Rick Perry: What sort of coach plays the prevent defense when he’s down by three touchdowns? We’re not sure, but he is apparently running Rick Perry’s campaign and coaching his debate performances.
Perry’s debate performance last night was probably his worst yet. He failed to assert himself, despite the opportunities afforded by the format. He had a lot to prove, and all he proved is that it’s no fluke that Newt Gingrich is now beating him in a new poll out today.
This campaign is dying. Perry’s post-debate remark about the American Revolution taking place in the 16th Century was just icing on the funeral cake. It seems that many conservatives have moved on, and that Perry’s immigration position makes them feel like it’s no big loss.
Mitt Romney: Perry’s loss has been his gain. Not to say that he is literally picking up the same voters in the polls, but he has certainly enjoyed Perry’s fall and now commands the field.
Romney didn’t blow away the pack in the debate, but he easily did well enough to own it. His biggest boost came earlier in the day, though, when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie endorsed him.
Conservatives will never back Romney in a primary, but Christie’s backing means that some of them will feel less angst about him as the nominee. Romney continues to lead in New Hampshire. He is near the top in Iowa. Unlike 2008, he looks like he’s comfortable in his own skin – in fact, he’s downright polished. Amazingly, no one has squashed him over “ObamneyCare.”
Herman Cain: Perhaps we never gave him enough credit, but Cain’s sudden surge in support is still an oddity. The best explanation is that Cain is the least obnoxious and most conservative candidate who is not Mitt Romney. For that reason, he’s the natural choice for the 10-plus percent who first jumped ship from Michele Bachmann and then abandoned the soporific Rick Perry campaign. They were never going to Ron Paul and they would never consider Jon Huntsman.
Cain’s defense of his 9-9-9 plan last night helped him steal much of the limelight. But its supposed over-simplicity also drew attacks from the Right. His re-endorsement of TARP probably didn’t do him any favors, but he had plenty of cover, since Romney endorsed it as well.
Ron Paul: His goal was to hijack as much of Cain’s new support as possible. To that end, he reminded everyone of Cain’s days as a Fed governor. It was a nice shot on ground where Paul was right. It’s also a boring issue that most voters don’t understand, aside from Paul die-hards.
The Field: The often prickly Rick Santorum and the joke-cracking Jon Huntsman round out the field. Newt Gingrich has convinced many prominent conservatives that he should be moderating all Republican debates. Michele “6-6-6” Bachmann proved for many that she should be excluded from them.
