Posted on 02/08/2012 8:25:55 AM PST by Lakeshark
Monday night, I sat looking at the GOP primary schedule and, considering Mitt Romney's enormous fundraising advantage, was filled with a sense of foreboding. After Newt Gingrich's meltdown in Nevada, the prospects for the conservative "Anybody But Romney" opposition looked grim indeed.
Rick Santorum's 3-for-3 hat-trick Tuesday night, however, revives the glimmer of a possibility that Romney can still be beat. But it will nevertheless be a difficult challenge and, in the short term, will require at least tacit cooperation between the Santorum and Gingrich campaigns.
**snip**
Some such arrangement would seem to offer the best hope of stopping Romney, if the conservative rivals Gingrich and Santorum are really serious about stopping Romney at all costs. The two conservatives would have to be willing to postpone until after Super Tuesday a showdown between themselves, knowing that neither of them has a good chance at the nomination unless -- by a modicum of tactical cooperation in the near term -- they can deliver enough defeats to Romney to stop him from building an insuperable early lead in the delegate count.
This kind of cooperation between two candidates in the GOP nomination contest would be unprecedented, but would simply replicate how the campaign has played out accidentally so far: Santorum upset Romney in Iowa and then, after Romney won New Hampshire, Gingrich won South Carolina, depriving Romney of a snowballing "inevitability" momentum. After two more Romney wins in Florida and Nevada, which threatened another "inevitability" snowball, Santorum came back to score big Tuesday in Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado. What the Santorum-Gingrich tag-team has so far achieved against Romney in sequential contests, they must now attempt to repeat in simultaneous contests.
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
I think Santorum could win this if Newt dropped out. I don’t think Newt could beat Romney if Santorum dropped out. Newt has hit a wall with Married women and has too much baggage. Santorum can win this and Newt chould put his Ego away and do the right thing.
Santorum and Gingrich really can’t form an alliance because they have very different political philosophies. Santorum is Romney lite - he’s a GOP establishment guy who is different from Romney only in his social conservatism, and in being a dweeby, Jimmy Carter type of person rather than a crazy eyed Mormon missionary type. He’s not likeable, but he’s sure a lot more likeable than Romney, who has absolutely distinguished himself in this campaign by being vicious, petty, deceitful - and having that expressionless, synthetic but at the same time aggressive Mormon-missionary face that really turns people off.
Since Romney and Santorum share a lot of positions and both of them have launched personal attacks on Gingrich, I’d say that voters weren’t going for ideas but for the lesser of two evils. Romney was expected to win, thus indicating a large percentage of middle of the road, semi-RINO voters, and Gingrich wasn’t even on the ballot in the only real primary, so the voters that Romney was courting clearly indicated that he is so unpleasant that they too will pick anybody but him.
I hope GOP Central gets the message.
To the headline: (I wanted to say bat but that’s going to far) so I will say instead, with dirty underwear.
...there was some sort of embrace of Newt because he was vicious in attacking the media.
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But, you can only ride that ol’ horse so far. Newt has been flat since South Carolina.
Gingrich, for all of "pluses" (and there are many) is not electable for many reasons, most important of which (I'm sad to say) is appearance. Too many voters will vote for Obama's car-salesman smile over Gingrich's dissolute slob optics. (Yes, things should be different.)
Mister Gingrich's numerous crazy Ivans while in the Congress and while in front of a camera would provide endless fodder for the billion dollars of campaign $$$ that Obama has extracted from his fellow travelers. The easiest job in the world, my FRiends, would be to write anti-Newt ad copy. There is nobody Newt G can blame for this, he chose to say the things he said, to cast the votes he voted, and to make the "family" decisions he made. Frankly, Gingrich's toxicity is his own doing.
Santorum keeps looking more and more like a winner, and our best possible candidate (from among the group of 4 remaining.)
.
Newt and his people have been calling for Santorum to drop out and support Newt. Well, Santorum has won 4 State contests and Newt has won 1. (Mittens has won 2). So, someone tell me again who should drop out.
Santorum has now won more states than Mitt & Newt. It is time for Newt to drop out, and clear path for Santorum. One on one, Rick will defeat Mitt. If both stay in (Newt & Rick) then advantage goes to Mitt, since he collects proportional delegates in each contest.
