Anyone who's been reading this site for longer than, say, a day knows that Casey, the Democratic challenger, is consistently and easily outpolling Rick
Santorum for Senator Man-On-Dog's seat representing Pennsylvania. And anyone who's either been reading the site or has any grasp of politics knows that poll numbers like that are the absolute reddest of red flags that the incumbent is in serious, serious trouble and needs to start making nice with the voters yesterday.
And yet Santorum blithely went ahead and released a right-wing wet dream of a political screed, consistently blathers ultra-neo-conservative insanities, and pretends to not have a care in the world. Similarly, the national Republican party at least outwardly expresses confidence in him.
Or rather, in the race. My theory is that next summer, Ricky boy makes a surprise announcement that he's not running for re-election, freeing the field for a 'clean' candidate against Casey and his well-established positions.
It's not a sure thing by any means - neo-cons and reality don't meet very often, and it's entirely possible that they really do believe their fantasies that they can win a light blue state by going ultra-red. It's also entirely possible that they just haven't given it too much thought, what with Republican leadership getting indicted and investigated right, further right, and loony right (for a normal group of people, this would be left, right, and center). But it's a possibility to consider.
Think about it. On one hand, the NRSC could spend millions and millions on a nigh-unwinnable race in a year that even right-wing pollsters are announcing as a good year for Democrats, solely to defend one of their own who has become a liability. On the other hand, they could promise him some 'golden parachute' (ambassador to Bermuda or something) in exchange for letting someone else run - who would, simply by contrast with Santorum, appear much more moderate. The GOP has demonstrated quite clearly that the weak are left to perish - take a look at Kentucky's governor, for example.
Santorum is doomed - the question is whether the NRSC has recognized the fact and is setting him up to bow out in favor of some more electable faux-moderate-until-the-day-after-voting schlub, or is genuinely going to waste its resources trying to defend him.