suspended his campaign. New York was expected to follow.

Romney delivered his remarks to a national television audience from Manchester, N.H., where he won his first primary of the campaign. The state is also expected to be a battleground in the fall campaign for the White House.

UPDATE: Mitt Romney has added a win in Pennsylvania’s Republican presidential primary to GOP victories in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Delaware.

OUR EARLIER REPORT: WASHINGTON (AP) — Mitt Romney has added a win in Delaware’s Republican presidential primary to GOP victories in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The three are among a string of five state primaries being held Tuesday. The others are in New York and Pennsylvania.

The five primaries are the first since Rick Santorum suspended his presidential campaign two weeks ago — essentially conceding the GOP nomination to Romney.

Romney started the day with 698 delegates — about 400 short of the number he needs to formally gain the nomination this summer at the Republican National Convention. There are 209 delegates at stake in Tuesday’s five primaries.

Newt Gingrich had campaigned heavily in Delaware, hoping for a win there.

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

DAVID ESPO and KASIE HUNT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The suspense gone, Mitt Romney glided into five primaries on Tuesday as the Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting, piling up national convention delegates while commanding the spotlight to sharpen his appeal for the campaign against President Barack Obama.

Romney was readying a prime-time primary night speech titled “A Better America Begins Today,” to be delivered in New Hampshire, one of a dozen or so states expected to be battlegrounds in the fall.

There were 209 delegates at stake Tuesday in primaries in New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware, the first contests since former rival Rick Santorum conceded the Republican race to Romney.

Romney began the day with 698 delegates of the 1,144 needed for the nomination, compared with 260 for Santorum, 137 for Newt Gingrich and 75 for Ron Paul.

Santorum suspended his campaign two weeks ago rather than risk losing a primary in his home state of Pennsylvania.

Gingrich, too, seemed to be heading toward the sidelines, but first he wanted to see the outcome of the primary in Delaware, where he has campaigned in recent days and has pocketed a few endorsements. Jackie Cushman Gingrich, his daughter, said the former House speaker intended to reassess his debt-strapped candidacy on Wednesday.

The nomination in hand, Romney has begun focusing his attention on Obama in recent days, campaigning in key battleground states, appointing an aide to oversee his search for a vice presidential running mate and accelerating his fundraising for the fall.

On Monday, he offered support for Obama’s call for legislation to prevent an increase in the interest rate on some student loans. In a second move toward the middle, he said his campaign was reviewing legislation to let young illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. by their parents apply for non-immigrant visas.

Under a measure being drafted by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a potential ticket-mate for Romney, the immigrants affected by the legislation would be allowed to study or work in the United States but would not have a special path to citizenship.

At the same time, Romney is slowly accumulating the delegates to ratify his nomination at the party convention in Tampa, Fla., this summer.

He picked up 12 delegates at congressional district conventions over the weekend in Missouri, a state Santorum once planned to contest heavily in hopes of blocking Romney’s path to victory.

© 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.