Romney campaign creates oppo-banner for Santorum, the front-runner’s latest threat

Mitt Romney seems to be finally paying attention to Rick Santorum, since the former Pennsylvania senator staged a three-state election sweep Tuesday. The Romney camp has designed a Santorum-specific banner graphic, (seen above), that will grace future anti-Santorum news releases issued from the campaign press shop.

The image reinforces Romney's line of attack against Santorum, highlighting Santorum's support of earmarks during his tenure in Congress and the lobbyist work he did after leaving public life in 2007.

Historically, Romney's team has created these banners only when a candidate becomes a threat: First it was Rick Perry, who the campaign branded as a "Career Politician."Newt Gingrich received the honor, too, with an image of him sharing a loveseat with then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi next to the words "Unreliable Leader."

Santorum should be flattered. The move suggests that, in the eyes of Romney's campaign, he's the new insurgent candidate to beat.

See the Perry and Gingrich banners after the jump:

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