I wrote a piece a few weeks ago marshalling the case that Newt Gingrich would win the Republican nomination. That case was predicated on two major trends materializing. The first was that the nomination would come down to Newt and Mitt Romney. The second was that Gingrich would focus on big ideas that would clearly indicate that he was the conservative in the race and that Romney was not. Neither one of these developments has taken place .What happened?

First, Romney used his large organizational and financial advantage to bludgeon Gingrich in Iowa through the deft use of super-pac money. "Money is the mother's milk of politics" and a fact of modern campaigning, one that dramatically reduced Gingrich's lead both in Iowa and nationally. Gingrich simply did not have the ammunition to respond. His early attempt to remain above the fray and not "go negative" was only realistic if he possessed a clear and unobstructed path to the nomination, which Gingrich did not.

Secondly, Gingrich then mounted an anti-capitalist, populist response to Romney that was so ill-conceived that he produced a 30 minute anti-Romney movie and then began to denounce and correct it as soon as it was issued. Moreover, in his broadside against Romney, Gingrich began to sound more like President Obama and less like a person who believes in economic freedom and the benefits of "creative destruction." Additionally, Romney has made a legitimate case that he is a strong conservative, despite issues with his background and voting record. In New Hampshire, Romney won every group of voters, young, old, independent and those describing themselves as conservative, moderate or liberal. His support among Republicans of all stripes is as deep as a hard-fought primary race can be.

Finally, the race has not come down to Gingrich and Romney. On the contrary, going into South Carolina and perhaps even Florida at the end of the month, the conservative vote continues to be divided three or four ways, playing right into Romney's hand. Instead of Romney seeing his lead diminishing, it has actually increased in both upcoming primaries. Not only has Romney become the first non-incumbent Republican candidate to win both Iowa and New Hampshire. He is also likely to sweep South Carolina and Florida.

It's over, my friends. Time to close the check books aimed at other candidates. Time to get behind our nominee, Mitt Romney.

Jay Haug is a free-lance writer living in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. You may reach him at cjcwguy@gmail.com