Regardless of what the “experts” in the media are saying, it is still early in the presidential nomination process. However, perceptions can be hard to reverse, and the MSM are now beginning to spin a three-point John McCain victory in South Carolina as momentum-building.

I understand the need for a willingness to compromise at times, but I can only bend so far before I break. McCain is too much to ask. And while I respect many of Ron Paul’s views, he is just too far on the fringe (and too rigid on rapid troop withdrawal) to be the nominee.

So, with all this in mind, it is with some hesitancy that I throw in with Mitt Romney. I don’t see eye-to-eye with him on a number of issues; I think he’s a bit weak on Second Amendment issues, and his credibility on life issues is not what it could be.

He is, however, at least saying the right things now, for the most part. McCain’s rigidity on granting amnesty to millions of illegal aliens (while not calling it amnesty) is not what I consider sticking to one’s principles; rather, it is more sticking his fingers in conservatives’ eyes.

As I see it, McCain and Giuliani are potential party destroyers, and must be defeated as soon as possible. Huckabee is not a credible threat to gain the nomination, in my opinion. Thompson, while attractive to some conservatives, is pretty much done after finishing a distant third in South Carolina, where he should have done well. Ron Paul is on the fringe and will not be the nominee, as he cannot get any support from the establishment.

That leaves Mitt Romney, a reasonably conservative candidate (at least today), whose chief weakness is his religion. In the general election, I don’t think it would hurt him as much as it does in some of the primaries. While I am not especially fond of Mormon theology, I think it is mostly a non-issue, as he has a history of governing in a way that does not promote Mormonism in any particular way.