GOP Primary

So Mo said she misses when we shared opinions so I am gonna start and a thread on the GOP Primary and hopefully we can get something rolling.

My question is why is a guy like Gingrich leading the polls while the only consistent conservative, Huntsman, isn't anywhere near the lead? I know we all like to hear our leaders whip us into a frenzy and Gingrich can certainly do that for the Republicans, but he and Mitt are some of the worst people when it comes to consistency. The only thing Gingrich is consistent on is his Kakuian science ideas. With Huntsman at least you get a guy who can win while also leading the country to horribleness with his ideas!

Also, why are the Republicans using the same rhetoric for Iran that neocon used for Iraq? Surely they aren't serious with these threats as we simply can't withstand bringing democracy at the barrel of a gun? Only Paul has realized this, but he doesn't get the same kind of applause that the pro war people get so is the base really wanting another war?

 

Not sure I agree that this is about Romney and Huntsman being Mormons. I don't think the social conservatives have the kind of sway they used to have outside of Iowa. I agree with Heather and think it has more to do with Huntsman being so wooden and professional. If I am a Republican though, I would much rather have the consistent conservative like Huntsman than Romney and Gingrich so they are really setting themselves up for failure by nominating either of those candidates.

 

Glad to see there is some interest in a little non-sports talk again. Thanks Justin. Unfortunately this is not only an uber busy time for me but like Heather, I've watched slightly more than zero of the debates. The one time I tried there was too much cringe worthy stuff being said, or not said, by the likes of Cain, Perry, and a few others. Now that they seem to be out of the picture, I should probably start paying attention.

While I think there probably are some who think a Mormon cant get elected I dont really agree that this has or will be a significant factor. If it comes down to Romney or Huntsman vs. Obama, the only people that will care that the former candidates are Mormon probably think Obama is a Muslim and they view that as worse.

I didnt realize Huntsman was the most conservative candidate. I thought he was fairly moderate on several topics such as defense and illegal immigration.

Gingrich is doing so well because he is smart, a fantastic speaker, and has a lot of very well-developed ideas about how to improve things. I dont remember a candidate that can speak as effectively as he can. Even liberals find themselves awed at his public speaking ability. I'm with Heather though, the baggage he carries is likely too much. I'm surprised it hasnt been continually brought up, but if he wins the nomination the Democrats will have a field day.

Agree with Don about Paul. He will never get the support of the people who can write the checks to help finance a serious campaign because so much of what he believes in threatens the status quo in Washington and Wall Street. Nothing has changed, unfortunately, even as we head towards the abyss.

 

Paul is now leading the polls in Iowa with Gingrich falling sharply. Since Romney probably won't win Iowa, maybe Paul can actually pull this out. There was a post in a political site that said that if Paul becomes a serious contender then the establishment would throw everything at Paul. Looks like everybody here was right.

 

Well I hope Paul can last until Super Tuesday so I can vote for him. I dont think I have to be registered as a republican to vote in their primary. I'm only familiar with where he stands on government spending and the Iraq war but I'd still vote for him without knowing all the issues. I want to stick it to the man. :lol:

Actually, that should be his campaign slogan.

 

He will also do well in Nevada, but Romney will win here because of our large Mormon population. He has alot of money and his supporters are nuts so he should last until super Tuesday. If he wins Iowa then it is possible that he could pull of a shocker. He gets alot of support among young people and he dominates the libertarian wing of the party. It will be interesting to see how the establishment takes him on. They can't really attack him unless they piss off the tea party because he makes Paul Ryan look like a big government politician. So will they go after that libertarianism or his foreign policy? If they do foreign policy then they are making a mistake as I think even Republicans are tired of wars.

 

Re: GOP Primary - Romney wins Iowa

By a small margin over Sanatorium.

Paul came in third, The other candidates are really slamming Paul on foreign policy by misrepresenting or not addressing his real position. :angry-banghead:


Huntsman ignores Iowa and pays the price with 0.6%

 

Just hours after the Iowa caucus Obama is visiting my son's high school for the second time in two years. There is unlikely a more Obama-friendly place in this battleground state than my community so I guess the second visit is all that surprising. However, I have to wonder if it's not also a sign of how poorly they think they are doing with Ohio voters. Obama barely won the state in 2008
http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2012/01/president_barack_obama_to_retu.html


btw, the best thing about his visit for me is reading all the comments about my city after the news articles. :lol:

 

Mitt Romney beat expectations last night and destroyed the rest of the field in the New Hampshire primary. He basically has won the primary already and the rest of the field should get out. The only legitimate challenger is Paul and he won't be able to catch up to Romney.

The attacks on Bain and Romney might not affect him now, but when Obama runs the ads with laid off workers, Romney is going to be screwed. The right will come out with the class war crap and people won't care when they find out what Bain and the like do. People, for some reason, like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, they won't like hearing about people getting millions while they lay off workers.

 

Or as I like to call him Sanatorium. Would be a huge mistake if this happened. The guy is only available for the job because he couldnt get re-elected.

 

There were some thoughts that he might only win by single digits. I think the race is over because nobody will drop out, not even Huntsman. The only way he loses South Carolina is if Newt's ads about Bain change people's minds about Romney and that probably won't happen because the talk show conservatives are absolutely destroying Newt right now for running the ads and criticizing the message.


To be fair to Santorum, he was running in a blue state in an election year where people despised the Republicans. His blue collar message could work in a general election like it did in PA.

 

So Huntsman dropped out and endorsed Romney. Perry dropped out and endorsed Gingrich. To make matters more interesting, Romney apparently lost Iowa to Sanatorium (sorry cant help myself).

Obama has been very smart in response to the primaries. The day after Iowa, he goes to a battleground state (Ohio) to announce an out-of-session, and therefore automatic, appointment of an Ohio native as the head of the consumer finance oversight bureau. An appointment congressional Republicans had been blocking even though they agreed he was the right man for the job (it was actually in protest of the bureau's structure and authority).

Then the day after New Hampshire, Obama announces his proposal to eliminate duplication within the government and save $3billion.
http://fedscoop.com/obama-proposes-major-government-reorganization-plan/

He not only took some of the news coverage away from the battling primary candidates but he did it by taking actions that will appeal to many republican and independent voters. Smart, but we'll see if it works this time around.