Off to the races!

From McClatchy:

Obama does have an advantage over several potential Republican rivals:

• He leads Romney 46-41, a 5-point lead.
• He leads Pawlenty 49-36, a 13-point lead.
• He leads Bachmann 52-35, a 17-point lead.
• He leads Perry 52-33, a 19-point lead.

A key reason for Perry being the weakest opponent is that he's weakest among independents.

I deplore the whole elections as a horse race thing as much as anyone, but in truth, I'm as guilty of it as anyone. I blame my political addiction to Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing on the Campaign trail '72. And you know, I don't really mind. It's a fine book, quite possibly the best political reporting ever written.