First Jeb drops out, then Kit Bond retires, now this.

The lifeboats are filling up awfully fast.

In other news, I am hearing rumors coming out of Ohio that Senator Voinovich is seriously considering making an announcement next week that he won’t be running for re-election. According to my sources, Rob Portman would likely be the Republican to replace him. This also opens up the GOP gubernatorial nomination for former Republican Congressman John Kasich.

It’s just a rumor, but the Quinnipiac poll taken last month wasn’t exactly encouraging.

Between Jim Talent and Roy Blunt, the bench is reasonably deep in Missouri, but the nominee will probably have to face the next generation of the Carnahan dynasty in a state that McCain won by only 3,000 votes. Ohio, of course, went blue in November, and Ted Strickland’s term as governor just happens to end in 2010, although he’ll be 69 at the time. Look at it this way: With 35 Senate seats up for grabs, if the Mother of All Bailouts fails, the midterms will be a fine opportunity to put some new Republican faces in the Senate. If it succeeds, we, er, may be looking at a wilderness period of a few decades. How lucky do you feel?

Exit question one: Who’ll be the first to go bust, the New York Times or the GOP? Exit question two: Is there any common thread in Bond’s and Voinovich’s retirements? Hmmmmm.