I honestly don’t have much faith that Romney won’t be the nominee at this point, but if I had to pick a candidate to choose as his main opponent, I think it would have to be Newt. That’s coming from a long-standing Rick Santorum fan.
I was excited after Rick’s 2nd-place finish in Iowa because I thought he’d be able to capitalize on it. Seeing him in action yesterday evening got us such gems as “Iran is America’s #1 problem” and an attempt to criticize Willard Romney the open socialist for being...a business leader?
I’m sorry, but that just won’t cut it. I still think Rick is easily the most pro-life, pro-family candidate of the lot, but I have to concede that Newt is a much better communicator. What good is having a better product if you can’t sell it?
If I had to guess, Herman Cain will probably put forward an endorsement proposal related to his group, the 9-9-9 plan, or both. Maybe he’ll try to get people to join his new splinter group by promising to endorse whoever the members choose.
I see it this way:
If Romney wins SC, it’s over and he is the nominee.
If he loses SC, it’ll be a horse race.......
Like you, I have little faith he can be beaten right now, because I had invested my hopes in SC and FL, where Newt could have taken a commanding lead and the big mojo. It looks as if Santorum has taken enough from Newt’s hyde to make a Romney win in SC likely. I am still hoping someone beats Mitt there, but I now believe he will win SC, too.
Remember, Graham and DeMint have yet to make endorsements, and they both like Romney. I would not be surprised to see them endorse him publicly together in SC right after Mitt wins NH.