The remarkable thing about all of this is that reporters and pundits have assumed, as have I, that Thompson’s supporters were obvious Romney voters, but nearly two-thirds (at least in South Carolina) were apparently more interested in other candidates. That doesn’t just reflect Romney’s last-minute retreat from the state, but hints at a deeper resistance to Romney’s candidacy.

Daniel, I think the reasons for this are very much the same as the ones you gesture at in your comments here, namely, that Romney is perceived as pandering, opportunistic, and fraudulent and so not at the end of the day trustworthy whereas McCain, for all his faults on matters of policy, has given a lifetime of service to his country and his party. In my mind, that clip of Romney awkwardly fawning over the masses and saying “Who let the dogs out?” with those black teenagers really sums up all the reasons why he’s unelectable.