[traderrob6]

He isn’t going to win and he’s siphoning Gingrich votes as is Santorum.

[txrangerette]

Seems like you try to have it both ways.

Perry is a nothing, a nobody, not going anywhere, polls very low...BUT HE’S HURTING NEWT, WHO IS THE GREATEST THING SINCE SLICED BREAD!

Have I calibrated that about right?

Santorum I can kind of see, but Perry?

Unless or until Perry takes off, that miniscule effect is not hurting Gingrich and if it is, something is wrong...with him, not with what Perry is doing.

Also, I am not a Gingrich voter who is siphoned off to Perry.

[napscoordinator]

That is insane talk. Santorum has beat Newt in two out of two states and you say that he is taking from Newt. Your wrong!! Newt takes from Santorum. Newt should drop out today. Who has more delegates? Problem solves and truth uncovered.

[Quicksilver]

No, no, no, you're all upside down and backwards! Newt is siphoning off votes from the others! If he'd only get a clue he'd dropout and endorse somebody. The notion that any candidate should dropout to help another is silly and doesn't help just one other candidate.

Where did Cain's votes go? Where did Bachmann's votes go? Where did Newt's votes in SC go? (Newt had a huge lead in SC in mid-Nov through early-Dec, his votes appear to have gone to Paul, Romney, and Santorum) The answer: they scattered to the other candidates and to the undecideds; they did not all land in one spot. In a two candidate race if one withdraws does the remaining candidate get all of the withdrawing candidate's supporters? Nope. It's not cut and dried.

There are many good reasons for a candidate to decide to withdraw, money and health chief among them; dropping out to help or hurt another candidate is silly at best.

The best way for any candidate to gain support is to persuade voters to come to them.