gop field

Romney & Rubio. That is your ticket that has the best chance of victory.

Catawba said:

Like I say, you may be right, however, these Romney positions don't sound very centrist to me:

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That's the very definition of a centrist. Some positions track to the right, some track to the left.

You frequently piss off the extremists on both sides.

Zyphlin said:

As one of Huntsman's biggest fans on the forum, this would be a ridiculously stupid ticket. Huntsman add's nothing to the ticket politically and would be a horrible strategic pick for Mitt.

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It would be. Two centrist Mormons. Bad news in the GOP.

Romney and Rubio would be good, but I imagine if Rubio wouldn't step out for the President run he wouldn't for VP. Same goes for Ryan. That said, perhaps the fact that it will be closer to the end of their term by the time they'd have to accept the VP spot rather than at the start of Primary season changes things a bit.

Romney / Rubio would be an excellent ticket in terms of electability.

Romney / Rubio is looking likely.

wildcard : Romney / Daniels.

rocket88 said:

It would be. Two centrist Mormons. Bad news in the GOP.

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I think the Mormon issue is going to be less of an issue than people think, and I've heard far FAR more made about it from liberals and moderates than I have from anyone on the right. I also don't think Huntsman's very centrist at all to be quite honest, but again perception in this case is more important than reality.

Zyphlin said:

I think the Mormon issue is going to be less of an issue than people think, and I've heard far FAR more made about it from liberals and moderates than I have from anyone on the right. I also don't think Huntsman's very centrist at all to be quite honest, but again perception in this case is more important than reality.

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Perception is everything in politics.

Romney's Mormon faith is only going to be an issue with two groups. One is the extreme left who will attack him for anything because he's a Republican. The other is the hard-core religious right who think that Mormonism is a "cult" and don't think that the President should ever be any religion other than Evangelical Christian.

rocket88 said:

Perception is everything in politics.

Romney's Mormon faith is only going to be an issue with two groups. One is the extreme left who will attack him for anything because he's a Republican. The other is the hard-core religious right who think that Mormonism is a "cult" and don't think that the President should ever be any religion other than Evangelical Christian.

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I agree those are the most likely...

That said, I think those wh oare that extreme on the religious right are the same people who likely buy into the BS that Obama is a Muslim, in which case I think they'd go Mormon over Muslim in the battle of "Which bigoted view point is worse to me"

This is the same ol' thing. The conservatives are not placing true conservatives up for election. Romney is no conservative, Newt is decent but far too long in politics and thus "infected" with spending and compromise, Cain's 999 is the 27% tax rates in a new package which means same spending levels, Perry is having major trouble explaining his immigration stance, ect,... What is needed is someone to realize that Adams, Jefferson, Jackson, and the other fellas decided things base off a completely different set of standards from the ones used today. Read the Jefferson Letters, Read the letters of Washington, The Federalist Papers, Primary source documents showing the reasoning and thought process of these men. Read John Locke and Thomas Hobbes. You will see a single theme compelling all of these men. Freedom from any government, conservative or liberal. The candidates we have today are very cookie cutter compared to the candidates of the 1800's. Most people do not understand that we had both liberal and conservative presidents during the first elections. In the same way, every thing was conducted by popular vote. The local church/tavern/county seat was a meeting place and those who could read sat and discussed the current topics up for vote. Then these men all voted and each city sent their decision to the county seat. From there the numbers of the up and the down vote were sent to the state governors office or regional chair. This is how it was conducted. Each elected Representative was forced to vote by majority consensus of the constituents. Today we are quite far removed from this system. A dictatorship has replaced our beloved republic.
For reference to above statements please refer to Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, The New Republic: The United States, 1789-1800, and Jefferson Letters.

Zyphlin said:

And if you want to quote positions that don't sound centrist, trust me, I can find a **** ton for Huntsman. I've been doing that for weeks now in this forum. Huntsman is SOLIDLY fiscally and governmentally conservative, traditionalist when it comes to national defense, and moderate right on Social issues. He's against raising taxes on the rich, in favor of consumer market driven health care reform, for deregulation of business, for tax breaks for businesses, for reducing government spending, is prolife, is for securing the borders, and I could go on.

Its not about what is reality, its...sadly...about perception. The perception of both Romney and Huntsman is that they're "moderates" who are not "hard right".

Romney's biggest issue isn't attracting the independent vote, its attracting the base. Its the same issue McCain had. You're correct in that you can't win a national election without attracting independents. What you choose to ignore however is its also not possible to win a national election without securing your base...and Romney has a significant issue doing that. A pick of Huntsman, based on how he's presented by the Media and the Republican establishment, would not help him with the base but would further alienate the base. Whatever good he might do with independents would be countered by the further damage it'd do to his actual base.

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You make good points. I'm just having trouble understanding why Huntsman is still hanging around if not to be a VP pick to bolster the more conservative candidates chances in a general election. Since it appears Romney will be the GOP pick I just put the two together.