“What the Santorum-Gingrich tag-team has so far achieved against Romney in sequential contests, they must now attempt to repeat in simultaneous contests.”
The people seem to be doing this on their own. It may not take collaberation between the campaigns.
CHeck out Trisha Erickson’s book: CAN MITT ROMNEY SERVE TWO MASTERS?
Trisha’ father was a bishop just like ROmney. She has much inside information on the subject. Her credentials are outstanding. has spoken on several local radio stations, but has not hit MSM yet.
They are available in paper back from Amazon. You may want to order more than one to share.
If GOP doesn’t vet this issue now. You can bet that Axelrod will in the fall if Romney gets the nomination.
You may be interested in this article- Romney’s New Two-Front War http://race42012.com/2012/02/08/romneys-new-two-front-war/
Gingrich and Santorum have already figured this out. They are both better off if they both stay. Two targets for Romney makes it much harder for him to repeat what he did in Iowa and Florida to Newt. Plus, the more Romney stays negative the harder it becomes for him to be the nominee.
You keep repeating this tired, backhanded attack on Santorum and again I ask - and you seem unable to answer:
Really?
Evidence?
Santorum & Gingrich were united in favor of the Balanced Budget Amendment that nearly passed.
Santorum & Gingrich were united in favor of the Medicare Part D prescription drug entitlement - Santorum later said it was a mistake.
Santorum & Gingrich were united in favor of earmark use as the duty of Congress to allocate government spending. (Gingrich promoted earmark usage as a way to help Republicans get reelected.)
Santorum & Gingrich are promoting radical tax reductions & reforms as a key part of their platforms.
They have many of the same triumphs and missteps. Why do you insist on demonizing Santorum?
That’s my plan, ld.
Speaking of war...
Heres Romney in a 2008 debate...
The job description of a CIC from a businessman’s point of view...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBTPZxRcD0I&feature=related
Santorum is Romney lite
This has to be the dumbest statement I have ever seen on Free Republic. Sorry your candidate can’t gain any traction and won only one state but to start spreading insane statements is not a good way to show maturity.
Ever since Michelle Bachmann dropped out I have been saying that Santorum was the only one left worth voting for. I believe that Newt and Paul are the only two in the campaign that never had a chance to win against Obama.
Unfortunately Rick Santorum, while better than Romney is not near the candidate Michelle Bachman was as far as conservative principles. Rick voting against right to work laws is an example of his lack of conservative principles, but you have to work with what you have.
I really think that Santorum has a good chance at beating Romney. He doesn’t need any help from Newt Gingrich, except I think if Newt were to drop out now that Rick could possibly win every primary from here on. With Newt taking 10 or 15% of the votes away from Santorum it allows Mitt Romney to get his 35 or 40% to be at the top.
I realize that it looks like Newt is in it just to hurt Romney, I don’t believe that is true. Newt is in it for Newt and will be just as hard on Santorum as he is on Mitt Romney when he realizes that Santorum will take it away from him.
There is a lot to really like about Newt, I sure love the way he handles the press but his emotions too often get the best of him. I don’t think he could ever win an election against Obama, sad!
I think that Rick Santorum or Mitt Romney could easily win against the “O”. If Mitt Romney was what he says he is in his political speeches then he might be a really good president but alas he has never governed from the right, and I know of nothing to make me believe that he would in the future.
Rick Santorum has a pretty good voting record, he has definitely been on the right side of the abortion issue. Mitt Romney, although he says he is NOW on the right side of the abortion issue, talk is cheap.
Which ever candidate wins, they need to emphasize that abortion has killed 40 milion black kids. I think that is the only way to get the black vote. If you take nearly any percentage of the black vote away from the Democrats you will win the election. Nobody is willing to go after the black vote because they think Democrats is all blacks know and trust, but I think with the abortion issue it is doable.
Go Rick!
"Motor City hospitality dictates a Michigan message to Mitt that our struggling families, entrepreneurs and workers can't afford policies that make Mr. Romney and Mr. Obama less than rivals, and more like running mates." Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0611/56527.html#ixzz1loNQKOSF
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