Poll: Romney leads Palin by wide margin in New Hampshire (26 pts)

ABC ^ | 4/22/10 | Dan Metcalf

[SideoutFred]

Correct, it is my opinion but in the end, will prove factual.

Look, I love Palin, but I have yet to see any semblance of a poll, including those performed by conservative organizations, that show she has a broad (no pun intended) appeal across the country to win.

I would love to be proven wrong, but she has solid (but not great) support from the GOP, horrible support from Dems, and most discouraging....fairly poor support among Independents (of which I am in the Independent camp but I love the gal).

If you can present me with a national poll that shows she can cross over enough to win, I’m happy to be proven wrong.

[SideoutFred]

Can the country win if Romney wins?

Maybe not, but the country will surely lose if Obama wins.

I hate voting for the lessor of two evils as well. I did not vote for McCain. Today we have Obama. As much as I think McCain is a RINO galore and weak, he would be better than Obama.

I’m being pragmatic.

[SideoutFred]

And if that happens, say hello to another 40 years of Democrat rule.

Look, I don’t want Romney...I’d love Palin. I just don’t see how she can get to 50% + 1. If she can, great. Where are the numbers to back this up?

[MontanaBeth]

No sure didn't, since it was an article about Romney and DeMint wasn't mentioned in article, I assumed (yes I know) you were speaking about Romney, my apologies.

[Windflier]

I love Palin, but I have yet to see any semblance of a poll, including those performed by conservative organizations, that show she has a broad appeal across the country to win.

People who fail to see that Sarah Palin is far and away the most popular potential contender for 2012 are going to be as surprised as Pauline Kael, who famously commented, "Nixon won? I don't know anyone who voted for him!"

All it takes to see this is honest observation.

There isn't another Republican contender who can draw the crowds she does, or who can steer the debate in Washington like she does with her commentary and opinion. No other contender in the Republican pantheon can raise the sort of money she can, nor is any political endorsement as highly valued as hers is.

Sarah Palin is in a league all her own, and will mop the floor with any and all comers in 2012. The nomination is hers for the asking.

[DustyMoment]

Indeed. He's the MSM's easiest target. You'll see Mormon hit pieces on every channel the moment they end the conventions.

I'm betting they'll start before he even steps away from the podium after delivering his acceptance speech!!

[big'ol_freeper]

Piss on Romney and ALL his lying statist-loving sycophants.

[freedomfiter2]

I’m being pragmatic as well. If McCain had won, he would have been almost as bad but with virtually no GOP resistance and a demoralized conservative base.

[SideoutFred]

I hope you are right but I suspect in 2012 we can look back at this exchange and say it didn’t turn out that way.

[MortMan]

The lesser evil is still evil, and the Rs are stupid beyond belief if they don’t get the message.

As for those of you who believe we should accept whoever is foisted upon us, perhaps you need to grow a pair and have some core principles.

[truthguy]

As for those of you who believe we should accept whoever is foisted upon us, perhaps you need to grow a pair and have some core principles.

Your comments merit a reply.

First of all you need to get some perspective. A candidate will not be foisted upon you. There will be primaries and the winner of those primaries will be the nominee. This is very different than foisted. There is no unknown entity foisting candidates upon the Republicans. Do you believe there is some evil committee making decisions behind closed doors?

I'm going out on a limb. I guessing, and you can correct me but I can't help but believe you think the typical FR conservative represents a voting majority in the United States. They don't. Only a minority of Americans share the views of the majority on FR. There are a number of different flavors of conservatism. In order to win a national election, we must have all of those conservatives united. The Democrats will unite their party you can be sure of that. If you haven't noticed the Democrats hold a huge majority in Congress and they control the White House. The attitude that I'm not going to vote for anyone who isn't EXACTLY my perfect candidate is a sure LOSING STRAGETY. The only thing that will do is to get Obama reelected. If reelected he will have the opportunity to appoint Liberal Supreme Court Justices and there goes any possibility of saving the Country. This nation cannot stand a second Obama term. There won't be a United States if Obama were to be reelected. Is this what you want? Will you get some satisfaction out of that?

No yours is the type of attitude that will destroy any chance of saving the Republic. And for the record I have a pair and have been involved in elections for a long time. It's a game for Adults and not children who go off and sulk when things don't go their way. Core Principles are a very good thing to have but only for yourself. You cannot FOIST your core principles onto others. It doesn't work. You make gains in small increments. That's the only way. And finally who makes you the arbiter of what constitutes EVIL? Do you really think that you are that smart? Yes there are individuals whom all would agree are evil. But because someone has a different political philosophy doesn't make them evil. You must really be full of yourself to make that determination.

Think about it.

[truthguy]

I hate voting for the lessor of two evils as well. I did not vote for McCain. Today we have Obama. As much as I think McCain is a RINO galore and weak, he would be better than Obama.

I’m being pragmatic.

Yes it's good to be pragmatic. I'm with you 100%. But this site (FR) has a contingent who find some type of glory going down in flames. They simply cannot accept the fact that they don't represent the majority in the United States. They want Palin and nothing else will do. I'm not going out on a limb by calling them zealots.

These Palin fans don't seem to realize that big crowds don't mean that much. Heck the Rolling Stones draw big enthusiastic crowds. That wouldn't translate to political victories. No these people are major league fools. They are naive in the extreme. They are the types who lose elections. I've dealt with these fools my whole life as regards to politics. They don't understand how our system works and they will destroy things if not brought into line.

Now all of this is not to knock Palin. I like the woman. But is she the right candidate? I don't know and time will tell. She has a lot of negatives and we haven't seen all the candidates. We need to concentrate on 2010 and not 2012. That's job one.

[SideoutFred]

I agree with you. I applaud their support of conservative values but at the end of the day, you have to win elections which these people don’t get.

FR used to have more even handed folks, but it seems many of them have gone away which is too bad.

[MortMan]

Look at the money and support flow. Try to perceive the effect of the built-up RINO network inside the Republican party. Or are you entirely comfortable with the press selecting the R candidate by proxy?

Further, any conservative who DOESN’T have an issue with the father of RomneyCare standing forth as part of the answer to ObamaCare is a bit delusional, IMO.

Your bull$hit paragraph where you accuse me of being in pursuit of perfection is the very reason why the R party is so screwed up FRiend. I have stated that I have some core principles that are non-negotiable, and you translate that into being a mythical “one-hundred-percenter”.

I’m sick and tired of hearing that holding to any solid standard is anathema to saving the country. NOT holding to a core set of principles is what has led the Republicans down this rabbit hole - and the refusal to recognize that there is a minimum set of standards is a standard liberal poison.

That’s right - I said MINIMUM. My minimum is somewhat higher than “has an R behind the name”, which appears to be your standard. My minimum, however, bears no resemblance to “agrees with my every thought”, which you are trying to imply.

On the whole, I have found Mitt Romney to err on the side of liberalism throughout his career - and that is why I cannot say I definitely would support him. Part of my minimum is for the politician to lean right reflexively - even if reason and compromise end up with some decisions being further left than I would prefer.

I have no delusion that the general voting populace is hard-line conservative. For the most part, I believe the voters (at least those who pay taxes) to be slightly center-right.

Finally, you complain that I am trying to “FOIST [my] core principles onto others”. That’s rich. I am standing up for my own core principles, in the face of your demanding I forsake them to support your demand for Republican hegemony. Every single one of us has an INDIVIDUAL decision to make, based on our own core principles. You demand I make my INDIVIDUAL decision to fit your needs, while I speak only for myself.

How liberal of you.