Posted on 07/13/2012 9:00:22 PM PDT by techno
The complete Virgil Goode rundown:
The ten most asked questions about Virgil Goode and why he matters:
1) Who is Virgil Goode?
He is a former GOP Congressman from Virginia who was defeated in the 2010 election. He is now the presidential nominee for the Constitution Party, a third party.
2) How long has the Constitution Party been around?
About 20 years.
3) I hear that Virgil Goode is NOT yet on the Virginia presidential ballot. Will he fail to get on the ballot.
To give you some perspective, in 2004 and 2008 the Constitution Party presidential nominee was on the Virginia presidential ballot. As Goode is a resident of Virginia and a former Congressman, do you really think he would not know the ins and outs of getting on the ballot, which requires him to get 10,000 signatures with at least 400 from each congressional district. As of June 6, 2012 via the Martinsville Bulletin, a local newspaper, Goode had already collected 4000 signatures. And the article concluded that the Constitution Party had as of that date already collected enough signatures to be on the ballot in 17 states.
4) Third party presidential candidates don't normally a cause a ripple through the process. What's different about Virgil Goode?
Let's put it this way, if the presidential election were decided by popular vote, Goode wouldn't matter. But presidential elections are decided in the electoral college.
5)What do you mean Techno?
There are certain states which are called battleground or swing states in which either the Democratic presidential nominee could win but by the same token the GOP presidential nominee could prevail as well. There are ten or so states in the 2012 electoral college which could be considered battleground states based on recent presidential elections and current polling. Virginia is one of those states. And it is not out of the ordinary for the winner of a battleground state to win by a margin of less than 2%.
6) So again why is Goode important to Romney's chances to become president?
Because Goode apparently is far more popular in Virginia than any other state. A Public Policy poll (PPP) in May found that Goode would garner 5% of the vote in Virginia in the presidential election against Obama and Romney. And now a couple of days ago, Goode increased his share of the vote to 9% with Obama collected 49% of the vote and Romney 35%. Without Goode in the mix it would be Obama 50% and Romney 42%. And for those not schooled in the electoral college, the winner of the popular vote in the presidential race in Virgina earns Virginia's 13 electoral votes in 2012. And that now appears to be Obama and not Romney.
7) Are you saying Techno that Goode is taking away way more voters away from Romney than he is Obama?
Exactly, that is what I am saying, But I am NOT the only one saying that. Local Virginia pundits are saying that as well. And PPP in its summary of the poll found that too. If you don't believe me, go over to the PPP web site and read it for yourself.
8)Techno, I'm lazy. I don't want to go over to PPP and read their s*it. Could you give me a brief synopsis?
Alright brother and sister. Under the Obama--Romney--Goode scenario in Virginia here is how the vote breaks down in four demographics: very conservative voters, somewhat conservative voters, Republicans and independents:
----------------------OBAMA--------ROMNEY-----GOODE
VERY CONSERVATIVE-------7-----------84----------7
SOMEWHAT CONSERVATIVE---19----------55----------14
REPUBLICANS-------------9-----------78----------9
INDEPENDENTS------------45----------26----------17
It doesn't take a genius to figure out Goode hurts Romney way more than he hurts Obama.
9) But don't third party bids eventually fizzle out?
Yes, that is the rule of thumb nationally. But in Virginia Goode ahs gained 4% in support since May and he's not even on the Virginia ballot yet. Even if he drops back to his previous level of support of 5% that would still be enough to sink Romney's ship in Virginia in a close contest.
10) Techno, could you explain why Virginia is so important?
It comes down to the number of electoral votes (EV) in the electoral college. The general consensus among the folks who do it for a living is that President Obama currently sits at 247 EV when you include all the safe blue states and those states leaning to Obama (likely to win). If Obama wins VA, a battleground state, that takes him to 260 EV and therefore only needs 10 more EV to hit the 270 EV threshold to win re-election. And here are the four swing states which Obama must win these 10 votes again based on a consensus of experts: Iowa (6), NH(4), Nevada (6) and Colorado (9). Obama is currently enjoying a small margin in the polls in every state but Iowa and is running neck and neck with Romney there.
