Shutdown post-mortem on GOP 2016 field

Polls seem to indicate the Republican Party generally took most of the blame following the Government shutdown at the beginning of October. This sentiment is having a ripple effect on many of the potential 2016 GOP contenders.

Report from Red Alert Politics:

It’s not a secret that many of the key Republican players in the government shutdown are aspiring 2016 presidential candidates. But did their role in the whole ordeal help or hinder their chances at winning the GOP nomination for President in 2016?

Some of the players were obvious winners (see: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan) while others may have seen their stars diminish over the past two weeks. And with nearly half of all Republicans disapproving of how the party was behaving during the shutdown, many of the candidates discussed below will have some work to do if they are going to stay credible candidates moving forward.

Here’s the order Red Alert Politics ranks each GOP contender:

1. Chris Christie
2. Ted Cruz
3. Paul Ryan
4. Marco Rubio, Rand Paul and Mike Lee (tied)

Conventional wisdom still holds Chris Christie as, perhaps, the one to beat in the GOP field. Is this a case of the media picking candidates or does Christie stand the best shot?

I’m not sure I agree with Paul Ryan being so high on that list. After watching his 2012 performance, I just don’t think he has the right combination of personality and appeal to actually carry a general election.