Clash of the most disliked candidates

IF you have been following American football, you probably know that the regular National Football League (NFL) season consists of 17 weeks when each team plays in 16 games that are broadcast live on television but usually watched only by ardent football fans.

But by the conclusion of the regular season, things get more interesting when six teams advance to the playoffs and more television viewers start following the games, with the post-season culminating eventually in the Super Bowl that can only be compared to a national spectacle watched by the majority of Americans. Even if you aren't a football fan, you know the names of the two champions playing in the game and eventually, that of the big winner.

So think about the US presidential election cycle like you do about the American football season. First we have the presidential primaries that are covered by the media and are followed very closely by political pros and junkies who are under the impression that like them, all Americans care about every silly comment made by each of the many presidential candidates (17 candidates on the Republican side this year).