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Posted on 11/16/2011 5:40:28 PM PST by SeekAndFind
So here's the game we're playing this week.
GOP primary voters see Romney (26 percent) and Cain (25 percent) as the most likeable Republican contenders. They view Paul (15 percent) and Bachmann (12 percent) as the least likeable. Cain ties with Bachmann as the second least likeable (12 percent), putting him in the unique position of making the top three in both likeable and unlikeable groups.
When asked who they would trust most with nuclear weapons, nearly twice as many primary voters say Gingrich than Romney (30 percent and 17 percent respectively). Those voters would least trust Paul (13 percent), Bachmann (11 percent) and Cain (10 percent) with nukes.
What about electability? GOP primary voters overwhelmingly see Romney as the Republican with the best chance of beating Barack Obama in the general election. Thirty-seven percent of primary voters think Romney is the most electable candidate. That’s double the number that says Gingrich (18 percent) and Cain (17 percent). Three percent of GOP primary voters think none of the Republicans can beat Obama.
Fully 60 percent of primary voters say they might still change their minds, including nearly seven in 10 Romney supporters(!). The good news for Cain is that 52 percent think the women who accused him of harassment are being motivated by money or politics versus just 25 percent who think they’re telling the truth. The bad news is that 23 percent say the charges are enough to disqualify him and another 43 percent say they need more information to decide. He’s down nine points overall this month. As for Perry, he was at 19 percent in September, 10 percent last month, and … seven percent this month, just one point ahead of Bachmann. Seven percent is where he is in Iowa right now too. Barring a total collapse by both Gingrich and Cain, remind me again how he wins the caucuses and catapults himself back into a two-man race with Romney.
Actually, here’s a freaky deaky scenario for you via the Daily Caller, but one which I’ve been thinking about myself: What if Ron Paul wins Iowa? He’s already at 19 percent in one poll, a single thin point behind Cain. If he’s close the last week before the caucuses, Paulnuts in Iowa will be turbo-charged to turn out for him and pull the upset. If that happens, he’ll get a bounce heading into New Hampshire — and he’s already second there too, albeit a very distant second to Romney. New Hampshire famously loves dark horses and mavericks so maybe he pulls the upset there too, and before you know it Ron Paul’s the nominee and we’re suddenly the party of “friendship” with Iran. No no, I kid. A Paul win in Iowa would, I take it, be Romney’s dream come true because it would finally break down the last resistance among Mitt-hating mainstream Republicans to voting for him. If there’s a viable Not Romney to vote for in New Hampshire, South Carolina, or Florida, that’s a tough call; if there’s just Mitt and Ron Paul, well, we’ll have to suck it up. Exit question one: Will Team Romney quietly send the Mittheads out to caucus for Paul on January 3? Exit question two: Did I read that blockquote correctly? The most likable candidate in the Republican field isn’t Herman Cain but … Mitt Romney? Good lord.
Look Who's Smiling,"
GOP primary voters see Romney (26 percent) and Cain (25 percent) as the most likeable Republican contenders.
This is what I care about. Cain will win this thing and send Romney back to the Olympics. Perhaps he can help with the London Olympics. Cain 2012. All the other crap is noise. I don’t care about who you would trust with the nuc button. That has never been asked before. Just a way to lift liberal Nancy Pelosi lover Newt.
Another pro Romney poll for Fox...
I am certainly not the person to do it,
but “somebody” ought to post a thread
discussing the actual, authorized, constitutional powers of the president.
The media and the sheeple would have us all believe that we have a king.
The powers granted to the president are actually few and limited.
Most of the crap about “if I am elected president I will...” is little more than hogwash.
The president can not:
...build a border wall...
...institute a flat tax...
...institute a 9-9-9 tax plan...
...reform medicare/medicaid...
...reform social security...
...etc., etc., etc.
The president can veto bills, nominate supreme court justices, name ambassadors, and is the commander in chief of the armed forces.
Ninety nine percent of all the credit/blame placed on “the president” is misplaced
and should rightfully be credited/blamed on our representatives and senators.
There were no “bush tax cuts” ... congress did it...
There is no “obamacare” ... congress did it...
...etc., etc., etc...
Cain simply doesn't know enough about policy to win the nomination. He draws a blank on anything that can't be answered with 999 (which isn't good policy either). Sorry, Herman won't be the nominee. Nice guy, good motivational speaker, not ready for prime time.
Gingrich or Perry are the only viable alternatives to Romney. Sadly, Perry can't communicate well enough for the job. Newt seems to be the only real option at this point.
Gotta agree. Cain is being vetted and won’t make it. Sorry guys.
And I am telling you that if we pick Newt or Perry for that fact, we will lose. Why are FREEPERS giving up on the conservatives? Bachmann is extremely intelligent. Santorum is so conservative that I don’t think anyone is more so and Cain has a varied experience that no other has. This is the saddest election ever.
