St. Petersburg, Fla.

Tony DiMatteo, a state Republican party committeeman from Pinellas County, introduces to a packed house at the Tick Tock restaurant a number of local GOP activists here to support Newt Gingrich. Included are a few who worked early for Marco Rubio’s 2010 U.S. Senate campaign, back when, DiMatteo points out, Rubio “could not win.”

“Just like Newt could not win a couple of weeks ago,” he adds.