Last Non-Romney Standing?

So it appears I was right.

Well, partly right anyhow. Now that Newt Gingrich has flamed out, another non-governor in the person of Rick Santorum has stepped up to take his place. Of course, I wasn't entirely right. I failed to foresee the rise of Ron Paul who, although not a governor either, appeals to a somewhat different group thant he Republican core constituency.

My point was that, with the exception of Rick Perry, none the Republican front runners had been governors, because all successful governors will ultimately have the same problem as Mitt Romney -- they will all have compromised on ideological purity for the sake of successful governing. (The alternative, of course, is to be rigidly steadfast in ideological purity and hopeless at governing, but that tends to make you unpopular and therefore a poor candidate).

Like everyone else, I am confident that Rick Santorum can't possibly be the nominee. Speaking out against contraception will disqualify him on Planet Sane. And suggesting that growing inequality might be a problem will disqualify him on Planet Republican.

So Santorum will fall. And Paul will fail to rally the Republican base, even if he rallies his own base. So that just might leave Huntsman as the last non-Romney standing. Of course, he has the disadvantage of being a governor, and therefore dealing in reality. But hey, I can dream, can't I?