TWE Quick Takes: GOP Presidential Hopefuls

Thank goodness for three-day weekends. They are a great opportunity to catch up on work. So now I am only two weeks behind schedule.

Several things worth a quick mention:

Reading Saturday’s Wall Street Journal made me realize that last week’s Friday File overlooked some Republicans who are mulling whether to make a run for Barack Obama’s job. Herman Cain, the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza and current talk-show host in Atlanta, formed a presidential exploratory committee last Wednesday. John Huntsman, former governor of Utah and current U.S. ambassador to China, hinted to Newsweek that he might like to live at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. (Newsweek repaid the favor by labeling him the "Manchurian Candidate.") Supporters of Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan have created a “Paul Ryan for President” page on Facebook. Supporters of Sen. John Thune of South Dakota have done the same for the former congressman who defeated Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle back in 2004.

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush has ruled out a run for the White House in 2012, though I suspect he would be an early favorite if he threw his hat in the ring. He is, however, leaving the door open to a presidential run in 2016. That’s probably the smart move. It’s usually easier to win an open seat than to defeat an incumbent.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the Republicans and Democrats can each expect to spend $1 billion on the 2012 presidential election. As Everett Dirksen might say, that’s real money.

It’s going to be a long campaign.