02-28-2012 7:00 pm:

It was a smaller, more intimate crowd at Richard B. Russell Regional Airport in Rome, compared to the overflow crowd in Dalton earlier today. Still, these 150-200 folks have filled this general aviation hangar to capacity.

Fred Evans walked in carrying a sign that said, “Rome TEA Party.”

“Until about two or three days ago, I could have flipped a coin between (Rick) Santorum or (Newt) Gingrich.”

Now, Evans said, he’s a Gingrich man.

What swayed him?

“The whole contraception thing.”

Evans was referring to remarks by the former Pennsylvania senator lambasting birth control as “a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be.”

Gingrich, who admits he’s come back from the dead at least once in this campaign, appears to believe Santorum has outstayed his moment in the electoral sun.

Gingrich told the crowd at Russell Airport, “We’ve now been through Tim Pawlenty, Michelle Bachman, Donald Trump, Herman Cain the first time, Rick Perry, Herman Cain the second time, Rick Perry and now Rick Santorum who has a brief moment on the stage.”

Seeming to believe he had disposed of the Santorum question, Gingrich went on to attack President Obama on issues that ranged from energy policy to his recent apology for the burning of Korans by American troops in Afghanistan.

“Barack Obama is the weakest president we’ve seen in modern times,” Gingrich said. “The terrorists sense it and are bullying him.”

02-28-2012 1:30 pm:

I’m surprised at the size of the crowd here at the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center in Dalton. This will certainly warm Newt Gingrich’s heart. The room is packed with perhaps 400-500 people, some of them standing behind the press riser, hoping to catch a mere glimpse of their candidate.

Sandra Campbell says Gingrich represents hope.

"I am an American. I am a conservative and I am a Christian," she declared. "And I am voting for Newt Gingrich."

She heard what she wanted to hear, as Gingrich declared, “I believe in the Bible: Without vision, the people perish.”

Playing to evangelical Christians who make up 62-percent of the Georgia GOP, Gingrich also roundly lambasted President Barack Obama for apologizing to Afghan President Hamid Karzai after the accidental burning of Korans in that country by American troops.

“Mr. President, you owe Americans an apology for failing to defend America,” Gingrich declared. “This administration is pro-Islamic.”

That drew loud cheers from the conservative crowd.

I asked Sandra Campbell’s husband, Grant, about why he supports Gingrich over Rick Santorum, who has been charging hard at conservative evangelicals, often at the former House Speaker’s expense.

“I think Santorum is probably an excellent individual,” Campbell said. “But I think we’ve got to have somebody who’s got the experience and the know-how.”

Campbell acknowledged Gingrich’s four marriages, but said that was all in the past.

Linda King suggests Santorum may be overplaying his hand with evangelicals.

“Even though I agree with (Santorum’s) stands on the social issues and everything, I think it would present a problem because he’s coming across as too judgmental and dogmatic about things,” she said, pausing as a preacher led the rally in prayer. “I think we need somebody who brings it back more to the issues. I like a good social conservative stand, right now, we need to put that on a back burner.”

02-28-2012 8:30 am:  I already hate being on the bus.

I mean, I'm not a complainer, but if this is the way the media travels with a candidate, no wonder they're jaded, grouchy and stooped. This bus has less legroom than a clown car at the circus. The overhead is so small that I think I crushed my candy bar stuffing my lunchbox into the bin. It's stuffy. And the video screens above our cramped little seats show the opening frame of a movie whose title may never be known, ordering viewers to press "YES" to accept these terms before continuing.  I'm thinking about it.

I'm traveling with Newt Gingrich's campaign on a two-day stump through his home state of Georgia as he tries – some would say desperately – to prove he is still a factor in this race.

WSB political expert Bill Crane says Gingrich needs to score a major victory here, winning by at least ten points, if he's to succeed. Gingrich, whose campaign staff says he's always "leans to the right" is actually caught in the middle. To his right, Rick Santorum is bidding for the evangelicals in Georgia. More than 62-percent of Republicans in this state identify themselves as evangelical Christians and right now, Santorum seems to be their darling. On the other side (we'll go with "less right," because there's really no "left" in this crowd), Mitt Romney is pushing hard for the moderate GOP vote.

A recent InsiderAdvantage poll shows Gingrich in a statistical dead heat with Romney and Santorum.

We're headed to Dalton this morning, the first of three stops in a packed day of campaigning. This bus is less than half-full. Is that a sign of waning interest in Newt's bid for the White House?

I wish these seats were bigger.

WSB's Pete Combs is on the road with the Gingrich campaign as he travels through Georgia. Follow him on Twitter @reporterpete