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I agree maybe with your principle, but consider this demurral:

I fear that a long divided race, in which the McC/Schw camps campaign against each other day after day, week after week, could have a very bad result. Look at FR; the McC fans tend to greet EVERY conservative syllable Schw or an aide speaks with mocking and derision. They rip his supporters as sell-outs, RINO's, compromisers. I'm not even full-out, but even for making a case for Schw, I've been called a supposed, fake conservative -- which is hilarious to anyone who knows me at all.

I could go on, but my point is that days or weeks of two GOP candidates and their supporters bashing EACH OTHER instead of Davis and Bustar, can only be destructive. It diverts money and efforts to in-fighting. It hardens feelings and draws thick lines. Whoever comes out on top may not be supported by those driven to extreme statements and positions.

I might suggest shortening it to a few days or a week, and if Simon dropping out doesn't bring McC (who I'd prefer as governor, if ideology were the only criterion) within 5 points of Schw, he drops out and supports Schw, and Schw takes him as advisor or SOMETHING.

Think about it, tell me your opinion.

Dan

I fear that a long divided race, in which the McC/Schw camps campaign against each other day after day, week after week, could have a very bad result.
Look at FR; the McC fans tend to greet EVERY conservative syllable Schw or an aide speaks with mocking and derision. They rip his supporters as sell-outs, RINO's, compromisers.
I'm not even full-out, but even for making a case for Schw, I've been called a supposed, fake conservative -- which is hilarious to anyone who knows me at all...
Hey, you supposed, fake conservative sell-out RINO! :o)

As I posted on another thread:

As difficult as this may be to believe, there is actually a world OUTSIDE of Free Republic, in in THAT world, Arnold has not yet even BEGUN to soar - up, up, UP...

Check out the "reaction of the masses" at Arnold's FIRST PUBLIC APPEARANCE since his announcement as a candidate for Governor - in the (relatively) conservative Orange County city of Huntington Beach:

Schwarzenegger Gets Hero's Welcome in Surf City
Reuters ^ | 8/22/03 | Dan Whitcomb
Posted on 08/22/2003 7:01 PM PDT by kattracks

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (Reuters) - Arnold Schwarzenegger received a hero's welcome in this beach town on Friday, thrilling hundreds of swimsuit-clad admirers and winning endorsements for his gubernatorial bid from a Republican congressman and key fund-raisers.
Wading into throngs of cheering supporters in Southern California's Huntington Beach -- known as Surf City, California -- Schwarzenegger made like a veteran politician, shaking hands, kissing babies and posing for photographs.
He ducked into two restaurants and a surf shop, saying he had been talking to the owners about "the burden they go through every day running a business in California."
"Wait until October 7, we're going to turn this mess around," the candidate said, referring to the date of the recall election.
A Los Angeles Times Poll released on Friday showed voters were nearly evenly split on whether to recall California Gov. Gray Davis, who is a Democrat.
Schwarzenegger is the front-running Republican candidate.
U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a conservative Republican who strolled down Main Street with Schwarzenegger, said he endorsed the actor because Schwarzenegger was the strongest candidate, and his beliefs most closely mirrored those of Rohrabacher.
California Republicans, however, have begun to fret that with three other well-known conservatives in the race, the party may be too fragmented to win the governor's seat and could hand the race to leading Democrat, Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante.
The influential Lincoln Club of Orange County, a Republican fund-raising organization, called on Republican challengers Bill Simon, Peter Ueberroth and Tom McClintock to drop out.
"Each is a noble and principled man and would distinguish the Republican Party," said club President Tracy Price. "However, in our view, they can't win. They can only spoil our chances of electing a Republican governor and turning the state around."
PARTY POLITICS AND POLLS
Schwarzenegger refused to be drawn into party politics, saying each politician had to make his or her own decision.
"They are all people I respect. They are all Republicans. They work very hard and at one point or another they have to make a decision. I can't make it for them," he said.
But when pressed, he added: "Obviously, mathematically speaking, it's wiser to only have one candidate."
Recent polls have consistently shown Davis would likely lose his seat and be replaced by either Schwarzenegger or Bustamante.
In Friday's Los Angeles Times poll of 1,351 registered voters, 50 percent of respondents supported the recall, while 45 percent opposed it and 5 percent were undecided. Seventy-two percent said they disapproved of Davis' performance.
Meanwhile, Bustamante picked up endorsements from the state's Democratic congressional delegation and two labor unions. Democratic leaders initially tried to discourage party members from challenging Davis, but switched tactics when it appeared Davis was in trouble.
The governor's wife, Sharon Davis, told CNN on Friday that the change in tactics did not indicate a loss of support for her embattled husband.
"They are all united in one point and that is 'no' on the recall," she said. "It makes a lot of sense what the Democrats are doing, they want a Democratic governor."
At an appearance with Latino business leaders in San Diego, Davis urged voters to reject the recall, calling it "undemocratic." (Additional reporting by Gina Keating)
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I say Arnold should make Tom state budget director.

I think you can make too much out of what goes on here at FR. We aren't a representative sample of even conservative voters. We are activists and so our degree of intensity is substantially higher.

I think that Arnold can run hard right on fiscal conservatism-- he'll release a plan soon, so we'll see if that will be the case-- and pick up the pragmatic McClintock supporters. If Tom drops out and endorses Arnold, even though his name will still be on the ballot, I don't see many Tom supporters voting for a candidate who has asked to not be voted for. Furthermore, I bet that they won't stay home regardless-- they can still vote in favor of the recall.

There are plenty of days left. There will be debates and Arnold has only put out one ad so far. There will be many more-- probably starting next week. Republicans can do okay in races where name ID is low for the Dem candidates-- Bill Jones in 1998, McClintock in 2002. Bustamante's name ID is far higher. Furthermore, the race itself is high profile and the office itself is high profile. Attempting to get Tom elected last year was FAR easier a task than stopping the predisposition of California's voters to support a Dem for a major statewide office, particularly one with high media attention.

I also think that the Dems have an ace in the hole they can still play-- Davis resigns and Bustamante runs in the recall as an incumbent. This would make the recall a referendum on Bustamante and the recall itself may not then pass, making the second ballot question moot. Think a Dem state would think that's too cute by half? Ask Sen. Forrester.