The media is already raving about what a successful debate it was tongiht for Romney. We have previously written how Romney needed to go on the offensive during these debates, but there was a point tonight where he went a little far in our estimation. On one point, Rick Santorum pleaded for the conversation to move away from bickering about whether or not Newt is a lobbyist or how rich Mitt Romney is. Newt then concurred with Santorum and even offered a “truce” with Romney over the back and forth attacks. This gave Romney a chance to elevate the conversation, but, instead Romney threw some accusations right back into the face of Newt asking for him to explain himself for prior accusations. I believe this was a sad moment for the Republican primary and the general conservative political state. Romney was not willing to change gears, and it is no doubt that his advisors have told him to put his boot on Newt’s neck and not let up. It was a good chance to get down to things that matter, yet Mitt decided to play dirty politics. It was a small and already overlooked moment, but one that echoes for those hungry for a cogent Republican field with substance and real talk.

The Romney camp is still reeling from the results in South Carolina, and they are going through their most tested period since the inception of their second presidential run. The painful responses that Romney gave regarding his tax returns that he finally released this morning (same day as State of Union is no coincidence) were uncomfortable to watch, and Mitt needs to rather listen to his advisors more or be quicker on his feet when faced with these problems in the future. Governor Romney has been taking heat from the opposition from his Bain Capital history, and it would benefit the governor greatly to keep owning this record and not shying away from being successful. It took him some time to incorporate this into his lexicon, and it is something he needs to continue to do moving forward. Also, Mitt took too long to go on the offensive. It took a whipping in South Carolina for Romney to realize that he is going to have to get his hands dirty, and hopefully it is not too late for him at this point.

First off, congratulations and thank you to all the candidates, from the front-runner Mitt Romney to those holding up the rear, like Michele Bachman, for putting their views out there and taking on the grueling task of running for President. You have to have a variety of skills and talents, along with very thick skin, to take on a Presidential campaign and the country is better off for them doing so. Tonight they get to see the fruits of what has been months and for some years of labor.

While Iowa is only a small piece of the election puzzle, it will be interesting if they choose the “right candidate.” What do we mean by that? Well, the right candidate by our definition is the one that has the best chance of competing with Barak Obama. Kimberly Strassel, in the Wall Street Journal today, has a column entitled Mr. Good Enough, that states that Mitt Romney is that choice. She grinds through the list of other candidates and where they fell short and how Romney has moved his way to the top of the heap. We agree with everything in the article with the exception that she appears to feel like Romney will win the Iowa Caucus. We are not so sure.

Iowa can afford to take a flyer since they are the first of many primaries, and they may want to express themselves and stray out of the mainstream thinking and make a different choice. The Santorum surge is an example of far they might stray from making a conventional pick. We hope they don’t, but picking up the papers today and seeing his face and name everywhere has us worried that they might.

Rick Santorum lost his last election battle in Pennsylvania, which was for a 3rd Senate term, back in 2006 by a margin of 59% to 41% according to Wikipedia, where we visited just to get a brief overview of his record. Reading through it was enough for us to be convinced that whatever you think about Rick Santorum, he is not the man to beat Barak Obama.

The only conventional wisdom that we are bought into tonight is that Ron Paul’s supporters will be out in droves moving their candidate into the top-tier. What happens to the rest is still an unknown and very much up for grabs, and we look forward to seeing what choices Iowa makes.

President Obama would love nothing more this holiday season than to receive the gift of being underestimated next fall. Many Republicans have been talking with hubris as if the Republicans are going to take Obama out in 2012. Although there are issues working against Obama such as high unemployment, he will still prove to be a strong candidate when he ramps his campaign up. His numbers have been creeping up lately, and he has a few things to hang his hat on. The troops are arriving home from Iraq, Osama bin Laden is dead, and America staved off another Depression. There is something to be said for these accomplishments, and he will let America know of this in due time. Also, Obama has never had problems raising money, and he will have plenty of financing lined up when the time comes. All of this amounts to one extremely formidable candidate for whoever the Republican nominee is. Put someone like Newt Gingrich or Michelle Bachmann up against the Obama machine and expect a probable pummeling come November of 2012. Much of the spotlight is on the Republicans and their variegated field this moment, but the media’s attention will soon turn once the nominee is selected. It would be prudent of the Republicans to keep in mind that picking the correct candidate is important, but that beating Obama is even more important.

It is crunch time in the Republican primary, and it will be interesting to see when candidates begin to drop out of the field which other candidate will pick up their followers. If Newt v Romney holds up let’s guess at where other candidate’s followers will decide to move to.

Michelle Bachmann- Romney. Although Bachmann has been critical of Romney in the past, Newt’s degrading remarks to Bachmann were noticeable and have been creating backlash amongst Bachmann and her camp.

Jon Huntsman- Romney. At times, Romney and Huntsman are indistinguishable and Romney is an easy switch for most supporters.

Ron Paul- Split. Paul’s supporters largely defy categorization, so it is hard to tell what any of them will do. Some can be counted on to vote for Obama. The hard line libertarians may decide to ride this one out and simply not vote since neither candidate fully encapsulates Libertarian ideals.

Rick Perry- Newt. Romney spent a lot of time hammering Perry and seemed to come off as arrogant as a result. Perry’s supporters haven’t forgotten this and will vote against Romney more so than they are voting for Mitt.

Rick Santorum- Newt. Santorum is a hard line conservative, and he and Newt have agreed on a lot of things during their times on stage debating. Newt and Santorum worked together in the 90’s and seem to have a cordial relationship, so Santorum’s few followers will more than likely back Newt.