Are Republicans intent on committing electoral suicide in 2012?

The news that the ancient war horse Gingrich is about to leave the stable for one more go-round is almost laughable.

The Newt Gingrich of the early 1990s would have been a formidable candidate,a fresh face with a fresh idea called the Contract with America and Speaker of the House to boot.

But if a week is a long time in politics, then almost twenty years ago is pre-history.

Gingrich has slid down the scale alarmingly since then.

Where once he was innovative, interesting, intellectual, now he is an old man, covering up his romantic infidelities , on his third marriage and with nothing more to let loose with than the old bombast rekindled.

He has about as much chance of winning as Donald Trump --speaking of whom where has he disappeared too since bin Laden's death?

But Newt will suck up considerable oxygen in this race, especially as the field gets more crowded with relative unknowns and he is the best known face there.

You can already see him and Trump dominating debates just because they have the largest megaphones.

No wonder Iowa Republicans are rushing to New Jersey to try and convince Governor Chris Christie to run.

With Newt Gingrich all saddled up and Donald Trump getting ready to mount and Sarah Palin eyeing the campaign trail it could not get any better for Obama.