Well, Joe Biden is still doing fine in the pre-debate polls.

[MineralMan]

12. Well, I can't imagine why they would.

I'm actually amazed at the size of the field. Too many choices.

People like choices, but when there are too many, they tend to automatically block out a bunch of them.

Our brains can't handle the job of choosing among a large field of options. So, the brain winnows the group of options down to a manageable number. Three or four options is all we can manage, really. More than that and our process of selection bogs down, often leading to no choice being made at all.

That's true in any selling environment, and has been proven in study after study. A campaign is no different from any other type of marketing. Right now, the choices are Biden, Sanders, Warren and maybe one other. For most voters, the rest of the field might as well be invisible. The fourth choice? Who knows.

In marketing and sales, three choices is the magic number. Offering three choices increases sales. Offering more or less reduces sales. It's been tested and the results are always the same. In the end, it will come down to three possible candidates for the nomination. It might already have.