Romney Skips Trail to Grieve Mormon Leader

GOP hopeful Mitt Romney ducked Super Tuesday stumping today to attend Mormon Church President Gordon Hinckley's funeral in Utah, but a Mitt aide still parried concerns about the hopeful's beliefs, Reuters reports. "The governor is proud of his faith,” he said. "After the funeral is over, we'll get back to the campaign trail." Meanwhile Mitt joined thousands to mourn Hinckley, who died last week at age 97, Deseret Morning News reports.

“Our father was adorable,” Hinckley's daughter said to listeners at the conference center for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “Disciplined and courageous, with an unbelievable capacity for work, he believed in growth.” Other church figures recalled Hinckley's optimism and easy demeanor during his nearly 13 years as president, when church membership swelled to 13 million in 160 countries, the AP reports. (More Mormon stories.)