Why do you think Huntsman is still hanging around as an active candidate, when it is obvious he will never win the GOP primary?

Catawba said:

You make good points. I'm just having trouble understanding why Huntsman is still hanging around if not to be a VP pick to bolster the more conservative candidates chances in a general election. Since it appears Romney will be the GOP pick I just put the two together.

Why do you think Huntsman is still hanging around as an active candidate, when it is obvious he will never win the GOP primary?

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Two reasons I think

1) I don't think its obvious he will never with the GOP primary. I think there's a very small chance, but there IS a path for him to win it. Every person challenging Romney as the next front runner has flared up and then fizzled out or is apt to fizzle out, and there's little reason to think that may not happen. That says a few things. One, the field is kind of weak. Two, people are REALLY unhappy about Romney. Its an unlikely path for him. However there's still a chance that Cain fizzles out, Perry continues to fizzle out, and Bachmann already has fizzled out. That leaves Paul, who I think will have a hard time really gaining substantial steam, Newt who has a ton of baggage, and Santorum whose Bachmann without the few positives. I think Huntsman has as good of a shot as Paul or Newt to be the next "hot guy" if Cain ends up fizzling. With a few months till the first primary, and Huntsman focusing heavily on New Hampshire I believe, there's at least an outside shot that he mimics McCain in 2008 and can pull it off. Small, but its there.

2) 2016. One of his issues is simply recognition right now. He could be trying to stay in this for a while to get his name out there more, to associate it more in the present with running for the Republican presidential ticket than Obama's ambassador to China, and generally enhance his Q rating. All of that to help bolster a potential 2016 run should the Republican candidate lose the 2012 election.

Zyphlin said:

Two reasons I think

1) I don't think its obvious he will never with the GOP primary. I think there's a very small chance, but there IS a path for him to win it. Every person challenging Romney as the next front runner has flared up and then fizzled out or is apt to fizzle out, and there's little reason to think that may not happen. That says a few things. One, the field is kind of weak. Two, people are REALLY unhappy about Romney. Its an unlikely path for him. However there's still a chance that Cain fizzles out, Perry continues to fizzle out, and Bachmann already has fizzled out. That leaves Paul, who I think will have a hard time really gaining substantial steam, Newt who has a ton of baggage, and Santorum whose Bachmann without the few positives. I think Huntsman has as good of a shot as Paul or Newt to be the next "hot guy" if Cain ends up fizzling. With a few months till the first primary, and Huntsman focusing heavily on New Hampshire I believe, there's at least an outside shot that he mimics McCain in 2008 and can pull it off. Small, but its there.

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I agree with you that "Huntsman has as good of a shot as Paul or Newt", and that Cain will fizzle out. However, I don't see any path for Huntsman to become more popular than Romney in the GOP primary, despite Romney's problems with the base.

2) 2016. One of his issues is simply recognition right now. He could be trying to stay in this for a while to get his name out there more, to associate it more in the present with running for the Republican presidential ticket than Obama's ambassador to China, and generally enhance his Q rating. All of that to help bolster a potential 2016 run should the Republican candidate lose the 2012 election.

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This seems to be more likely, although I would still not be surprised if Huntsman was picked for the VP slot. The GOP has moved so far to the right, they will potentially need the reasonableness of Huntsman to win in the general election. As far as the GOP base, I think they will vote for any candidate running against Obama.

Tigger said:

Romney will be the nominee, thus ensuring 4 more years of Democratic Party control of the White House. I would suggest that there may be a couple of Right-Wing Third Party candidates who will take significant number of votes away from Romney. I also predict that MANY Conservatives will stay home the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of 2012. Obama wins the election AT LEAST 56%-40% with 4% choosing other candidates. I also predict it will be one of the least attended Presidential elections in modern US History. Lastly, Obama sees this as a Mandate from The People and turns HARD LEFT, seeking to implement numerous Leftist policies in the First 100 Days. Especially if the Republicans lose control of the House, which I see as a possibility.

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God....how I hope you are correct!.....

I still say Huntsman could be the beneficiary of this massive car-crash at the front leaving him the only unscathed car in the running. That and with the way the GOP faithful keep yo-yo'ing their choices making new candidates rocket to the front in no time flat.

Catawba said:

Since Perry didn't live up to the hype, I think this will be the ticket Obama will run against in 2012 ~

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I would have to only agree with the guy on the left. As far as the VP he will pick to run I think he will go with a Maverick decision and pick someone not many people know about this. 2012 is a ditch year for republicans and they don't want to sacrifice anyone that is worth more than Mitt.

poweRob said:

I still say Huntsman could be the beneficiary of this massive car-crash at the front leaving him the only unscathed car in the running. That and with the way the GOP faithful keep yo-yo'ing their choices making new candidates rocket to the front in no time flat.

