Halperin's Take

Some of these staff departures -- like Sam Dawson and Rick Tyler -- are people who have been with Gingrich forever. It is going to be uncommonly difficult for Gingrich to hire senior level staffers to take the place of the departed. The conventional wisdom is now correct -- Gingrich will likely not make it to January, 2012. His only hope currently is that he can use the Internet to raise millions of dollars from faithful supporters who don't give a rip about what people in Washington, DC and New York think. This is good news for the potential candidacy of Rick Perry, since Gingrich had signed up Rob Johnson and Dave Carney, two of the Texans top strategists. If Gingrich does leave the race (despite his vow to fight on), it will be fascinating to see where his support goes in the national horserace polls.