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Mitch Daniels Is Unelectable
Riehl World View ^ | 5/20/2011 | Dan Riehl

Posted on 05/21/2011 9:03:11 AM PDT by Qbert

With friends like Conor with one N, Mitch Daniels probably doesn't need enemies within the conservative base.

Everything is upside down in the Republican primaries. The GOP establishment is rallying behind a principled candidate with a proven conservative track record. That's upsetting the conservative base: on talk radio and right wing blogs, they concede that the man in question governs as a staunch conservative, but insist his candidacy isn't viable because he lacks charisma and electability.

Gee, Daniels is making headlines, again. He has a real gift for that.

Indiana Republican governor Mitch Daniels was hit in the forehead by a swinging door after concluding a workout Friday afternoon, prompting an injury that required 16 stitches.

Naturally, a silly boy like Friedersdorf would love Daniels. Conor with one N doesn't understand, let alone effort to advance conservatism, while doing more harm, than good, to it when he purportedly does try. As for Daniels, time after time he has proved himself gaffe-prone and self-defeating whenever his profile rises to the level of national politics. I don't care how right he is for Indiana, or what his record may, or may not be. He's unelectable, even if the so-called elite's calculations claim he is the answer to all things Republican in 2012.

Ideology aside, if we can learn anything from watching John McCain stumble and bumble his way through the 2008 general election, it should be that a self-destructive, not truly ready for prime-time, ultimately uninspiring and unsympathetic figure will not do well against Obama. Whatever Obama is, or isn't, when it comes to performing on the campaign trail, with all the help he gets from the media, it's as if he can do no wrong.

The GOP can not afford a 2012 nominee who has consistently demonstrated an uncanny ability to say and do precisely the wrong thing to the wrong people at the wrong time. If anything, Daniels makes Romney's relatively weak political judgment look strong by comparison. The Indiana Governor is unelectable and, frankly, I'm not interested in hearing what a great conservative he is, allegedly.

It's time for the so-called elites to figure out that much of the opposition to Daniels has little to do with ideology and much to do with his earned perception of being unelectable in 2012.  To the extent things may be turned upside down right now, it's that the grassroots get that and the establishment GOP hasn't figured it out. But then, perhaps that isn't all that surprising given what we've seen from them for the last decade, or more.


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KEYWORDS: 2012; daniels; mitchdaniels
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To: PhiloBedo
Daniels record is certainly not Leftwingtard.

BTW, you continue to misuse RINO ~ a RINO was always a Democrat that local Republicans got to run under the Republican banner. This usually happened in districts or states where there were so many Democrats that it was unlikely a regular Republican could win.

We used the method successfully to break down the lock the Democrats had on the "Solid South".

There's no justification whatsoever for using RINO to mean LEFTWINGTARD. You have Liberal, Left, Commie, Pinko, and so forth already. If you misuse RINO for this purpose you'll lose the use of the term for its intended purpose.

NOTE: We used to call Leftleaning East Coast Republicans "Rockefeller Republicans".

You'll find Daniels is quite a bit to the "right" of such folks ~ and is far more Conservative than Nixon, Ford, Reagan or the two Bush Presidents.

Although Reagan broke PATCO, he didn't try to get a national Right To Work Law.

I'd suggest Daniels might well go for it ~ not just for government unions but all unions.

None of which means I'd vote for the guy. Technically speaking, on all the issues facing this nation, I'm more inclined to have Kasich on the job ~ he's not likely to ever get it though.

101 posted on 05/21/2011 3:39:02 PM PDT by muawiyah
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To: Qbert

I agree that he is unelectable but for a different reason: He is supported by Rove, Will, et. al. A lot of us out here (many more than the DC elites can imagine) simply will not vote for ANY candidate they choose. It sounds irrational, and perhaps it is, but it’s true.


102 posted on 05/21/2011 3:48:50 PM PDT by AdaGray
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To: Politicalmom
Remember, Daniels ancestors were Syrian Catholics, not Syrian Moslems.

