From Rasmussen:

Thompson (not the ex-cheeser governor) 24%

Giuliani 24%

Romney 11%.

No word on any change of Romney’s sizeable leads in Iowa and New Hampshire.  If Thompson can sustain this initial momentum, those leads may evaporate.  But TV’s Arthur Branch is pretty much guaranteed home court advantage in South Carolina.

As for the “moderate and electable alternative,” he’s nowhere in any of the three and even his Florida ace-in-the-hole is hearing Ready Freddie’s loafer-steps.

And can we please dispense with the fiction that McCain is still a top-tier player?  I’d argue that he never was one, not after the past six-plus years of fratricidal eye-gouging and ball-socking, but his hand in the immigration amnesty uproar removes any and all doubt.

What do these numbers mean?  Well, mainly that Romney and Rudy have their work cut out for them, and Rudy a lot more than Romney.  But there’s still plenty of time.  Maybe Thompson’s messiahnic sheen will tarnish by the time the snow falls in Iowa and New Hampshire.

But I wouldn’t bet on it.

UPDATE: Hmmm; George Will endorses Rudy, and a jiffy later, he’s trashing the biggest threat to Rudy’s candidacy.  And not very convincingly.

That’s okay, of course.  By all means, “Game on,” and all that.  If present trends hold, Rudy’s going to need all the help he can get.