Click here to listen to "Plays for the Presidency" on Sirius-XM, POTUS Channel 124.

With Sen. Rick Santorum’s sweep of primary contests in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri this week, the 2012 GOP plays for the presidency took a new turn. The stunning wins placed Santorum as a head-to-head competitor to Mitt Romney and a viable alternative to the all-but-dead Newt Gingrich.

The consequence, in playmaker’s parlance, is that the former Pennsylvania Senator can now draft the leader instead of crowd him. Here's how it might play out:

def. CROWD (i.e., JOIN IN). The attempt by a player to match or adopt another player’s position or to affiliate with a trend, idea or issue.

• Sports: The Jamaican bobsled team – just wanting some cool runs in 1988 Winter Olympics.
• Business: Kenwood ramping up iPod aftermarket accessories – happy to get a bite of Apple’s exploding new market.
• Entertainment: ABC’s copycat launch of the period drama Pan Am – all to get a piece of AMC’s Mad Men fan base.
• IPOs: LinkedIn, Zynga and Groupon – each going for a Wall Street brass ring.
• Politics: Amb. Jon Huntsman throwing his hat in the GOP POTUS ring – wanting more limelight than leadership.

def. DRAFT (i.e., FOLLOW, FEED-OFF, THEN PASS). The attempt by a player to feed off the energy of a developing marketplace, innovation or best practice with the intent of overtaking incumbent leaders.

• Sports: Dale Jr. riding Jimmie Johnson’s bumper – saving gas, looking to pass.
• Business: Steve Jobs stalking the MP3 market – plotting a music revolution.
• Entertainment: Simon Cowell pushing his The X Factor sing-off – hoping to out-do his old American Idol friends.
• IPOs: Facebook learning, studying, preparing for its public offering – aching to set a new Internet stock price high.
• Politics: Rick Santorum coming from behind – sapping and stealing Mitt Romney of his inevitability credibility.

So what does a rival do when it’s being Drafted? Standard guidance offers some clues. For Romney, it’s a game of hindering or countering the drafter:

• If a trailing opponent seems well behaved, run a Pause, and watch them carefully. Enjoy the company because their presence builds legitimacy for your efforts and leadership.
• If your trailing opponent tries to overtake you (a) run a Bait on the rival's credibility, (b) Recast your message to test their ability to start a new parade, or (c) Pass on the initiative and let the trailer wither.
• Run the Crazy Ivan. They are following you: they don't expect you to suddenly turn and attack.

For Gingrich, it’s a game of helping or complementing the drafter. (Newt, after all, is going for a brokered convention; so best he help Santorum break Romney’s delegate grip…for a while):

• Recast the leader as having good ideas, but paint it as unable to follow through and meet the market’s needs.
• Label the drafter, your new partner, an underdog. And let the market cheer them on.
• By way of a Screen, point to other drafters who passed their opponents and became leaders (e.g., Obama on Hillary)
• Run a Preempt to build a competitive hedge.  Position your ally as the only player able to feed off and pass the leader.

Post by Alan Kelly
Photo credits: www.totalfilm.com and www.racintoday.com