A point being made here was pretty obvious ~ it's about Syrian toleration. Although that's not all that obvious at the moment with the dictator having demonstrators shot, you have to remember that the dictator is an Alawi ~ a group considered NON ISLAMIC by virtually all other Moslems. They even celebrate some Christian traditions.

Daniels message, in contrast, was that he was also of Syrian Christian descent and was not like the Alawi dictator ~ which, no doubt, made the various Moslems there relieved.

There is a substantial Syrian Christian population in Indianapolis, and several other series. There's even a large Syrian Christian family who have owned working farms in Jennings and Jackson counties for what I believe must be at least 6 generations now.

Most folks in Indiana have no idea that their Arab neighbors are Arabs ~ just not a big deal. Could be that most all of them are Christians and were readily assimilated into the only state in the nation that does not have a single county with more than 25% of the local population belonging to just one sort of church.

When I was just a kid there were candy counters in all the major department stores around indiana. You'd go there and buy fresh made chocolate and caramel covered fruit and nut concoctions ~ even cheesecake. Through the years those counters, and the folks who operated them, were assimilated into the larger world and pre-manufactured and plastic packaged candy took over the scene.

Then, one day, a Pakistani "Sweet Shop" opened up over the way and there they were ~ the same candies and sweets prepared the same way. I regularly pick up fresh "Turkish" candies on my trips back to see the old folks. They had a taste for those things as well.

Kind of amazing we have an Arabic Presbyterian as Governor of Indiana ~ a definite transcultural time dilation factor fur shur.

103 posted on 05/21/2011 3:55:14 PM PDT by muawiyah
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To: AdaGray
Rove has no powerbase these days and Will is senile.

You sure their opinions are meaningful?

104 posted on 05/21/2011 3:56:17 PM PDT by muawiyah
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To: wtc911

“Mitch Daniels decertified all public unions, entirely rescinding their collective-bargaining rights, on his first day in office in 2005. Wisconsin governor Scott Walker, as a reminder, sought to limit collective-bargaining rights for most public-sector employees, with notable exceptions for public-safety workers (most not all).

In other words, Mitch Daniels has already done more on the issue of public-sector unions than Scott Walker even tried to do.”

—Ah, no. Walker signed the WI collective bargaining repeal bill into law. Daniels merely issued an executive order. A bill signed into law is much, much harder to undo (see e.g., Obamacare) than an executive order. The next Dem governor can rescind Daniels’ EO.

And don’t just take my word for it...:

“[W]e’re not... advocating quite the same things they are up in Madison.”

- Gov. Daniels, 2011

“The Democrat minority in the Indiana legislature wields considerable power that Daniels has no choice but to deal with.”

—Really? Somehow he called on his own party to make a “truce”, but apparently when it comes to bargaining with the opposition party that idea is inapplicable. How will he get his signature pieces of legislation passed as president if the GOP doesn’t get to 60 in the Senate? Reagan didn’t always have a favorable Congress, and yet he accomplished much of his goals.

...As for the rest of your comment, why do many Daniels’ backers automatically make assumptions about who people supposedly do, or don’t support?


105 posted on 05/21/2011 4:16:10 PM PDT by Qbert ("The best defense against usurpatory government is an assertive citizenry" - William F. Buckley, Jr.)
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To: Qbert
“The Democrat minority in the Indiana legislature wields considerable power that Daniels has no choice but to deal with.” —Really?

________________________________________

Yes, really. With a quorum of 67 required to pass anything and only 60 GOP members he needs at least 7 dems on board to pass anything.

If you still don't get it let me know and I'll explain it a third time.

106 posted on 05/21/2011 4:27:12 PM PDT by wtc911 ("How you gonna get down that hill?")
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To: wtc911

“If you still don’t get it let me know and I’ll explain it a third time.”

You might want to down the sass, and respond to the rest of my point...


107 posted on 05/21/2011 4:29:55 PM PDT by Qbert ("The best defense against usurpatory government is an assertive citizenry" - William F. Buckley, Jr.)
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To: Qbert
Or you might want to be honest and acknowledge that without the dems in attendance Daniels (or anyone else in his position) could get nothing accomplished.

