No, it’s not true that the Establishment (such as it is) is responsible for the sorry state of the non-Romneys in the current Republican field. It’s not the Establishment’s fault that Jeb Bush, John Thune, Paul Ryan, Mitch Daniels, Chris Christie and others stayed out of it, while an ex-pizza salesman, a political crank, a congresswoman who served five years in the House, an eccentric former House speaker whose foibles proved too much for even his caucus, and a shrill and divisive hard-line culture warrior who lost his last race five years ago by a 17-point margin, decided that this was their moment to shine.

It is not the Establishment’s fault that two men with sound resumes and good records in office ran campaigns best described as moronic.