The same author was on Morning Joe this morning. Here is a link to the article [link:http://nymag.com/news/features/gop-primary-heilemann-2012-3/index6.html|
http://nymag.com/news/features/gop-primary-heilemann-2012-3/index6.html

But if it’s Santorum who is the standard-bearer and then he suffers an epic loss, a different analogy will be apt: Goldwater in 1964. (And, given the degree of the challenges Santorum would face in attracting female voters, epic it might well be.) As Kearns Goodwin points out, the rejection of the Arizona senator’s ideology and policies led the GOP to turn back in 1968 to Nixon, “a much more moderate figure, despite the incredible corruption of his time in office.” For Republicans after 2012, a similar repudiation of the populist, culture-warrior coalition that is fueling Santorum’s surge would open the door to the many talented party leaders—Daniels, Christie, Bush, Ryan, Bobby Jindal—waiting in the wings for 2016, each offering the possibility of refashioning the GOP into a serious and forward-thinking enterprise.

Only the most mindless of ideologues reject the truism that America would be best served by the presence of two credible governing parties instead of the situation that currently obtains. A Santorum nomination would be seen by many liberals as a scary and retrograde proposition. And no doubt it would make for a wild ride, with enough talk of Satan, abortifacients, and sweater vests to drive any sane man bonkers. But in the long run, it might do a world of good, compelling Republicans to return to their senses—and forge ahead into the 21st century. Which is why all people of common sense and goodwill might consider, in the days ahead, adopting a slogan that may strike them as odd, perverse, or even demented: Go, Rick, go.

I tend to agree with this analysis. A Santorum defeat might allow the saner members of the GOP to come out of hiding. A Romney defeat will push the GOP further to the right on the basis that like McCain, Romney was simply not conservative enough to defeat President Obama

Back in the 2000s he was talked about as a real presidential contender. There is no reason to believe Daniels, Christie, Jeb, Ryan, Jindal or magic other when exposed to the national spot light won't show the cracks of radical right thinking. Of the names on the list all of them have radical right wing ideological beliefs that aren't hard to find. You have to have moderates in office to have a moderate run. The past 20 years of GOP politics has run most from the party. Most moderate conservatives are Democrats these days. There is no Nixon in the wings waiting unless maybe they find a military candidate like Colin Powell.

.....than a Republican military heavyweight running for POTUS.

Even one that lies and makes shit up does well....look at West.

that is the only thing they can do. Conservatives are religious zealots
reality can not be allowed to influence their beliefs.

Ray Gun's trickle down economic voodoo has been proven to be a steaming pile of bullshit,
and they still believe.

The only response they can have to defeat is to believe that the messenger was flawed.
That the message was pure and good and that the only problem was that it was not instituted correctly.

The problem can never be that they stand for the institutional right of the rich to control everything.

The fact that they are anti-democratic at their base is the problem.

That is why they are working to replace our constitution with rule by their authoritarian elite.

The SCOTUS is working that way as are ALEC and the Billionaires financing the Klown Krash Kar primary race.

The thought that "right thinking talented party leaders like 'Daniels, Christie, Bush, Ryan, Bobby Jindal'" are trying to
"refashioning the GOP into a serious and forward-thinking enterprise" is ludicrous.

They exist solely to perpetuate the hierarchal power and authority of the economic royals
and impede any democratic influence on their agenda.

Though I can see the logic of it, there's little historical evidence for it. After Goldwater's loss in '64, Reagan became the leader of the GOP extreme rigt wing. Now look at the next 16 years. In 1968, Reagan ended up being Nixon's most serious challenger for the nomination -- and Nixon himself was more right-wing than any of the other GOP contenders that year. 8 years later, Reagan nearly succeeded in denying a sitting president renomination for the first time in almost 100 years. Then, 4 years later, he was president. Similarly, George H.W. Bush was a classic GOP Establishment figure; after he lost (handily) in 1992, the GOP went on to nominate...classic GOP Establishment figure Bob Dole. Then in 2000, in spite of Dole's loss, W. ended up taking the nomination without much of a fight -- in large part because he had, from the get-go, the support of every classic GOP Establishment figure out there.

Running, panicked, away from an election loss is not a GOP thing; that's what we Democrats do (it's how we ended up with the freaking DLC, after all). The GOP digs in and doubles down, for better or worse.

Nixon's politics spawned the Buchanan's and Cheney's of the political party. Cheney went a long way to shaping the modern Republican party. Goldwater Republicans are mostly gone from the party. His daughter and Miller's daughter are now openly Democratic. So I agree. It is not all so clear Goldwater was the scary right winger and Nixon the moderate.

I will sit quietly and think about what you just said.

1. Cut Taxes

2. Bomb troublesome countries.

and

3. When in political turmoil, move farther right.

for the next year. Blah

They'll need to retrench and find a charismatic nutcase instead of the strange nutcases involved in this election.

if nominated, the Repuke bloodbath will make all that has gone before seem like a debutante cotillion. The only hope for a return of the moderates to the Repig party is a brutal pier-six stompdown of FrothyMix by the POTUS. Losing 40 states might wake a few people up, but I wouldn't bet anything substantial on it.