Staying abreast of every developing GOP-presidential-candidate nincompoopism has become an impossible task. It's torrential. It rains down upon us in buckets. We scoop, bail, and heave, but more comes -- more and more and more -- relentlessly, from morning through night, in newspapers, on cable TV, and in blogs like this one.
These candidates have no mercy, and we're reaching our limit.
The latest: Gov. Rick Perry, he of plunging poll numbers and skyrocketing electoral doubts, is thinking about skipping future debates. Now, it is axiomatic in politics that only two types of candidates are permitted to do so -- the Mitt Romneys and the Jon Huntsmans; the clear leaders (who don't care to open themselves to public blunders) and the hopelessly obscure (I repeat, Jon Huntsman). If you've any chance at all of overcoming the frontrunner, you debate. Period. This is axiomatic for excellent reason.
Steve Schmidt, John McCain's presidential campaign manager (yeah, I know, but Schmidt is nevertheless a real professional), had this to say of the non-debate non-option:
It’s like skipping the third quarter of a football game. It’s not practical. Plus it’s a stipulation he can’t make an argument and is unprepared on the issues.
Or, rather, a re-stipulation. Whatever.
At any rate, the larger point remains, How much more can we take? We've months more of this amateurish twaddle.