While we wait for the GOP nominee to address CPAC, a few quick notes about what Romney's departure might mean.

1.) Potential running mate: Dismissed outright because of the McCain-Romney feud, let's remember what Ronald Reagan said to George H.W. Bush in the 1980 primary race: "I paid for this microphone!" And remember how Bush Sr. described Reagan's supply-side economics: "Voodoo economics." Point is, we shouldn't dismiss a potential McCain-Romney ticket just because the two have been at each other's throats. (Now, if they genuinely hate one another, that might be a different story.) McCain needs conservatives, and there's a lot of goodwill toward Romney at this point for a.) becoming conservatives' choice (if only by default) and b.) bowing out gracefully "for the party and for the country."

2.) Democratic heartburn: Whether McCain can rally conservatives, the GOP has its nominee a full 9 months before the election. The Democrats aren't any closer than they were before Super Tuesday and with no end in sight. That's a scary prospect for the party. Allowed to continue as it is, the Democrats won't have a nominee until April at the earliest, and the nightmare scenario of a brokered convention in August is probably giving Democrats the shakes. Likely, there is already pressure building inside the party to get this over and done with, but I expect that will spill over very publicly now that the GOP is nearly ready to go. (We might even begin seeing the candidates themselves start making the case that it's time to choose.) Does this help Hillary or Obama? One can make the case for both, but neither seems the sort to end things now.