No. In 2008 the country is going to choose what they believe is a moderate candidate. The difference is, Rudy will be the only moderate. Hillary is trying to repackage herself as one, just as her husband did in 1992. And as much as I despise the woman, the Clintons are masters at altering perception.
Fred Thompson can not beat Hillary. There simply aren’t enough conservatives to give him the presidency. Look at how many people now identify themselves as Republican as compared to Democrats. Where did Democrats get their gains - from conservatives disgusted with the GOP? No! From moderates.
This is a moderate country. Rudy’s views on abortion are closer in line to the majority’s opinion than Fred Thompson’s are. The biggest issue in 2008 will be an unpopular war in Iraq.
I agree the GOP doesn’t fare well when they run moderate candidates. But this year, they won’t have a choice. The country wants change. If the GOP doesn’t go along with that, they’ll be out in November 2008.
You have your view and I have mine. You favor the moderate Bush-Ford Republican, in spite of the historical evidence against such a course. I favor the Reagan paradigm because it works (landslides in 1980 and 1984). Being too conservative is not what brought the Republicans to their current low estate. It was being too “moderate”. The last thing the GOP needs is a good dose of liberalism (Rudy). Time will prove where wisdom lies.