Al's is a strong argument for keeping the focus where it needs to be--on the big issues central to this big election. The Republicans didn't plan this drama out six months ago, but they have demonstrated that they know how to tactically work this political landscape to their short-term advantage.  They are demonstrating that they are still good at the kind of retail discipline that wins enough skirmishes to have the war called in their favor. They may have a lackluster convention and their Presidential candidate may be temperamentally ill-equipped for the Presidency, but they can take "problems" and make them "assets." 

While the Republicans' have failed at both governing and real party-building or institution-building especially over the Bush years, this being symptomatic of the party's intellectual and creative exhaustion after 35 years of dominance of American political life and culture (recall Obama's "respect" for what Reagan achieved politically), they are not going to implode as an electoral force over the next 60 days. They are certainly not playing with a strong hand, but their cunning and viciousness when cornered are very very dangerous. Even as I believe the current media storm is more flash than conflagration yielding little benefit or harm to either side, with each passing day, the stakes are raised so that now is the time to quit the political voyeurism/faux-death watch and recommit to the ground game that is this campaign.