Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley have fared the worst in their respective parties' campaigns for the presidential nomination, insiders say.
"He can't seem to find his way on any given issue with a handheld GPS," an Iowa Republican
told Politico of Walker. "He's been on all three sides of every two-sided issue.
"For the last two months, hasn't made a single policy pronouncement that he or his staff hasn't had to clarify or clear up within two hours," the Hawkeye Stater said. "When you're reduced to saying 'yeah' doesn't mean 'yes,' you're in trouble.
"'Unintimidated' has given way to 'uninformed' and 'unprepared,'" the Republican said.
In the weekly assessment of the presidential campaigns so far this summer by Politico's "Caucus" group, both Republican Walker and Democrat O'Malley have come up losers.
The bipartisan members include strategists and political operatives in Iowa and New Hampshire.
Walker, once tought of as the favorite among Iowa caucus voters, is being seen as constantly changing his positions — from immigration to abortion — and he has recently sought to pander to Donald Trump voters, according to Politico.
"He's lost his lead in the make-or-break Iowa caucuses," a New Hampshire GOPer said. "He has alienated donors with his pandering to the base of the party. He is woefully unprepared in interviews.
"He has cemented his reputation as a shameless flip-flopper — and, worst of all, he has raised questions about if he is actually smart enough to run for president."
Regarding O'Malley, he has failed to gain momentum against front-runner Hillary Clinton because of the unexpected popularity of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
"Martin who?" an Iowa Democrat asked Politico.
"His slow tentative launch gave Bernie all the room he needed," a New Hampshire Democrat said. "Now with Biden seemingly tip-toeing into the race, O'Malley is a dead man walking."
The winners this summer were Sanders and Republican Donald Trump.
"It's painful to say Trump, but who else dominated the political and media bandwidth the way he did?" one New Hampshire Republican asked Politico.
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