Depends on the fallout from that one debate. I think they are pretty good. Really it'll come down to Trump or Rubio. If the Republicans want ANY chance of winning, they go with Rubio, if they want to be a total joke they go with Trump.
No one really likes Rubio, he just seems more mentally stable and not bat **** crazy. Put Rubio up against even a candidate like Mittens and he is exposed as having the personality of a food heating lamp.
I would expect Carson, Fiorina, and Christie to step out either tonight or tomorrow barring a miracle. Maybe some of the minor candidates that we've all forgotten about already as well.
Why would Carson step out? He isn't even competing in New Hampshire. I'll be surprised if he steps out before South Carolina.
Usually candidates want to hang around for one more after getting smoked in Iowa, at one point Carson had really good numbers in South Carolina but they are gone. Honestly Carson shouldn't have even stuck around for New Hampshire, he was sunk after Iowa.
I think Christie had such a strong debate Saturday he will stay in through SC regardless of tonights results. Fiorina should absolutely drop after tonight. I would think Carson drops but I don't know what his money situation. Jeb has enough money that he will last til Super Tuesday no matter how bad he's doing.
Candidates hang around as long as they have money and hope. I think Carson still has money because he isn't wasting any of it on New Hampshire. His campaign people have kept talking about South Carolina as their firewall and think they can pull off what Newt did 7 or 8 years ago and win the state from behind. I don't think he stands a chance, but I think candidates can get delusional and hang on when they shouldn't. Christie only drops out if he finishes behind all the mainstreamers and if he has money issues. Bush isn't dropping out. He is convinced that he can outlast all of the other mainstream guys on the money side. Fiorina should definitely drop out. She's an awful candidate with no money that isn't registering. Jim Gilmore should drop out. Awful candidate, barely trying...not sure what he is even doing besides trolling on twitter about still being in the race. Kasich will drop out for sure if he has a flop tonight, but I don't think he will.
I think Carson is running either a vanity campaign or a crusading campaign. He looks terrible in debates and his debate performances are even worse than they were before. I think he is staying in because believes he is bringing a biblical message.
Christie's "strong debate" hurt Rubio by about a point and gained him 2 points to where he's sitting about 5% instead of 3%, I'd be willing to bet that when he flops again in this state the Republican party would put extreme pressure on him to drop out and stop hurting candidates that actually have a chance. They'll probably remind him that he is serving his last term as Governor of New Jersey and that he'll probably want a political career after that runs out.
You'd think Christie would be angling for AG if a Republican wins the White House. A little interesting that he'd go after Rubio so hard, but I'm sure he still thinks he has a shot (for some reason). Do you guys think it'll mean much if Kasich finishes ahead of Rubio?
I get the feeling the only reason that the below 5% crowd is still hanging around is the likelihood that the top 3 will do something monumentally stupid sometime before the convention. But when you consider all of the incredibly hateful, stupid and deceitful things they've all said to this point, there's almost no chance one of them can take a big enough hit to move Bush, Fiorina, Carson, or Kasich up high enough to stay...short of Trump, Cruz, and Rubio taking the same flight on a snowy night while trying to get to the next concert....I mean stump speech.
cruz and rubio are in 4th and 5th place in NH currently. this R race is more convoluted than you are giving it credit for.
and also trump has as many or more votes than cruz, rubio, christie, fiorina, carson, paul, santorum, and huckabee combined. this election year is going to be wonderful. lol
Why would you think this? AG is a lightning rod for partisan criticism and as such, basically a stepping stone to nowhere, poltically. Look back at the last 20+ years of AGs to see why. Second, it's kind of funny that people have bought onto Christie's scthick that he was some kind of Jack McCoy DA hardass. Nothing could be further from the truth. He was a north Jersey GOP local hack who was handed the USA appointment by GWB, as a favor for being a good campaign volunteer, with literally zero criminal experience prior. Tough prosecutor is a role he likes to play, but not one he ever really had for very long.
