Posted on 03/21/2012 9:43:04 PM PDT by VinL
Rick Santorum surely knows he has no way to win the Republican race after his thumping in Illinois on Tuesday night. After his commanding win there, Mitt Romney not only has more than twice the delegates (560 to 246), but a third again as many votes nationwide as Santorum (4.1 million to 2.8 million).
Newt Gingrich knows he can’t win the nomination; that’s why he was in DC last weekend looking at cherry blossoms with a Secret Service detail surrounding him.
The race is over for them. Romney has beaten them. Of the 34 contests thus far, Romney has won 20, and lost a 21st (Iowa) to Santorum by only 34 votes.
Yet Santorum and Gingrich continue to run forcing Romney to spend money to defeat them he might more usefully spend to defeat President Obama. Why?
Simple: They’re trying to induce an unprecedented party crisis — which is supposed to be an opportunity for them and the GOP. But their reasoning is cracked...
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Rick may or may not could get the 1144 but he can get closer than Mittens without Newt in the race. Newt is great but the same couldn’t be said if Santorum gets out of the race.
Gulf, friend Naps and Steelfish (both solid Rick supporters)have said on this thread- that Rick can’t get to 1,144, even if Newt withdraws. You disagree?
I don’t care if Newt get’s out, get’s in, stands on his head or does a waltz. He isn’t in this thing anymore. He has no money. As for Rick getting to the magic number, yes he can. Romney damaged himself heavily today when his dopey worker talked about him being an etch a sketch. It is going to be talked about for weeks and really scare folks that were just giving in to Milt being the nominee. There are some big non-Romney states coming up. It may just keep him from getting the delegates needed to win. If that is the case, Rick and Milt are the only ones qualified to be in nomination per the GOP rules and I read Newt delegates are jumping ship for Rick already. He could mount a strong fight on the floor to get the extra delegates Milt would need to win.
None of this even matters.
Etch-A-Sketch is going to be Obama’s GOP opponent.
One question now remains.
Do we want Etch-A Sketch as president or a muslim communist fascist dictator named Obama.
Seems like a simple choice to me.
So now it’s time to poop or flush our country down the toilet for good. I think I’m going to go with poop.
I have a question for Poderetz:
When Rick wins the nomination, will you vote for him?
Yep, poop it is. This primary season is over.
Here’s why I asked if Rick can beat Romney 1 on 1 and get 1144, absent Newt.
Objectively, no offense, I don’t think he can. Given that circumstance, Newt helps him by remaining a candidate.
1. Newt almost exclusively attacks Romney and the GOP-e; even today in LA, where he should be going after Rick, he doesn’t— it’s Romney and the elites all the time.
2. There’s few better than Newt at hammering away at the strategic weaknesses of other candidates— If I were Rick, I would want him arguing the cause that benefits me.
3. At the convention, Rick’s natural ally is Newt, certainly not Romney.
Bottom line, if Rick could win outright, then sure, get Newt out. But, where it doesn’t appear that he can, Newt is a great asset to get him where he wants to be- a brokered convention.
> Yep, poop it is.
Sadly correct. The epitaph of any hope for 2012 being a turnaround year for America.
Well, I understand your view- but for what it’s worth, imo, Rick doesn’t get to the convention without Newt. He gets steamrolled by vastly superior money and organization.
Neither, for me. Poop presages the flush- so it makes no difference.
>> Yep, poop it is.
> Sadly correct. The epitaph of any hope for 2012 being a turnaround year for America.
BTW, I live in upstate NY. NY State will go heavily for Obama in Nov regardless of what we rural upstaters do. There being no hope of influencing things otherwise, I have the luxury of voting my conscience and my true beliefs, without a trace of guilt.
So I'm writing in "Sarah Palin". Make a statement for the best we have available, even if she's not running this time around!
“... muslim communist fascist dictator named Obama. “
Didn’t know you could be communist and fascist at the same time.
Also didn’t know you had to vote in muslim dictators, I always thought they just kinda seized power.
I must not have got that memo.
Everyone keeps saying this, but Rick still is staying competitive and picks up delegates as he goes on with a limited budget. If you haven't noticed, the Romney shills go right up to the line of saying this thing is over, but never say it because they know their guy is inherently weak and that this is far from over.
Bang on.
Curious about the Florida proportional delegate outcome, tbd at convention?
You raise some cogent points.
The singular objection we have to Gingrich staying in the race is that in states where the race is close, he may split the vote and allow Romney to squeak by. We’ve already seen this in two major states as in MI and OH where a different outcome (win for Santorum) would have changed the entire trajectory of this primary. Of course that horse has already left the gate. But there are still some close races ahead like WI. Yes, Gingrich’s attacks on Romney and GOP-e are fine and very well articulated but he also goes after Santorum although not by much.
Santorum’s weekend speech to dismantle big government “by the roots” parallels much of Gingrich’s central plank on less government. If Santorum wins big in La (by 15-20 points) and Romney is reduced to third place, I think he’ll suffer a painful, although not a mortal loss.
This in turn will put pressure on the party grandees and the commentariat to have Romney pick a solid VP as his nominee. Santorum is banking on wooing super delegates his way in the rare case where Romney fails to get 1144 on the first ballot. It’s a real outside chance but that’s about all the hope Santorum can long for and probably a forlorn hope at that.
See:
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/294104/santorum-and-rnc-robert-costa
Well, I won’t try to convince you otherwise.
I listened to the statement from Rick’s spokesman yesterday after Ill— I think it finally hit home for him, that Romney could throw in $7-10M any time he wanted, in any state he wanted- and if necessary he could double that amount. Romney is backed by 16 billionaires— their funds are limitless.
Newt realized that in Fla— Sure, if someone can outspend a candidate by a moderate amount, a candidate can be competitive. But, 20-1, no chance.
That’s why Newt just backed off- and developed an alternative strategy-— a strategy I think Rick is now adopting.
But, I admire your loyalty and tenacity- I wish him luck.
The singular objection we have to Gingrich staying in the race is that in states where the race is close, he may split the vote and allow Romney to squeak by
**************
That I understand concerning past contests. And, of course, Newsters make the reverse argument after Fla- But, that’s moot now.
Going forward, however, splitting votes would be inconsequential- unless of course, it allows Romney to get the 1144. And frankly, in that Newt’s entire strategy is to stop Romney, I doubt if he’s going to muck it out by actively competing in a winner take all that Rick can win.
Newt’s already said there are states he won’t compete in.
If Rick’s desire is to get VP, (given that he appears to have burned bridges) his best hope is the brokered convention— and making a power deal.
But, imo, he’s not going to get there if Newt’s out—Newt, wounded though he is, is the driving force to the brokered convention.
Well, now you do know, because he certainly is all of those things, he was voted in, and now he is seizing power, isn’t he? Indeed.
I defintely understand that sentiment, but this could very well be the last election this country ever has, if it even has it. You know, maybe things will go just fine, and maybe they won’t. It’s hard to say.
But I do know this. Fighting the right battle at the wrong time could very well result in our figurative and literal deaths.
Believe me when I tell you that I cannot frickin stand Mitt ROmney, nor can I stand the GOP, but I hate the Devil even more.
I hope you do change your mind, Vin, because it’s almost time.
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