Of course the dynamic of the race could shift in the next three months or so but it appears Obama has the edge in winning Colorado and its 9 EV. If he did that he would reach 269 EV and would only need to win one of the remaining three states to get a second term.
As for Mitt Romney if he loses Virginia, assuming he wins the other huge 4 swing states of Ohio, NC, Indiana and Florida and reaches 253 EV, Romney would be forced to win Colorado to have any chance of winning the presidency in the electoral college. The best he could hope for otherwise is a tie (269-269) in which case the contest goes to the House of Representatives.
One other element to consider: In 2008 President Obama won 1 EV in Nebraska who allots it EV by whoever wins the congressional district. Obama actually won this district (Omaha) by 9.77% which is a pretty hefty margin. If Obama could again win this district and on top of it win Virginia and Colorado that would take him to 270 EV on the button and Romney would be denied regardless of what he did in Iowa, NH and Nevada.
A final note: If Romney can win Virginia with Ohio, NC, Indiana and Florida he would then be at 266 EV. He would then not be forced to win Colorado but would only have to be victorious in Iowa to become the new president.
And that folks is why Team Obama has had many sleepless nights over the past 3 years. Virgil Goode is a godsend for Obama and his team.
You can skip on down the road with immoral folks if you want, but you're just dragging America to its doom.
You can skip on down the road with immoral folks if you want, but you're just dragging America to its doom.
America elected a guy in 2008 with ‘zero’ experience, I submit that EV would do a helluva better job than the Kenyan douchebag, but that’s just me.
We’re headed for more than the average political cataclysm in November, we’ve got the illegitimate Marxist regime of 0bamugabe vs what appears to be the liberal ‘socialist-lite’ challenge of Mitt-Witt. The ‘Rats are driving America towards the cliff of destruction at 100 mph, the RINO Party is offering to take their foot off the accelerator and reduce our speed to a thrifty 55 mph.
The sell outs who are all slobbering about Romney fail to understand that IF elected, Romney will be in the White House for EIGHT years (assuming he doesn’t keel over or something), because he would have to totally screw up in every way to surpass the standard of ‘FAIL’ that has been set by the Kenyan usurper. Romney will easily win renomination in 2016. Those thinking they can dump him in favor of a more conservative candidate after one term are engaging in the worst kind of political opium smoking with the hookah fully inserted.
An open convention complete with floor fights and challenges to the coronation of Romney? As desirable as the prospect is, it isn’t likely to happen.
My view?
Stock up on guns, ammo, and all the survival gear you can find.
“A vote is a blunt instrument, especially in comparison with a market.”
It works the exact same way. You’re trying to convince others to buy the crappy new cereal.
See, what happens with you is you buy the exact same cereal, even though you hate it and find it disgusting. Then it sits on your shelf, goes bad and you buy it again!
And again!
You are telling the market that you WANT marshmallows and sugar! And we are supposed to be surprised when we get marshmallows and sugar!
I don’t spend money on things I don’t like, and I certainly vote for the candidate that best represents me. In this case, the candidate closest to me is Virgil Goode.
Since the Republican party made a terrible business decision by going with Romney I am punishing their terrible business decision by rewarding Goode.
If they want my support - nominate a prolifer.
The same morons who Nevilled us by nominating Mitt Romney?
You play to win the game, not lose less badly...
Glad to see Mitt Romney earning the babykiller vote. :b:
I think the only person who could do a worse job would be Plugs Biden (but it would be real close!)
Using your logic, you would have advised the voters to go for Lugar, despite his RINO voting record and the fact he didn't even live in the state anymore.
As an aside, Lugar has proven to be a sore loser refusing to help Mourdock in his campaign. This is the problem with having politicians who have been feeding at the public trough most of their adult lives. They feel entitled to the position. You should walk the halls of Congress to see the trappings of power and the special interests standing at their door.