Would prefer Gingrich over Romney any day.
At least NG apologized for NY23 and the couch.
But what primary can Newt win?
Newt’s my preferred now. I still like Perry and he was my first. But he imploded and that’s that. I’m not going to keep up with someone that just isn’t ready. I also don’t like the slavish devotion some have had towards who they like. I believe in trying to get the right person now, and right now it looks like Newt to me.
Fox News: Cain down 9%.
Bill O’Reilly: Cain down 15% in “recent polls”. Don’t go dancing on his grave quite yet, Billy....
You think we all don't wish we had another Ronald Reagan? You think some of us don't wish we had a super solid conservative who could actually get elected?
I agree with Bachmann more than any other candidate, but she just doesn't come across well. I wish she did. I wish we had a candidate with her views who seemed presidential, but Michele comes off poorly and the polls reflect that. I like Santorum too, but again, he doesn't make a good impression and he lost his home state of PA by 18 points last time around. As for Cain, he's a happy warrior and a good motivational speaker - but the guy doesn't seem to know much about...well...anything other than 999. Not only does that not cut it, but I don't even like 999 because I oppose the consumption tax. Herman is too much of a novice anyway, he's just nowhere near ready for a national presidential general election. He'd get crushed and take our House majority down with him.
We need to support the most conservative candidate who CAN win. This is not the time for a national version of Christine O'Donnell - a good conservative who had absolutely zero chance to win statewide in Delaware. I'd hope people have learned their lesson with the miserable failures that were CoD, Angle, Miller, etc. Bad candidates don't win no matter how right they are on the issues.
So we all agree Romney isn't even a conservative. That leaves us with only 2 candidates, Newt and Perry, who have a reasonable shot at knocking off Mitt. I've tried to support Perry, I hoped he could get his act together, but it seems to me he just doesn't have the communications skills needed for the job. So as best I can tell, that leaves us with Newt.
Another outcome based poll. The real indicator is fundraising. Cain is the big winner two weeks running. I expect that trend to continue as Romney, Perry and Gingrich continue to make fools of themselves.
Actually, I kind of like Gingrich out there appearing to be frontrunner. The media, Perry and Romney will be taking shots at him for a while. Meahwhile Cain will continue to solidify himself in the real frontrunner position.
If you look at Newt’s background, you see an impulsive individual who does unpredictable and unexplainable things that do not, at times, fit into a Conservative mind set. I am not comfortable with this type of shifting, unsteady Conservative personality. Just six months ago or so, he was a supporter of the unConstitutional individual mandate in Federal health insurance. Before that he took center stage with Pelosi as a proponent for global warming. Look at his personal life. Three marriages suggests to me an impulsive individual who doesn’t know what he really wants, even in his personal life. For someone who is obviously very smart, he still exhibits a very immature, impulsive personality in his professional and personal actions.
“So we all agree Romney isn’t even a conservative. That leaves us with only 2 candidates, Newt and Perry, who have a reasonable shot at knocking off Mitt. I’ve tried to support Perry, I hoped he could get his act together, but it seems to me he just doesn’t have the communications skills needed for the job. So as best I can tell, that leaves us with Newt.”
It is looking like Newt or Perry, but I wouldn’t count Cain out just yet. He’s raised a ton of cash and if he can turn that into a first rate organization, he’s still got a shot.
I also wouldn’t count out Perry. Yeah, the debate flub was pretty bad, but he came back with a pretty strong performance on Saturday, and he’s got some pretty good policy proposals that people can get behind.
It’s a shame for Perry that he didn’t get into the race with the campaign team he has now. His current team seems to have him much better prepped for the debates. If he’d had the right team in place from the beginning, he might still be in the top tier in the polls.
Newt was just on for a short 8-minute segment with Mark Levin. Mark grilled him on global warming/cap and trade. Newt said we don’t know enough right now to say whether or not man is causing global warming/climate change. Certainly not enough to put forth a cap and trade “solution.” If we are to spend any money it should be for research. Newt answered the question in a reasonable way though he was only forceful with not spending more for a cap & trade solution. Mark asked him if he would come back on and answer more questions and Newt said he would.
Newt has more baggage than the other candidates but he is the smartest, knows the most and is the best debater by far. I think a combination Newt/Cain would be a good election mix.
I don't really disagree with you at all. Newt has serious faults. I've actually got more problems with him than just that. Gingrich is just not disciplined and seems too eager to reach accords with ideological opposites if they are willing to intellectually joust with him. He is a brilliant man who just can't stay focused, and his personal life is a train wreck. It's a problem, I know. What can I say? I don't want Romney. I see Newt as the only viable alternative who can prevent Mitt from getting the nomination and at least give us a chance to win the White House. I am not optimistic about 2012. My hunch is we are going to get Romney even though no actual conservative wants him, and if I had to guess now I'd say Obama is likely to win re-election.
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