Ron Paul's Team Insists it's a 'Two-Way Race' and Ignores Florida

The team behind Ron Paul downplayed the fact that Rick Santorum -- rather than their own candidate -- placed second behind Mitt Romney in Iowa. Paul placed third, some 3 percent behind the other two Republican presidential hopefuls.

The Ron Paul campaign is celebrating a great victory tonight, insisted Jesse Benton, Pauls campaign chairman. There were three tickets out of Iowa, and Ron Paul earned one of them.

One of the three tickets, the one belonging to Rick Santorum, is a dead-end due to Santorums weak fundraising and lack of national campaign organization, added Benton. This is now a two-way race between establishment candidate Mitt Romney and the candidate for real change, Ron Paul.

Ron Paul has a top-notch national organization, tremendous fundraising prowess, and unequaled enthusiasm among his volunteers and supporters, continued Benton. Dr. Paul has taken the first step toward earning the delegates it will take to be the GOP nominee and is the only candidate not named Mitt Romney with the ability to do so.

Ron Paul is now off to New Hampshire, South Carolina, Louisiana, Nevada, Maine, North Dakota, Washington, Colorado, and beyond, Benton said in conclusion. See you on the campaign trail.

Wait a moment. Theres a state missing here -- the one that holds its primary after South Carolina. Paul flopped badly in delegate-rich Florida back in 2008, taking less than 3.25 percent of the vote to finish a distant fifth place. Could the Paul team be planning on taking a pass on the Sunshine State in 2012?