What would the map look like with Obama vs. Romney or Huckabee?

[pragmatic liberal]

Obama vs. Romney: similar. I agree that Romney would have ultimately done similarly to McCain, give or take a point or two, in the popular vote. He may even have done a point or two better, given better handling of the economic crisis and no Sarah Palin pick -- however, he'd be starting from a much deeper hole.

Mapwise, I'd say it would be pretty much the same except that Obama would carry Missouri. Also, Romney would probably have come closer in Michigan, though he'd still lose the state.

I wonder whether Romney would have been able to hold Indiana; IN was close for a host of reasons, most of which weren't related to McCain. But Romney may have had more cash to compete, and a better response to the economic crisis might have helped. Plus, Romney sort of fits the profile of the prototypical Indiana Republican -- a business-type, not a fire-breather.

Also, I suppose Arizona may have gone for Obama; without McCain's home-state advantage, Obama would almost certainly have contested the state. I still think it would have gone to Mitt by a point or two, but I could be wrong.

With Huckabee, I really am not sure how things would have worked out. I can see a case for Huck doing much worse than McCain, but I can also see Huck better. Huckabee is simply a very likeable politician, and he'd have been able to compete as an outsider and a break from Bush far better than McCain could have. It's possible Huckabee could have been surprisingly formidable. I just don't know.