I've taken a similar view. I never disliked Romney much until (well after McCain had clinched it mind you) his "supporters" on here started spouting off a cavalcade of lies about him. Same deal with Perry, I went from a solid "meh" to committed opponent to him thanks to bull like "Al Gore was a conservative". Perhaps it's unfair of me.
I plan to vote for Bachmann or Santorum, which ever is in better shape, if either of them are still alive when Illinois rolls around.
I've heard it postulated that Newt will win Iowa and NH thus forcing Mitt from the race and then it will be Newt versus an "anti-Newt" the rest of the way. I have trouble seeing that, seems to that me if someone wins Iowa and NH they'll cruise to the nomination.
Auh2o made a good point about Bachmann, she was up before then fell (she was the first, before Perry), is a rerise really in the cards? As for her being "ready" she's ready enough for me. She'd be an easy target for cruxifiction by the media though.
Santorum on the other hand is only one who hasn't had a moment in the sun yet. He outta get a look now. I'd don't love him, I was all over him for that Arlen Specter business and mocked the idea he should run after his butt-kicking in 2006 but next to Newt...I'd take him.
This has been like riding the world's worst roller coaster and then being forced to vote for a pile of some kid's puke.
yeah, mccain cruised after FLA ... but Huck was the alternative and won a few states.
things are more drawn out in 2012, longer calendar and early states are not winner take all.
if newt did knock mitt out, he ain’t winning everything and somebody will stay in for the attention and the need to keep ronpaul from gathering delegates. Ronpaul will not be allowed to be the anti-newt.
I also plan to vote for Bachmann or Santorum if they are still running by the time Illinois votes (even if they are in single digits and haven't won any states), simply because I would rather make a statement than stay home because the good guys have no chance. In 2000, I cast a token protest vote for Alan Keyes because my guy Forbes had dropped out and I didn't like Bush or McCain (though honestly, a Romney vs. Newt choice is so bad that Bush looks pretty darned good in comparison, even knowing in hindsight how lousy his second term was). I don't think Bachmann or Santorum is likely to get back in the game and pose a threat to the RINOs but I hope I'm wrong. Given how many ups and downs we've had, I certainly wouldn't rule out Newt returning to his previous place a single-digit late-nite joke when the primaries actually get underway.
Cain was my third choice so not much has changed for me as I always preferred Bachmann or Santorum over him (one of the reasons being Cain and many of his fans were far too cozy with Newt and fantasizing about having that scumbag on the ticket with him!), but since Cain was a good guy it really is a punch in the stomach to see him forced out of the race from a nonstop assault from the MSM. I think it's typical of Obama thugs in the Chicago machine and their fingerprints are all over this, right down to one of the Cain accusers living right down from Axelrod (if this is a coincidence, I'm an Eskimo) Obama's career has always been to quickly destroy any candidate would is making waves as a rising new star and stands a good chance to steal his thunder. Jack Ryan was thus "taken out" with the non-scandal of wanting to have kinky sex WITH HIS OWN WIFE, Sarah Palin was viciously attacked with all kinds of made up B.S. during the 2008 campaign like her youngest child "really" being her grandchild, etc., and now the attempt to paint Cain as Clintonesque. It just reinforces what I said about Rick Perry having no clue what's in store with him if he had to go up against the full force of the thugs in the Chicago machine, because he's used to running in elections where the Democrats don't even try.
Newt is old news, the Dems are practically licking their chops at the thought of him being the nominee and are holding their fire until he gets the nomination. I've ranked Newt worse than Romney not because I think he's to the left of Romney and an evil RINO, but because it would be suicide to nominate the guy. Run Newt, and Obama wins re-election easily. You heard it here first. Like South40 said, under no circumstances will I support someone who gives Obama a 2nd term. Newt's been out of office for years so he's polling "ok" now when many voters don't remember him and see him as little more than a well-spoken anti-Obama Republican, but the Dems have so much dirt on this guy they'll make him less popular than Darth Vader by November 2012. It's shades of arguing with Katherine Harris supporters during the Florida primary all over again. They'll tell you only RINOs hate their candidate, the GOP establishment is 'biased against' their candidate (even though their candidate IS a long time insider of the GOP establishment!) and anything that shows their candidate will get killed in the general is a 'MSM smear'
I hate to follow the herd mentality here but I agree with the freepers saying they choose to hold their nose for McCain in 2008 to support Palin and won't do it again in 2012. People can scream all they want about how refusing to support the GOP nominee helps Obama, we all know that unless you live in one of 12 or so swing states, your vote won't change the outcome of the election. If you live in Massachusetts, the state's electoral votes will go RAT on election day no matter who the GOP nominee against Obama is. The reverse is true if you live in Oklahoma. I will probably vote Constitution Party over Newt, even if picks a good conservative running mate Marco Rubio or Paul Ryan. I've had it up to here with these backstabbing scumbags in the GOP, plus a bunch of freepers who DEMAND I support their slimeball in November will never do likewise and support my candidate if their precious "tea party reformer" didn't win the primary. I know several Illinois freepers last year who openly trashed Bill Brady (the most conservative nominee we had for Illinois governor in 40 years!) simply because their guy didn't win the primary -- AFTER promising they would support the nominee as long as it was Brady, Proft, or Andrejewski. Screw these backstabbing freepers and they're "my way or the highway" mentality. I bet you a bunch of these Newt lovers accusing us of "helping Obama" would refuse to vote for Santorum or Bachmann over Obama, in spite of what they're saying now.
I agree that both Perry and Romney's supporters turned from me "eh, I not thrilled about your guy but I could stomach him" into a "I hate your guy's guts and I hope he loses and goes away", simply because of their lies and heavy-handed tactics of screaming "BIGOT!!!!!!!!" if you question their man. Newt's fans have used a couple of the same tactics but what really turned me from "Meh" to "Go to hell" about Newt's candidacy is Newt himself. I KNOW the "new Newt" hasn't changed and he's still an arrogant, self-serving narcissist who treats people like dirt because I WITNESSED him do so myself. There's some idiot Kirk fan on here who keeps accusing me of having a personal "vendetta" against Kirk because I bash the RINO scumbag (apparently he never noticed the anti-McCain & Graham posts are 10x worse than anything I ever said against Kirk), and I've told him over and over again I've never met Kirk but simply despise him because of his socialist record. Gingrich I HAVE met face to face and I have the photo of us shaking hands to prove it. I don't like Newt's record, and I don't like Newt as a person. Period. Character counts, and this man proved to me that he has none.
If I had to guess today, ultimate we will end up wit Romney as the GOP nominee. But that's not my fault. That's the fault of freepers who propped up one phony "conservative" after another on here and split the conservative vote so the decent candidates had no shot. Look at Donald Trump's fans... I thought they learned their lesson after his phony "campaign" for the GOP nominee was proved to a ruse all along, but this week they're out in force and claiming an Obama shill and must love the CNN debates if I think GOP candidates should stop groveling to this fraud. Incredible. Conservatives are their own worst enemy