LOS ANGELES - Meg Whitman, Carly Fiorina and Linda McMahon had a lot in common. All sharp, successful businesswomen who made millions as executives in the private sector, they identified 2010 as an apt historical moment for a Republican candidate with no political experience to break into politics. In pursuit of higher office, each committed considerable resources - more than $200 million combined - to challenge seemingly vulnerable Democrats. Each risk taker came up far short of her goal. Whitman, the 54-year-old former chief executive of eBay, burned through more than $140 million of her own money in a colossal...