So the “Super” results of yesterday on were on the low side of what the polls were predicting for Romney. I’m surpised, because I thought the polls were showing a Santorum collapse.
Romney barely averted what would have been an energizing win for Santorum in Ohio. But even the narrowness of Rick’s defeat was a bit surprising to the experts and is being spun as evidence of Santorum’s toughness and Romney’s inability “to close the deal.” No momentum for Romney (or maybe for anyone else) is the message.
Romney still picked up a majority of the delegates and still seems about impossible to stop.
But the Santorum swoon is probably over.
Romney did very poorly in the South. It takes a moment to figure that out only because Santorum and Gingrich almost exactly split the anti-Romney vote.
Not only did Gingrich win a huge victory in Georgia, but he did well in OK and TN. So he has every reason to stay in and probably win Mississippi and Alabama next week. The Newt is “Freddie” thesis of Jim Ceaser has to be taken seriously.
Overall: Pete is right. There’s no really viable alternative to Romney. But that doesn’t mean Santorum and Gingrich will necessarily stop having plenty of moments. And who knows when or if Romney will start getting 40+% of the vote in competitive states. The longing for a non-Romney remains the strongest Republican passion.
Santorum gave a good, maybe excessively personal, speech, and Romney managed to say nothing at all. Newt was all about the epic that is Newt.
