Just checked in with three GOP consultants, all of whom have been in the campaign business a while and none of whom are yet affiliated with a 2012 presidential campaign, about today’s mass exodus of staffers from Team Newt.
GOP Consultant One: “Knew this was coming . . . I bet Perry is in this thing sooner rather than later — these guys aren’t jumping off without somewhere else to land.”
GOP Consultant Two: “Knowing all those guys, they are neither impetuous not impulsive. I also have never seen a two-week vacation two weeks after entering [the race]; I took that as portentous.”
GOP Consultant Three: “Gingrich was clearly melting down, and Perry is clearly gearing up, so it was time for the switcheroo.”