Gingrich, Paul woo Santorum's conservative supporters

With Rick Santorum's departure from the Republican race, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul wasted no time in appealing to the conservative ranks of his supporters in a bid to stop what now looks like Mitt Romney's seemingly unstoppable march to the party's presidential nomination.

Nevermind all the nasty things they said about Santorum, who, now that he's out of the race, is a really good guy. Really. 

"Rick has waged a remarkable campaign," Gingrich said in a statement posted on his website after Santorum announced Tuesday he was suspending his campaign.

"His success is a testament to his tenacity and the power of conservative principles."

Ginrich also vowed he was "committed to staying in this race all the way to Tampa so that the conservative movement has a real choice."

"I humbly ask senator Santorum's supporters to visit Newt.org to review my conservative record and join us as we bring these values to Tampa. We know well that only a conservative can protect life, defend the Constitution, restore jobs and growth and return to a balanced budget."

Not to be outdone, the Ron Paul campaign issued its own appeal to Santorum supporters, notwithstanding the fact that Paul once called Santorum a "fake" to his face during a debate over the candidates' fiscal conservative credentials.

"Dr. Paul is now the last - and real - conservative alternative to Mitt Romney," the statement said.

Carry on, gang.

By: Andrew Davidson
Senior Producer, CBCNews.ca