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Being associated with Trump, then, may hurt a candidate with the serious media, but that's exactly the point of him. Appearing with Trump tells red-meat voters--who may not want to vote for the Donald but like the blunt way he bashes Obama--that you care about their priorities, not George Will's approbation. So he's a dangerous reality host to snub. Even Romney met with Trump, his opposite in both temperament and hair, though he did so carefully, away from the cameras. Meanwhile, reasonable moderate and press darling Jon Huntsman (along with independent-minded Ron Paul) has made a show of not seeking Trump's anointment, and thus far he's spent the race in a statistical tie with A Sharp Stick in the Eye.
That Gingrich took Trump's Republican Apprentice offer fast and gleefully may prove a bad idea. But it's a logical choice for a candidate who stood out in debates as the one most willing to bash the traditional press--many of whose members have been willing to bash back. After a strong week for Newt, an exasperated Mika Brzezinski declared on MSNBC's Morning Joe that "Republicans clearly don't want to win."
In today's GOP primaries, that disdain may be a better endorsement than one from the New Hampshire Union Leader. Maybe the GOP race really is The Bachelor. But if it is, the political media are like overeager parents on the meet-the-family episode, insisting that you'd be better off with that nice, responsible Romney boy. Very often the old yentas know best. But once in a while, if they press too hard, they could just push you into the arms of the guy they call Mr. Wrong.