Commentators are acting surprised that Mitt’s supposed strength among GOP moderates is not as strong as they had believed (and as Mitt had hoped) and that Newt is doing well with them. I don’t see why.

Since his fall from grace, Newt has worked hard to reinvent himself as an intellectual – the GOP ideas man. Like that other GOP intellectual, Paul Ryan, you can rightfully ask yourself, ‘What ideas have they actually had? Seriously?’ However, many folks believe it to be true.

I would suggest that is Newt’s presentation of himself as an intellect, someone able to go head to head with the brainy Obama on, is giving him much of that surprising strength among moderates Republicans who still feel a little burnt by the after effects of eight years of Bush’s intellectual uncuriousity.

As a corollary, I would say that it is probably too late for Romney to effectively challenge that assertion before Florida’s primary (if it drags on past that, he might be able to challenge it, though).