Newt never intended to run for President.
His lackadaisical and hastily cobbled together campaign suggests he was using the GOP nomination process as a way to promote his literary, lobbying and public speaking activities. This should come as no surprise, you can say the same for Sarah, Donald, Herman and (to a certain extent), Ron.

But the weakness of the field has suddenly propelled him to the forefront, to the consternation of his colleagues and the sheer panic of liberals (and a few of the more thoughtful conservatives as well).

No matter how unprepared or disinterested he may have been in running, the sudden temptation of finding himself at the top of the polls with most of his competition in disarray may be too difficult to resist. If you see a sudden scramble to organize a more conventional campaign effort, this will confirm this suspicion. Then again, he may decide to just press his luck and continue his guerilla campaign. Nothing surprises me about this election any more. And he really has little to lose either way.

One thing you can say for sure, Gingrich is certainly more experienced, informed, articulate and intelligent than any of his fellow Republicans, with the possible exception of Huntsman, who is way too decent and reasonable to get the approval of the Tea Party. Newt might just get a spot on the ticket, maybe even the #1.

Its going to be an exciting year. Shock and awe.