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the massive car crash has occured......cain's harrassment issue, perry's apparently drugged up behavior, and romney's ties to a massive ponzi scheme. the gop field is certainly stellar, ain't it? what a joke. the gop has a golden opportunity here, and they can't get behind a good candidate.

liblady said:

the massive car crash has occured......cain's harrassment issue, perry's apparently drugged up behavior, and romney's ties to a massive ponzi scheme. the gop field is certainly stellar, ain't it? what a joke. the gop has a golden opportunity here, and they can't get behind a good candidate.

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This appears to be the year of Dukakis for the GOP! That and the fact that the GOP has concentrated on House bills to appease their base rather than job creation, are not going to serve them well next November IMO.

The GOP field is pathetic this time around.. did not think it could get worse than last time, but yep it did. Considering the economy, the GOP should be coasting to the White House and full domination of Congress, and yet most of the candidates cant even beat Obama in their home state, and it looks like there is a real risk that the House flips to the Dems.

liblady said:

so, it looks like the frontrunners in the gop field all have problems. who do you think could be the dark horse? huntsman is the least unattractive imo. if you are a conservative, seriously, aren't you despairing at the current crop of bungling bores begging you for your vote?

don't think obama will be easy to beat, because you guys really have no viable candidates. romney polls the same ALL OF THE TIME....20-23%. never changes. perry and cain continue to embarrass themselves. bachmann is done, santorum is done. that leaves gingrich (fat chance) and huntsman.

gop, what do you think? who is your choice?

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I don't think the republicans want to win or maybe think that losing is the best way to win, the economy is in such a mess that being the party in the white house means the finger of responsiblity points directly at the white house.


I mean think about it Senator McCain had a chance until they selected Palin as the VP and now look at the republican nominees, each one that is receiving large contributions or support is falling by the way side. The republicans clearly do not want to take back the white house in 2012

It doesnt matter who the GOP props up, as soon as Obama has to sit across the table one on one and defend his record, he is toast.
All he has is blaming someone else, and that's not good theatre if you know what I mean

The GOP has one huge problem that is far greater than any personality issues that one or more candidates may have. The issue is this: the far right of the GOP - the tea party faction - is simply not going to allow anyone but one of their own to get than nomination and get their support. They are going to try to employ a hecklers veto over the process. If they get their way, it dooms a centerist like Romney and weakens their ability to get beyond the hardcore 40% who identify themselves as conservatives.

Zyphlin said:

Romney and Rubio would be good, but I imagine if Rubio wouldn't step out for the President run he wouldn't for VP. Same goes for Ryan. That said, perhaps the fact that it will be closer to the end of their term by the time they'd have to accept the VP spot rather than at the start of Primary season changes things a bit.

Romney / Rubio would be an excellent ticket in terms of electability.

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I agree with you that Rubio won't do it - simply because if he were to step out and lose right now, it could be the end of a potentially promising career.

Plus, with the "slip-ups" on his family's history, he's better suited to run Florida well for a couple of terms and let that completely die off (it will be forgotten in a couple of years, but if he runs right now, it will come up), and then enter the national ring with experience behind him.

EarlzP said:

I don't think the republicans want to win or maybe think that losing is the best way to win, the economy is in such a mess that being the party in the white house means the finger of responsiblity points directly at the white house.


I mean think about it Senator McCain had a chance until they selected Palin as the VP and now look at the republican nominees, each one that is receiving large contributions or support is falling by the way side. The republicans clearly do not want to take back the white house in 2012

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Horse manure......... How do you explain the big uptick in McCain's poll numbers after he picked Palin ???

Do you people have memories this short or are you just uninformed???

Gill said:

Horse manure......... How do you explain the big uptick in McCain's poll numbers after he picked Palin ???

Do you people have memories this short or are you just uninformed???

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It was temporary and fleeting. The more people saw of Palin, the less and less they liked her.

I have an excellent memory and that is what I remember vividly.

there are three or four combinations of the field that can easily beat Obama, and like I said thats not going ot be as hard to do as Liberals are "hopeing" it is,(I know how they like that word "hope") I am statrting to like it too, Obama made it synomonous with BS, so thanks Baracky for that anyway.

where was I, oh yea.

combo of Romney / Cain the centrist and the odd, the hollywood factor that got Obama elected in 08.

combo of Romney / Trump, talking about a duo to speak to economic woes, Trump hates China, America hates China, nice ring to it too

combo of Hillary / Trump, long shot that the ole battle axe would run but she certainly could win, and Trump is not married to a party, he just likes winning

combo of Condolizza / and whomever, third party? coincidence she has resurfaced? maybe, little darling could bring Powell out of the closet too, ole Colon is the right color, and distanced himself enough from the republicans to appeal to the center

either way, Obama starts to defend his record he's going to sound like the little girl he really is..
"But its all his fault", whaaaa, whaaaa