The Republican nomination battle is over, even if Rick Santorum has yet to admit it publicly.

The Republican fight for the nomination’s been an interesting one, in that the winner defeated his opponents not by the power of his ideas but by the power of  his wallet.

Well, the power of his Super PAC’s wallet, to be exact.

Mitt Romney’s strategy was this — Whack a Mole.  With a big, big mallet.

An opponent would pop up and BAM! — here came the attack ads.  Millions and millions of dollars worth of ads.

No one seemed too excited about the Mittster, but his ability to define his opponents as worse than him worked repeatedly.

In November?  Maybe not so much.

In the primaries, Romney’s opponents campaigned against him with one arm tied behind their backs — their Super PACS just didn’t have the moolah Mitt’s did.

Obama will not have that problem. 

So in the next few months, we’ll start to see plenty of ads attempting to define each of the candidates, and by “define” I mean “attack.”

Romney’s not having the big money advantage could be the defining factor in the November race.  And that money balance might mean the few debates (I believe there are three tentatively scheduled) the key.  

Some folks think Mitt’s been pretty good in debates — I think he’s been imperious.  Of course, the Pres can come off the same, too.

In the end, though, Obama will have a second term.  And the Republican Party will have a real fight for the direction the party should go.