By Bill O'Reilly

The Governor now has more than 400 delegates, about 1,100 he need to get the nomination. Rick Santorum has 176, Newt Gingrich 105, Ron Paul 47.

So the numbers speak for themselves. But Senator Santorum and Speaker Gingrich continue to fight. And we congratulate both of them. Honest competition is always good. But in the end the heavy odds say it will be Mitt Romney challenging Barack Obama in November.

Monday on "The Five", Barbara Bush the former First Lady said she is dismayed by the Republican competition. But I respectfully disagree. Folks expect hardball politics at this level and contest between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2008 was certainly bruising. In fact, Mrs. Clinton did not suspend her campaign until June 7th of that year.

You may remember that John McCain had the nomination wrapped up by this time in 2008. Of course, Mr. Obama defeated Mr. McCain by a substantial margin so it doesn't really matter how long the primary process goes. And it's easy to see why Mitt Romney is having a hard time nailing down the nomination. 40 percent of Americans describe themselves as conservative and most of those folks will vote for the most conservative candidate which happens to be Rick Santorum. So that's why these votes are close. Senator Santorum has a very big advantage in conservative states like Oklahoma.

Looking ahead, anything could happen in the general election next fall. It should come down to the economy, including gas prices. Also, there could be a showdown with Iran and that could influence the vote as well.

Right now, both the President and the Republican candidate, whoever it is, are pretty much even. The election could go either way.

In the meantime, Alabama, Mississippi and Kansas are coming up next. Santorum and Gingrich should do fairly well in those conservative states. So Mitt Romney will likely take more lumps as he continues down the road picking up delegates along the way. But the race will really be decided in five states: New York and Pennsylvania on April 24th; Texas on May 29th; and California and New Jersey on June 5th. Those states have 538 delegates among them. And Mitt Romney should win the vast majority of them.

So like Barack Obama in 2008, June will be big for Romney. And that's "The Memo."

Pinheads & Patriots

You may have heard the name Steve Bridges. He was a comic actor. He made a good living impersonating President Bush.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Members of the White House Correspondents' Association, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, here I am.

STEVE BRIDGES, ACTOR: Here I am at another one of these dang press dinners. Could be home asleep. Little Barney curled up at my feet. But, no. I've got to pretend I like being here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'REILLY: Mr. Bridges, 48 years old, died over the weekend. Our condolences to his family. He was a "Patriot."

— You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" and "Pinheads & Patriots" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.