The problem with this set of challengers is that none of them except Mitt Romney and Ron Paul built the organization that could take a campaign through March. Their failure to plan ahead and build a team that could do these things is why each of these candidates has shown himself to be a poor choice for president.
Newt Gingrich has had a national organization for over ten years. He has had supporters in every state. If he had gotten those supporters organized and gathered volunteers to begin the ballot access process in the spring, he'd be ready with a 50 state campaign. In the spring of last year, he was still in double digits in many polls. If he'd announced then and started raising money to pay a staff in almost every state, he'd be ready to be a 50 state contender.
Rick Perry came to the campaign late, but the initial burst of enthusiasm could have been used to put together an organization and do the things necessary to win a 50 state campaign. Instead, he seemed to bask in his good poll numbers and keep saying "Texas" in every sentence. The time that he lost then is time that can't be recovered. Maybe he got more enthusiasm from people who like to posture rather than roll up their sleeves and do the dirty work. In that case, I'm not surprised that he failed to put together the needed campaign.
Rick Santorum came with a disadvantage. He never had the money or the poll numbers to build a big organization in every state. He's the only candidate who really has an excuse. He'll have some ballot access problems, but if his people can do all of these things in February, he could still make this a race in March. He probably won't win many states, but with proportional allotment, he could win enough delegates to have a chance in April.
Jon Huntsman can't be entirely blamed for not putting together his organization. He was serving in China until late in the spring. Supposedly, he had a group of people putting together a formidable organization for him. I guess they weren't putting together such a great organization after all.
WFTR sez “The problem with this set of challengers is that none of them except Mitt Romney and Ron Paul built the organization that could take a campaign through March. Their failure to plan ahead and build a team that could do these things is why each of these candidates has shown himself to be a poor choice for president. “
This is a very astute political observation & whatever y’all think about Mittens & Ron , those two have the org. & $ & base of supporters to run a 50 State campaign , so most likely the choice for the Rep. nomination is Mittens or Paul , looking @ it form a nuts & bolts political reality & not who you may personally support or not