Mitt Romney may be the frontrunner in Iowa and New Hampshire, but in national polls he lags far behind.

Despite consistently strong performances in all televised debates, and spending far more money than his GOP rivals, the Gallup Poll puts him in fourth place—with only half the backing of third-placer John McCain.

Part of the problem may be the spreading perception that he’s “too perfect” to be president. The other major candidates have experienced divorce, infidelity, or both, but Romney married his high school sweetheart 39 years ago and they’ve produced five spectacularly successful, happily married sons.

This impeccably-groomed multimillionaire also affiliates with a controversial church that prohibits pre-marital sex, alcohol, tobacco, and divorce. Somehow Romney needs to identify with his imperfect fellow citizens. Maybe he could start by expressing sympathy for rival Rudy Giuliani and his wife in the face of scurrilous personal attacks against them in Vanity Fair magazine.