September 24, 2011 08:37 PM UTC

Republicans Still Ain't Got Nobody

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• by: Colorado Pols

Politico’s Juana Summers recaps a tough week on the GOP primary trail:

There was no election-ending gaffe or singularly disqualifying remark. But [Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s] second consecutive weak outing set off alarm bells on the right, where too many cringeworthy moments raised questions about Perry’s durability, his seriousness and ability to compete on a stage with Barack Obama. Worse, after a near-flawless August rollout fueled his rise in the polls and quieted critics who fretted about the quality of the GOP field, Perry’s nationally televised face-plant revived dormant talk-and hopes-about the possibility of new candidates entering the race… [Pols emphasis]

“A few weeks ago, the question was how far and how fast [Perry] would ascend; now, after his third debate, it’s how much he’ll drop,” Lowry wrote.”His weak performance will stoke more speculation about New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie possibly entering the race.”

The pile-on began before the Fox News/Google event finished-conservative commentator Ann Coulter tweeted “Governor Perry losing debate with his own tongue” in real time-and continued uninterrupted through Friday…

“People from Texas often say that, while they don’t dislike Perry, he’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer,” wrote Ross Kaminsky [in the American Spectator]. “With every debate, that criticism has been validated, with Thursday night the most egregious example of Perry’s intellect simply not being at the level of others on the stage.”

The latest word today is that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, after stating over and over that he would not run for President, may be reconsidering as the current field of GOP primary candidates fails to thrive–the Washington Post reports on continuing efforts by conservatives to persuade Christie to get in the presidential race while there is still time. Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking, says The Atlantic. And of course this is after Gov. Rick Perry’s relatively late entry into the GOP field last month, an entry acknowledged by all sides (except the current candidates, naturally) as a response to perceived weakness in the slate.

We said before that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney did well overall in Thursday’s debate, with the pointed exception of his extremely regrettable “there are a lot of reasons not to elect me” throwaway. But Romney’s decent outings in presidential debates seem to only be holding his place as the frontrunner nobody wants. For at least a few days, Jon Huntsman was going to be the better Romney than Romney. It seems like the more we see Huntsman saying reasonable, electable things on the trail, the farther back into single digits he drops. Perry was supposed to sink Romney, but as it turns out he can’t even make himself look good.

We don’t know anybody who will tell you that President Barack Obama is having an easy time right now, but there’s simply no Ronald Reagan to make the Jimmy Carter analogy work. Obama, after all the presumption of weakness and that “devastating” first midterm, is still in better shape than he’s given credit for basically anywhere in the media or public perception right now. Certainly if you compare his admittedly soft approval ratings to Congress, which is in downright (don’t take this the wrong way please) Arab Spring territory. But the best evidence of all is supplied by conservatives: the growing concern on the right, after seeing Perry in action a few times, that he will get cut to ribbons in a debate against Obama. At the end of the day, for all of Obama’s problems, voters are still going to have to choose someone on the 2012 ballot — and it’s still hard to see Obama losing a matchup with any of the current contenders.

So, when does this change the discussion, folks? When do we admit that reality, at least the range of currently foreseeable outcomes, isn’t conforming to the sturm and drang?

Because we think there’s a, you know, a bit of a disconnect emerging.