So, not so much with that Florida strategy then, eh?

So Giuliani is out? There's a shock. (Link: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/01/29/politics/p190007S38.DTL&feed=rss.news)
 
The article notes: "Tuesday's result was a remarkable collapse for Giuliani. Last year, he occupied the top of national polls and seemed destined to turn conventional wisdom on end by running as a moderate Republican who supported abortion rights, gay rights and gun control."
 
Well, yeah it collapsed. Usually, national campaigns are comprised of . . . campaigning. In more than one state. Focusing on Florida only works for the general election.  I think the craptastic results of Mr. 9/11's bid illustrate the folly of using the last 4 or 8 years of electoral fun and games as the new rule of law for how one goes about obtaining the presidency.  No, you don't need to think in geologic time, but a bit more perspective helps. For Rudy, that means looking past the temporary import of Florida and certainly looking past the far greater import of 9/11.
 
I recall watching a clip on CNN where the pundits remarked that an overwhelming majority of the time, the person in the lead one year before election day on the Republican side is the nominee, and the person in the lead one year before election day on the Democratic side is NOT the nominee. This could be one of those exceptional years.