Karl Rove Warns GOP Presidential Candidates Against Moving Too Far To The Right (VIDEO)

Karl Rove is urging Republican candidates to consider the notion of electability while campaigning for the GOP presidential nomination ahead of 2012.

The former Senior Adviser and Deputy Chief of Staff to former President George W. Bush discussed the issue during an appearance on Fox News on Monday. GOP 2012 relays what Rove had to say on the network:

"You don't want these candidates moving so Right in the Republican primary that it becomes impossible for them to win the general election, because it will become a self-defeating message in the primary.

People want to win. They don't want somebody who goes so far to the extremes of either party that they lack a chance to carry a victory off in November."

Candidates in the Republican primary mix appear to be basing their campaigns on what HuffPost's Howard Fineman calls a "New Ten Commandments," a set of strict guidelines that includes socially conservative viewpoints and staunch opposition to raising taxes.

When the moderator at the most recent presidential primary debate asked who would reject a deficit deal with a 10 to 1 ratio of spending cuts to revenue, all eight candidates who participated in the forum raised their hands, signaling an unwillingness to budge on the fiscal matter.

Over the weekend, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann came out on top of the widely-anticipated Ames Straw Poll. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) came in second place in the conservative test and table-setter for next year's Iowa caucuses.

Comments

[Elizabeth75]

01:30 AM on 08/24/2011

Oh. Mr. Roooovvveee,
This was so easy to predict....
But it hurts doesn't it? I hope it hurts a little bit.
Do you not realize that the monster you created would not always do as told? This is your baby. You loved feeling so powerful, didn't you K? But you've been left behind.
Becuz your monster does not need you anymore. You're monster has turned its back on you.

[Conjoe]

07:32 AM on 08/21/2011

For eight years of GWB, Karl was the bane of my existence. He was always one step ahead of the Democrats with his issuance of Republican talking points memos that kept the Bush administration relevent. The Repubs always listened to him because he is brilliant and shrewd. Now I pray they don't listen because once again he is right. I hope they do nominate one of these unelectable whackadoodles so that Obama can get a second term and finally achieve the things he's been trying to in order to put this country on track for all of its citizens and not just the wealthy and corporations.

[Elizabeth75]

01:39 AM on 08/24/2011

I've heard he's out of favor with the Repubs. So onwards they go with a more extreme vision than even K.R. has. But that's fine with me.

[Ridwan Shafal]

04:05 AM on 08/19/2011

That was a typo in the press release. He was not hired as a lawyer,
he was hired as a Liar. They never said he graduated from Harvard,
and even if they did they could always say, "Not that Harvard."
Why does he need another Lawyer anyway.
He already knows all the legal advice he will ever need. I don't recall and I tak
Nevada Movers
Long Distance Movers
Nationwide movers
Reno Movers

[somewhatodd]

01:13 PM on 08/18/2011

karl, is it true you referred to texas governor rick perry as "miss priss" and a "pussinboots"?

[Castitas Lilium]

08:23 PM on 08/17/2011

You know when Karl Rove warns that you've gone too right, something is most definitely amiss in the Republican primaries...

[R Davis]

10:36 AM on 08/17/2011

Right = I've got mine, now you get yours.

Left = Aah, look at the poor and hungry. Let's give them your money.

[R Davis]

10:30 AM on 08/17/2011

aaaahhh, Duh, The nation blames those arrogant, junior members of the House of Representatives because they said on national television, to an interenation audience, that the world wouldn't end if the United States didn't pay its bills. It was until after Standard and Poor's said these guys are out of control that Karl Rove said maybe that wasn't such a good idea.

Genius!!!

[Elizabeth75]

01:36 AM on 08/24/2011

Genius

or maybe Painful?

[earlyblue]

04:59 AM on 08/17/2011

Yes, Karl, but pre-election cycle, you believe it's good to go as far right as you possibly can, isn't that right?

[Zadeekah]

09:46 PM on 08/16/2011

Sandyhh:

Right=conserve, resist change, hold onto tradition, violently or not.
Left=change, revolutionary change, reject tradition and go for the grand vision, violently or not.

Some of the so-called 10 commandments of the Republicans are clearly right and some are left, some are fascistic and some revolutionary.

[Luceee]

07:49 PM on 08/16/2011

people hello ?! This is Rove....if...he's speaking out then he already has a plan. IMO look for Jeb Bush to pop up.

[hank101]

09:31 AM on 08/17/2011

Michelle has a better chance of being elected than Jeb Bush...im sure everyone has forgotten
how sucessful the last two bushes were.

[rob burton]

06:35 PM on 08/16/2011

An analogy of disdain, what better than, Mary Shelleys, "Frankenstein", a man (doctor) stitches together a being from the remains of others, brings it to life, only to become disgusted at what he has created, and the "creature" itself detesting it's creator turns against him.

[Elizabeth75]

01:34 AM on 08/24/2011

You wrote EXACTLY what I was thinking, but in a much more eloquent way. F and F.

[radsenior]

05:26 PM on 08/16/2011

Here are my thoughts: The TEA party are willing to take the USA down even at their own expense! The sad result is the defunct GOP as the TEA party has subverted any sanity and taken the once proud GOP to the fringe of lunacy! The GOP is not relevant anymore! Carl Rove said: "You don't want these candidates moving so far Right in the Republican primary that it becomes impossible for them to win the general election, because it will become a self-defeating message in the primary."

[Elizabeth75]

01:33 AM on 08/24/2011

Its called cutting off your nose to spite your face. The TParty is the perfect example of that.

[dax49]

01:43 PM on 08/16/2011

This guy is truly nauseating-have the republicans "forgotten" that he was part of the worst administration in American history?

[Pamski]

01:53 PM on 08/16/2011

They don't even acknowledge that the prior administration was bad. Bad things only started to happen when Obama was elected, according to them.

[Jake Dogg]

01:28 PM on 08/16/2011

"They don't want somebody who goes so far to the extremes of either party that they lack a chance to carry a victory off in November."

It's a little late for that...

[metogamekun]

04:46 PM on 08/16/2011

That's not how our primary system is set up. You have to dash to the extremes to gather the votes of the base—AKA those willing to actually drag themselves to a polling station for a primary—and then sprint back to the center once they become the nominee.

Either way, candidates are turned into liars, either before they become the nominee or after.

[Elizabeth75]

01:32 AM on 08/24/2011

I wish I felt as compassionate as you. But I remember the B.u.s.h years all too well.

[den1953]

01:23 PM on 08/16/2011

How far has the Republican Party gotten when Karl Rove thinks the candidates are to extreme? You can't make this stuff up, even the Republicans are afraid of the Tea party loonies what is really happening is they are eating there own supporters and they can't control them, the Tea party has become the POD people!