Take out all the sniping over legislation they both supported and for which they both actively campaigned and the difference between Pawlenty and Bachmann (the winner of the straw poll) is that he exudes the much discussed "Minnesota niceness" she dismisses. That the result was Bachmann walking away with the victory laurel while her fellow Minnesotan finished a distant third to her and Perry bodes ill for both the Republican nomination and American politics. Romney's the only potential nominee left in the field who's not openly antagnostic and hostile toward anyone who doesn't share the far right conservative agenda--which is the sole reason, and a big one, why he can't already claim the nomination outright. If I had any faith in the Democratic Party whatsoever I'd be over the Moon right now; the only candidate who cuts Obamas lead to double digits has the least intraparty support, so Republicans will nominate either:

1) someone the rest of the nation can't stand or

2) (more likely) the only candidate who cuts Obamas poll lead to single digits, hoping the partys antipathy toward him doesn't make election day turnout too anemic.

All this amid reports that 2008s "Hope and Change" candidate is pinning his re-election "hope" on an unrestrained media assault against Romneys "weirdness". Basically, we're seeing a very extreme form of a longstanding phenomenon in US politics: The best and only argument either party offers voters is how awful the other one is. The public doesn't dispute that, but it's increasingly impatient for a legitimate alternative; in many ways, Obamas 2008 victory was more about that than either partys platform, and his failure to deliver on his promises is a much bigger threat to his re-election than Romney or any Republican could ever be. The significance of that dynamic far outweighs what would normally be major gaffes (e.g. Romney citation of S&P raising MA bond ratings while he was governor without mentioning that it was because of the very tax hikes he says were unnecessary to the debt ceiling deal; talking up your record of tax raises is a poor way to pursue the GOP nomination. )