At risk of sounding like a tin-foil wacko, it’s an even bet that the GOP-E does NOT want to win this election. They are either (1) happy with Obammunism (2) unwilling to tackle this economy that they think will continue tanking, so why get the blame, (3) uninterested in stopping the socialist slide, or (4) All of the above.
I think it's all internal. The GOP establishment wants to marginalize the 30-35% of the party that is demanding real changes. I believe the goal is to be so moderate/liberal that they gain the middle and left of center. If they can do this they don't need the right.
In retrospect it looks like this started almost immediately after the 2010 elections when they began down playing the role obamacare had and said it was all about financial concerns. We will see how this plays out. I know my wife and I are starting to believe we don't have a party to represent us, exactly what the Rats want.