You criticize Ross Perot, but fail to understand why he had such traction among the voters. Third parties have a positive impact on the system. The two major parties start paying attention to third parties when their ideas gain traction among the public. Usually, the major parties adopt those ideas. Unfortunately, this time, movements like the Tea Party are being demonized instead of being embraced. The GOP does it as its peril.
I agree with you FRiend.
And for some reason, when I saw your FR screen name, the first thing that came into my mind was ‘inagaddadavida’, lol
Are they?
Goode thinks entitlements are not only constitutional, but sacrosanct when it comes to balancing the budget.
And, like many Ron Paul/CP types, his first target for budget-cutting is the defense budget.
Is that "all conservative"?
As for me, the defense budget is at the bottom of the list, not at the top, for any potential cuts.
And, along with the father of our Constitution, James Madison, "I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents."
There are other serious questions about what it is that Mr. Goode represents.
Does he agree with the party whose standard he now carries in its extreme isolationist positions? Does he want to pull our support for Israel, for example, like they do?
These are not unimportant questions.
The answer is obvious - Mitt Romney needs to do the right thing and drop out of the race and throw his support and money to Virgil Goode.
Don't answer a question with a question.
What I, or anybody, "really thinks" about what Goode knows or doesn't know about the Presidential ballot rules, and how they relate to the Virginia General Assembly's sole power to design a process for chusing electors, is irrelevant.
The question is, DOES he understand and WILL he comply?
Do, or do not. There is no try.
It's a good thing, however, that Indiana has a "sore loser" law that disallows the losers of primaries from running as independents in the general.
It's a shame Alaska doesn't have the same kind of law.
However, I think this brings up an interesting question - why is it that if a conservative wins a primary, the GOP-E thinks that it is perfectly acceptable for the RINO who lost the race to undercut the nominee, slam them in the media, and even run against them in the general on a third ticket? But, if the RINO wins, it's completely unacceptable for the conservative not to do the same to the RINO?
Even if the RINO, as in the case of Mitt Romney, only won by running an exceedingly dirty campaign characterised by all sorts of character assassination and dirty tricks at the local level?
Why can they do it to Christine O'Donnell, Joe Miller, and Sharron Angle, but we can't do it to them?
It's a good thing, however, that Indiana has a "sore loser" law that disallows the losers of primaries from running as independents in the general.
It's a shame Alaska doesn't have the same kind of law.
However, I think this brings up an interesting question - why is it that if a conservative wins a primary, the GOP-E thinks that it is perfectly acceptable for the RINO who lost the race to undercut the nominee, slam them in the media, and even run against them in the general on a third ticket? But, if the RINO wins, it's completely unacceptable for the conservative to do the same to the RINO?
Even if the RINO, as in the case of Mitt Romney, only won by running an exceedingly dirty campaign characterised by all sorts of character assassination and dirty tricks at the local level?
Why can they do it to Christine O'Donnell, Joe Miller, and Sharron Angle, but we can't do it to them?
The CP’s stand on national defense is what alarms me, EV. You are quite right to state that the common defense, which is one of the actual responsibilities of government that is unquestionably constitutional, should be the last item on the block.
The very best for our heroes. Now and always.
Absolutely.
Excellant post and accurate observations, you did a very good job of verbalizing my sentiments.
Here are some reasons for not voting for Romney: gun grab, abortions, homosexual agenda, man made global warming, big government, government mandates, government health care, disparaging of conservatives, attempted to destroy solid conservatives, disparaging of the Tea Party, taxes, active democrat until he ran for governor, liar, flip flopper, equating his sons campaigning for him equal to military service........oh there’s more but you should get it by now.
Are you consistent? Do you tell Romney wannabe voters in CA, OR, WA, IL, MN, Maine, NY, NJ, DC, MD, VT, MA, CT, DE that the winner in those states will be Obama...so why bother voting for Romney...that they should "get over it?" ????
If you live in one of those states (or in DC's case, a district), get over it. Romney won't win. Vote for Virgil Goode!
So anyone who disagrees with you is a fool - got it.
You do know that Romney was a democrat until he ran for governor - right?
Fortunately I live in California and can vote anyone I want because BHO has already won/bought this state.
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