Romney Wins GOP Michigan Primary
If the trends continue, Mitt Romney will win the Michigan primary tonight by about eight points over John McCain, with Mike Huckabee a distant third.
This obviously revitalizes the Romney campaign and deals a blow to McCain. All three now face a key test this Saturday in South Carolina, with the loser facing real trouble from there on out.
The other big winner tonight may be Rudy Giuliani, who sees McCain's momentum derailed -- an outcome he needs in order to do well when he finally makes his premiere in Florida on 1/29.
What's keeping Romney's campaign alive is that of Huckabee, McCain, and himself, he is the most acceptable to the party establishment -- which really doesn't like the other two. He also benefits from increasing concerns about the economy because of his corporate experience.
But his problem is that ultimately, he has the biggest negatives of any candidate in the race. The more voters see of him, the less they like him (which may not hurt him that much as the primary race moves from wholesale to retail but will hurt in a general). Most of his GOP rivals can't stand him. Do Republicans really want to nominate a candidate with these liabilities?