It was a circus, one in which -- for long stretches -- the clowns took center stage

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http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,826887,00.html

04/11/2012
End of a Ludicrous Race

Wounded Romney Set to Take On Obama

By Sebastian Fischer in Washington

<snip>Not a Clue on Foreign Policy

It was a circus, one in which -- for long stretches -- the clowns took center stage. The candidates lost their way in an extended debate on abortion and contraception; climate change was anything for them except manmade; they threatened to unceremoniously throw millions of illegal immigrants out of the country; they competed for who could promise the lowest taxes and the deepest social welfare cuts; and they pledged to shut down government ministries. And when it came to foreign policy, they repeatedly showed that they didn't have a clue.

And now, after the Gettysburg speech, Mitt Romney is the last one left standing. The one-time moderate governor of Massachusetts has, however, moved far to the right of where he used to practice politics. Women's rights to bodily integrity when it comes to abortion? Mandated universal health insurance? Romney abandoned such positions long ago. He undertook much of the rightward shift on his own, believing that it would give him a better chance to defeat Obama in the fall. But he was also pushed to the right by Santorum. Where Santorum was extreme, Romney presented himself as even more extreme. It was a ludicrous race.

The absurd nature of many of the primary debates could, in the end, hurt Romney's chances as he takes on Obama. He has alienated several voting blocks in recent weeks, including women, Hispanics and independents. Obama currently holds significant leads among all those groups. The Washington Post recently advised him to show a bit of humanity and wrote ironically that the candidate's "difficulties would not be solved by handing out the pill at his rallies or by a balloon drop of inflated condoms at the Republican convention in Tampa."

Obama on the Attack

Obama's team, for their part, have closely watched the months-long battle for the Republican nomination, carefully collecting their ammunition.