This year’s Republican primaries look increasingly less like a battle and more like a mopping-up action after the fight.  The dominant fact of the 2012 GOP contest is the complete absence of plausible alternatives to Mitt Romney.  When those plausible alternatives either failed to show up (Mitch Daniels, Chris Christie—though Christie’s manner is probably too thuggish to achieve genuine plausibility) or showed up and turned instantly implausible (Rick Perry), the contest was over even before it began. Ron Paul? Jon Huntsman? Rick Santorum? Newt? Compared to the rest of the field, Romney looks like a giant—which is why the turnout in tonight’s primary and last week’s caucuses was altogether underwhelming.

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