Meh.
Posted on 01/11/2012 6:28:51 AM PST by Billlknowles
We have FINALLY gotten into 2012 and are right at the beginning of the primary season with the Iowa Caucuses behind us, the New Hampshire primary yielded little surprises and the South Carolina Primary lurks in the shadows of the very near future. The field of candidates have predictably dwindled and will continue skinnying down until we are left with our nominee to run against Obama. Tim Pawlenty was the first casualty of Iowa after the Ames Straw Poll, followed by Herman Cain who withdrew amidst false charges of sexual misconduct, Gary Johnson left the Republican race to tilt at a Libertarian windmill, and Michele Bachmann quit when she drew less than exciting numbers in the Iowa Caucuses. I say Rick Perry will be the next victim after the South Carolina primary, followed by Jon Huntsman after Florida, leaving us with Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, most of which will remain until the bitter end. So where does that leave our party as the whole Presidential sweepstakes roars into the Palmetto state?
Mitt Romney has been the steady candidate throughout this topsy-turvy contest that would make Captain Ahab seasick with all its' ups and downs. He's consistently been polling around the 25-35% mark and is at times a very strong frontrunner and at other times shows the strength of a wallflower at the prom. Although I would certainly support his candidacy should he get the nomination, I feel that his nomination for our party is a mistake. Governor Romney is a throwback to some of our failed candidates who got the nomination either because they were a 'good soldier' who had run for the nomination before and lost (Bob Dole, John McCain, George H.W. Bush) or they would be able to 'bring the independents to the party'. (Dole, McCain and Bush the Elder still fit the mold but you can now add Gerald Ford into it the cast.) Governor Romney falls into both catagories as well. As Yogi Berra would say, "It's like deja vu all over again."
My opinion is that the strongest candidate that the Republican Party could field would be the most Conservative one; the one who appeals to the real base of the party and not the fringe as Ron Paul does. This candidate would be one who would be more in the image of Republicans who actually won the White House in recent years: Bush the Younger and Ronald Reagan, both of whom if you recall your history, were called too right wing and too volatile and that they could in no way capture those elusive independents that seem to always be out there. Let me tell you a little secret: Those elusive independents are part of the massive number of unemployed workers who are fed up with President Obama just as much as the solid base of the Republican Party. Playtime is over now that Governor Romney has won both Iowa and New Hampshire. The real race begins on January 21st when our neighbors in South Carolina pick a Conservative choice amidst the chaff.
In my past columns I have made it very clear that I have been hoping that choice would be first Herman Cain and now former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and I still feel that way, but I will say that our party needs to get behind one Conservative and ride him all the way to The White House while leaving the others that have little chance behind. I'm certainly not for calling names and labeling the other candidates as this always leaves a bitter taste in a failed candidates' supporters mouth, however the Conservatively-challenged candidates need to move on and hope that they will at least garner a Vice-Presidential nod as "Second Banana" on the future ticket as Bush the Elder did in 1980.
For the record there is only one RINO (Republican In Name Only) in the Presidential race as Texas Congressman Ron Paul has certainly proved himself to be a Libertarian or Constitution Party member more so than as a member of the GOP. Further, Congressman Paul and a great many of his supporters are completely bastardizing the Republican Party as they have absolutely no plans to support anyone with the exception of the good doctor, yet want to try and infiltrate the rank and file by insisting that he and they are the only true Conservatives out there and that the party has left them. Notice I said a good many...Not all. There are many of Congressman Paul's supporters that truly think he's a Conservative alternative to the rest of the field. I hope they wake up before it's too late. I've heard more than once that we need to have a detente' or a peaceful coexistence with Paul and his supporters in fear that he may run as a 3rd party candidate or that they will do nothing to help the GOP comes November. I can tell you right now that if you ask most of Congressman Paul's supporters right now if they would vote for or help the GOP nominee if it were anyone other than the Congressman, you would get a flat NO. Then you would get preached to about the virtue of principle over party. It's standard spiel from the Ron Paul playbook. If the GOP is to beat President Obama in November, we will be doing it without their help. Get used to it as nothing that we do or say to welcome them or alienate them will change their collective minds.
The future of our party rests with the Conservative base who believe that abortion is wrong, taxation in its' current state is unjust, government is too big and is the problem not the solution, Israel is our friend and Hamas, the PLO, Muslim Brotherhood, Hugo Chavez and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are our enemies, a strong offense is a good defense when it comes to foreign policy, Iran shouldn't be trusted to manufacture cap guns much less nuclear weapons, anchor babies are precious gifts from our Creator but are nonetheless not our responsibility to spend tax payer money on and that our borders should be secure by any reasonable means, and that marriage should be between a man and a woman. If you agreed with most of that, to paraphrase Jeff Foxworthy, "You may be a Conservative Republican."
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I don’t know about you, but I thought Mitt’s victory speech in NH was a real stem-winder. The best speech I’ve heard him give and a great surprise. Perhaps he’s decided to run a really tough campaign against Obama. Hope so.
I would have liked it more if it hadn’t been entirely cribbed from real conservatives like Ronal Reagan and Rick Perry, just to name two obvious contributors. It left me totally in the dark as to the identity of the real Mitt Romney; whoever he is, he isn’t the person he was pretending to be Tuesday night.
That said, and aside from everything and anything else, I believe that Mitt Romney is absolutely the weakest and most unelectable candidate the Republican Party cold nominate this year. He’s even less electable than Ron Paul.
After the Obama machine is through with Romney, his wife wouldn’t vote for him.
Ugh. I will vote for the nominee since anyone is better then Zero.
