The Big Questions: By Mark Halperin

Illustration by Wes Duvall for TIME

His rivals keep getting unhorsed. For Mitt Romney, could things get better?

He's the early-state, polling and fundraising leader, but Romney also has secret weapons that could help him wrap up the nomination early or allow him to survive if he stumbles when the voting starts in January. In reserve: privately pledged political endorsements that the campaign will unfurl for maximum impact, extensive opposition research on all his rivals, unmatched knowledge of the delegate rules that ultimately determine the nominee, and vast personal wealth, largely untapped so far, available for TV ads and other expensive campaign goodies.

So what is keeping...

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