a lot of passionate following and the establishment choice for the nomination and a lot of republicans don't want a repeat of 2008 with john mccain who was the inside air apparent and got the nomination. they top the get their energy and the grass roots support behind the candidate that they think can bridge the enthusiasm gap with president obama. >> our team and the political team wrote this. mitt romney's path to the presidential nomination is wide open. not since bob dole in 96 has a candidate been such a clear front-runner right before the primaries and caucuses began. is it so clear when you have newt-mentum on our trail? >> it is and it isn't. i think he performed well in every of the debates thus far. yet he hasn't popped. he is always in the high teens or low to mid 20s and as other candidates had imploded, the