The inevitable nominee they all can’t stand

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http://www.salon.com/2011/11/14/the_inevitable_nominee_they_all_cant_stand/singleton/

Monday, Nov 14, 2011 7:17 AM 18:17:46 CST

The inevitable nominee they all can’t stand

What would it take for Mitt Romney to actually lose the GOP nomination?

By Steve Kornack

Once again, Mitt Romney met his Republican presidential rivals for a debate this weekend, and once again he sustained no apparent damage. It seemed like just the latest stop on the Romney Inevitability tour.

You know the idea: Rick Perry has self-destructed several times, Newt Gingrich is mainly interested in selling books and movies and will implode quickly if the press decides he’s actually a contender, there’s no way Republicans will let Herman Cain anywhere near their nomination, Michele Bachmann is too far out there for even Rush Limbaugh, and you can forget about Rick Santorum, Jon Huntsman and Ron Paul. Which pretty much leaves Romney as the last credible candidate standing. As NBC’s First Read put it last week:

After Herman Cain’s defiant news conference on Tuesday and after Rick Perry’s brain freeze at Wednesday night’s CNBC debate, Mitt Romney’s path to the GOP presidential nomination is now WIDE open. In fact, not since Bob Dole in 1996 has a candidate been such a clear front-runner right before the primaries and caucuses begin.