After huge losses in the last two elections, could it get even worse for the GOP?

Whose left?

It’s a question that a lot of Republicans will be asking (or avoiding) in the coming months. Since President Obama took office in January, his approval ratings have remained astronomically high compared to his predecessor and the Republican members of Congress, while several prominent figures on the right have taken a beating. First was the admission of an affair by Nevada Senator John Ensign, then came the bizarre case of South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, and just this past Friday, news of Sarah Palin’s resignation as governor of Alaska have left the once-vibrant field of possible 2012 candidates much thinner.

Palin of course has not ruled out a run for the presidency, but resigning from an elected position a full three years ahead of the 2012 election could hardly be considered a shrewd political move. And NBC’s Andrea Mitchell has reported that sources close to Palin say that her political career is over, less than one year after it really began.

Sanford was also considered a possible candidate for the next election, but a bizarre series of events involving his disappearance, the Appalachian Trail, a rendezvous with an Argentinean mistress in Buenos Aires and the subsequent unanswered questions that surround the whole episode has left his career in shambles.

Other candidates include former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who finished the 2008 Republican primary in third place, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and 2008 candidate and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee.

But of those four candidates, only Jindal would be a break from the old school GOP that has lost 54 seats in the House of Representatives and 15 in the Senate since 2006. And if the elections in 2006 and 2008 have taught us anything, it’s that looking backwards doesn’t win you elections.

There are a whole host of other potential nominees who have yet to step forward, and they certainly have plenty of time to do so. But if the Republican Party wants to remain a truly national party capable of winning elections in all 50 states (Democrats have at least one Congressperson in every state but Wyoming, Republicans will have none in all of New England when Judd Gregg retires next term), they need to stop putting their worst feet forward.

Former Arkansas Governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee joined the far right fringe-dwellers this morning in attacking President Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor.

At least that’s what we presume Huck was trying to do.

Instead he launched a ruthless and full-fledged campaign against a poor woman named Maria Sotomayor.

THiNK Magazine was curious who this Maria Sotomayor was, since we like to keep up on news of whom the far right is baselessly attacking. So our crack team of researchers has put together a brief list of three of Huck’s possible targets.

Dr. Maria G. Sotomayor, M.D is a well-respected dermatologist in Tampa, Florida. According to her HealthGrades profile, Sotomayor ranks well below the national average in regards to ease of scheduling urgent appointments, but her office environment is described as very good. However, Huckabee’s main criticism of Maria Sotomayor was that “[she] comes from the far left…” This is true. Her office is located on Amberly Drive in Tampa, Florida, which, if you are traveling from the south, is a far left off of Plantation Oaks Drive.

Maria Sotomayor could also be the assistant principal from Los Angeles who was charged with failure to report child abuse last May. She and the principal both faced misdemeanor charges that carried a maximum sentence of six months in jail and fines of up to $1000. Huckabee suggests that “if she is confirmed, then we need to take the blindfold off Lady Justice.” I agree, Mr. Huckabee! If Maria Sotomayor, who pleaded guilty in November 2008, is confirmed as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Lady Justice should in fact be de-blinded. We should work together, Huck, to make sure that Maria doesn’t get confirmed.

The final possibility is Maria Sotomayor, the recent graduate of the IESE Business School in Spain, a nation that the Republicans still can’t quite locate on a map.

Her years spent at the liberal bastion of education (MIT) clearly instilled a sense of empathy that has no place in conservative America, where they make sure that human emotions NEVER interfere with policy positions. Maria Sotomayor’s appointment would “leave us with something akin to the ‘Extreme Court’,” says Huckabee. I’ll say. The confirmation of Maria Sotomayor, who is in her late twenties, would make her the youngest Supreme Court Justice ever.

So, Mike Huckabee, which of these women should we be on the lookout for? My money’s on the dermatologist.