Post date: Aug 14, 2011 4:14:5 PM
The Republican field of candidates changes the morning after the Iowa straw poll, an early gauge of strength in the race to win the presidential nomination. Katharine Jackson reports.
USA-CAMPAIGN-REPUBLICAN UPDATE - Republican Tim Pawlenty exits the stage at the Iowa straw poll - the first big test of the Republican presidential campaign.
After a disappointing third place finish, Pawlenty announced on Sunday he is also exiting the 2012 presidential race.
Fresh from her first place win, Minnesota congresswoman and founder of the Tea Party caucus Michele Bachmann appears on Meet the Press - looking to keep up the momentum.
REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE MICHELE BACHMANN SAYING:
"I'm grateful that we won the straw poll but we see this as just the very first step in a very long race."
And as one opponent bows out, another jumps in - Texas governor Rick Perry - a staunch conservative with a record of job creation - announced his candidacy on Saturday.
Perry and Bachmann are both vying to become the alternative to nominal front-runner Mitt Romney in the fight to face President Barack Obama.
Both Perry and Bachmann are set to speak at a fundraising dinner Sunday in Bachmann's birthplace - Waterloo, Iowa.
Katharine Jackson, Reuters.