BUT this campaign has reinforced my decision to leave the GOP and register as independent in 08. The GOP leadership has done a wonderful job of sucking the life and energy out of the conservative base since the election of 2010. I see no hope of real change or policies that will significantly change the current course to a fiscal disaster.
I need to go back and watch it. I have no doubt he is ready to fight Obama. This guy REALLY wants to be president. He has run a brutal shadow campaign to destroy conservative options for the past 6 years to do so. He is in it to win it.
My concern with Romney, besides his clear tact to the left this cycle, is that Obama is going to make mince meat of him. Let’s hope if he prevails in the primaries that he can avoid that outcome.
The best speech I’ve heard him give and a great surprise. Perhaps he’s decided to run a really tough campaign against Obama. . . .
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The problem with Romney is not that he can’t give a good speech, the problem is what will he do in office, nobody knows what he would do. He seems to have such a desire to please everybody that he just may give up principle to do so. I’m afraid that Romney will care more about Gay rights than my rights, that he will care more about balancing the budget than lowering taxes or cutting spending. I am worried that he will care more about the safety of society than my 2nd amendment rights. I’m afraid that he will feel so sorry for the single mothers in society and their poor helpless babies that he will do nothing to discourage this horrid practice. I’m afraid that because he is a nice guy he will not make the hard decisions that have to made if our society is to survive and grow.
He has had a lot of speeches that talk about good solutions to all these things, the problem is his history in office is that he has never done those things. He is a Mormon. As a group they are pretty conservative people, how in the world we end up with Reid, Huntsman and Romney on the political stage when there are so many good people in that church is beyond me.
The last paragraph of the article describes what we need and it describes Rick Santorum.
How interesting, this article calls Paul a RINO and this am on Scarborough Paul called the mainstream republican party all RINOs for TARP bailouts, Medicare expasion and NCLB...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6RXavmnDRA&feature=player_embedded
All this may be true. What is clearly true is that if we don’t get behind a Republican, Obama will win reelection — a catastrophe.
The only thing I would add is that I think Perry might wait until the VA court decision and not just SC results and that Santorum may not be able to continue past FL if he doesn’t get additional funding.
Romney wants us to “get behind” one candidate and kick the others to the curb, and he wants us to do it right now.
It’s exactly how Romney will win. This whole splitting the vote thing began back before the debate marathon ramped up.
See, we get rid of all others, make it a two man primary, and Romney wins it guaranteed. He will win it based on optics, he will win it because people think it means he’s a strong man because he can stand up there and smile while another candidate delivers a mild critique of him.
He will win because he “looks” right, and sounds “good”. Optics. The dude looks good on paper.
He will win it because everyone has taken it easy on him till now, and if the others come out swinging at Romney now - they get labeled as being bitter, or desperate.
Meanwhile Romney stands there smiling serenely through it all. Unruffled, pious, presidential.
If everyone else drops out now, leaving Romney and just one other Republican, do we think that the not-Romney will pick up all of those other votes? I’ll bet it doesn’t work out that way at all.
“You may be a Conservative Republican.”
Im sorry but the facts of life are the republicans and conservatives are, at the desire of the establishment, becoming mutually exclusive. Bush 1 drove me out of the party and there is no welcome mat at the party door anymore. The ideologcal leaning in the party is becoming more liberal, more corporatist and more secular.
I could give a shit if republicans win or not to me it is a distinction without a difference the country is toast in any regard. Conservatism is the only thing that can save this country and neither party is friend to conservatives.
Keep dreaming. Mitt will say anything he believes the sheep want to hear. So long as it suits his purpose, Mitt is all things to all people. Mitt’ record speaks loud and clear as to who he is.
He may then have a chance. Otherwise he will get his ass handed to him in the election. It is the only way I will even consider to vote for him.
Meh.
IOW, you want Obama to win.
I can see Obama ads now-—
Mitt’s a real nice guy! He’s willing to change his views to help others!(Pictures and voice reels of all Mitt’s flip-flops)
I care about everyone, but I have to stand my ground on what I believe! (Various pious poses with grand words...save the oppressed, etc....)
Final: (Picture Obama bathed in light) “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything. I stand for America”
Very good point!
And as far as Romney is concerned, if John Mc Cain cannot tell the difference between him and obama, how can I?
“BUT this campaign has reinforced my decision to leave the GOP and register as independent in 08.”
The only problem with this is that if you are in a “closed primary” state, you can no longer influence the choosing of a [future] Republican candidate with your vote. You are “self-excluding” yourself from the process.
“The GOP leadership has done a wonderful job of sucking the life and energy out of the conservative base since the election of 2010. I see no hope of real change or policies that will significantly change the current course to a fiscal disaster.”
Nor do I — and it probably wouldn’t matter even if one of the more “conservative” Republicans won the nomination and the subsequent election (or elections to come).
The left (and the media) would do everything within their power (and that’s quite a bit) to stifle and prevent “real change”. Quite frankly, I don’t even think “conservatives” within the Congress (and that includes bona fide “Tea Party” types) would have the intestinal fortitude to pull the nation back from the brink that seems to be coming down the line.
The two parties in Congress are like Thelma and Louise, seated across from one another, heading down the highway at full speed towards the inevitable cliff on the horizon.
Perhaps the awful truth about the “fiscal disaster” that is coming is that there will be NO politically-acceptable way to prevent it UNTIL it has happened and the nation is in chaos (and that may be more than just financial chaos). And even then, the solutions aren’t going to be very good ones.
I wish I could be more optimistic about this, but I’m not...
I guess what Peggy Lee sang long ago was right:
Is that all there is?
Is that all there is?
Well, if that’s all there is,
Let’s break out the booze and have a ball...
If that’s all....
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