Allow me to rephrase that now and save myself a second post....

You might want to admit the facts of Daniels problem with having the dems taking off...

no dems = no quorum....

no quorum = no legislative activity

You might...but you won't...it doesn't fit your agenda.

108 posted on 05/21/2011 4:39:18 PM PDT by wtc911 ("How you gonna get down that hill?")
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To: wtc911

Yes, yes, and I suppose that it isn’t at all humanly possible that if the Dems acted like WI flee baggers and took off for months and months that at some point Indiana voters would get really PO’d at them, and demand they return...

And again, what is he going to do if he becomes president, and the Dems filibuster every big thing that he wants to accomplish? Pardon me if I’m a bit skeptical.


109 posted on 05/21/2011 4:49:43 PM PDT by Qbert ("The best defense against usurpatory government is an assertive citizenry" - William F. Buckley, Jr.)
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To: trisham

That photo is a perfect interjection!


110 posted on 05/21/2011 5:09:39 PM PDT by 9YearLurker
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To: Qbert

Pawlenty!


111 posted on 05/21/2011 11:16:28 PM PDT by jocon307
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To: muawiyah

If Daniels get the nomination, they are. Otherwise, it is time to move on. Right now the only people I would consider are Palin and/or Perry.


112 posted on 05/22/2011 3:26:01 PM PDT by AdaGray
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To: AdaGray

Perry is a leftwingtard with a poor record on real Conservative action items.


113 posted on 05/22/2011 3:31:58 PM PDT by muawiyah
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To: muawiyah

Okay.


114 posted on 05/22/2011 5:14:42 PM PDT by AdaGray
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To: John W

“Mitch and Sarah seem to generate a lot of vitriol. Wonder why?”

I don’t see it as vitriol. It’s the truth - we have to know the electorate as well as the enemy we face. If we really feel BHO must go in order for our republic to survive, then by God, we’d better have someone who can go toe to toe with the slickster in chief, who’s charismatic, dynamic and poised enough to defeat him.

Conservative AND cool.


115 posted on 05/26/2011 12:10:51 AM PDT by llandres (Forget the "New America" - restore the original one!!)
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To: Aria

“Superficial I know but these things have a way of adding up.”

Face it, most of the Millions who voted for BHO are superficial, and those things influence them.

I don’t like that Daniels admires Lugar either. Lugar should either retire or change parties and be done with it.


116 posted on 05/26/2011 12:20:27 AM PDT by llandres (Forget the "New America" - restore the original one!!)
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To: Aria

Not to mention - when was the last time the shorter candidate won?

*********************************************************

When Bush the Younger beat Algore.


117 posted on 05/26/2011 12:26:04 AM PDT by SUSSA
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To: chasio649

“Oh..Cain...well..Colin and Condi cured that ;)”

They’re not conservative (particularly Colin). There’s another C - Clarence. He’s still on the bench and has weathered many storms - a good conservative.

We have one black prez, we can have another. And there are many blacks (and hispanics) who are conservative, actually - especially on things like family values and right to life. Having a conservative black candidate could definitely grab a lot of those votes. And kids - well, polls are showing that since they all turned out once to vote for the first black prez, large numbers of them will NOT bother to vote this time around (which is a good thing).


118 posted on 05/26/2011 1:16:49 AM PDT by llandres (Forget the "New America" - restore the original one!!)
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To: Politicalmom

“gifts ranging from books on Muslim sex education”

I won’t even go there.

“Local Muslims say such political connections are important if their concerns are to be heard in government.”

Their “concerns” shouldn’t be heard in government! What about all the blasted “separation of church and state” we get crammed down our throats?

Oh, I see - it only applies to Infidels’ religion.

Thanks for posting this, though - I had no idea and now have no doubt that Daniels would’ve been a BAD choice.


119 posted on 05/26/2011 1:28:11 AM PDT by llandres (Forget the "New America" - restore the original one!!)
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