We are just weeks away from the first votes being cast in the race for the Republican presidential nomination -- which means it is only a matter of time before Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Michele Bachmann, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum, and Jon Huntsman enter the ranks of presidential also-rans.
Getting here hasn't been easy for Willard Mitt Romney -- he's hardly ever led the Republican pack in the polls. No, the former single-term governor of Massachusetts has had to wait for the preferred candidates of the GOP' tea party base to either bow out before announcing or gaffe their way into oblivion.
Reality television stars like Donald Trump and Sarah Palin both passed on making the race despite leading Romney and the other Republican hopefuls in early polls. In the months that followed, Romney and the rest of us have had to wait as the Republican base samples one flavor of the month after another.
After Michele Bachmann won the Iowa Straw Poll, she shot to an early lead in the polls. But it wasn't long before the Minnesota Congresswoman committed one wild-eyed gaffe too many. She confused John Wayne and serial killer John Wayne Gacy. She claimed the Revolutionary War's "shot was heard around the world" took place in New Hampshire. It was Massachusetts. The list goes on ad infinitum. In what could be called a meta-gaffe, Bachmann recently claimed that she'd never had a campaign gaffe.
Quit giggling. Let's move on.
As Bachmann began to sink, Rick Perry jumped in to fill the void, but his hopes too were doomed. It isn't so much that his GOP adversaries bested him during a series of primary debates -- Perry was bested by the debates themselves. Despite being able to string together some impressive fundraising numbers, he just couldn't bring himself to string together an articulate attack on Romney or statement of his own principles.
Perry's demise led to the rise of Herman Cain whose entire campaign has been premised on a 9-9-9 plan to cut taxes on the wealthy and corporations while raising income and sales taxes of the poor. Cain claimed that those who would have trouble affording food under his plan could eat "used" food to save dough. From atop the GOP field, Cain was confronted with news reports indicating he'd sexually harassed or assaulted at least two former employees and just this week a woman came forward in Georgia and admitted to a 13-year affair with Cain. At least that sexual relationship was consensual, so I guess he has that going for him.
Republican base voters concerned with so-called "family values" slowly shifted their focus to Newt Gingrich. Which makes perfect sense. After all, the former Speaker divorced his hospital bed-ridden first wife to marry his first mistress before divorcing that second wife to marry his second mistress with whom he had an affair during his championing of the Clinton impeachment. His most recent campaign proposal was to do away with child labor laws. Who would have thought that Gingrich was still having such trouble keeping his campaign staff together?
That leaves us with Mitt Romney who has been stagnant at 20 to 25 percent in the polls for months. I know that sounds pretty horrible. But, with Republicans, slow and boring wins the race.
Romney is going to be the Republican nominee for the same reason that Reagan, Bush I, Dole, and McCain were nominees. They all ran at least once for the GOP nod and lost. See, Republicans are pretty predictable. They may like gambling with the economic future of our country but they rarely go all in when it comes to picking a standard bearer.
And like inevitable nominees before him, Romney will be forced to choose someone far too conservative for the general electorate as his running mate to keep his base happy. It's why Bush I chose Quayle, why Dole chose Kemp and why McCain chose Palin.
So who is Mitt Romney likely to pick? My money is on South Dakota's John Thune. He's a Senator so he's got Washington experience. He's young and attractive. He's got a proven track record of beating big name Democrats like former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle. He looks slightly less like a used car salesman than Romney. And perhaps most important of all, he's extremely conservative which should quell Republican base fears of Romney.
If you ask me, Romney/Thune has a familiar ring to it. -- sort of like McCain/Palin. And we all know how that turned out.
Karl Frisch is a syndicated columnist and Democratic strategist at Bullfight Strategies in Washington, D.C. He can be reached at KarlFrisch.com. You can also follow him on Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus and YouTube, or sign up to receive his columns and updates by email.
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Stewart J. Lawrence: Could a Late Jon Huntsman Surge Spell the End of Mitt Romney?
Joe Peyronnin: Obama's Looking Good
 |
 |
|
| Obama | Romney | |
|---|---|---|
| Electoral Votes (270 to win) |
332 | 206 |
| Obama | Romney | |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 65,899,660 | 60,932,152 |
| Percent | 51.1% | 47.2% |
| Democrats* | Republicans | |
|---|---|---|
| Current Senate | 53 | 47 |
| Seats gained or lost | +2 | -2 |
| New Total | 55 | 45 |
| Democrats | Republicans | |
|---|---|---|
| Seats won | 201 | 234 |
But the previous sentence is pure fantasy, because Jon Huntsman will eventually become the Republican presidential candidate. How can this happen? The Republicans will be so disgusted with New GetRich, they will seek the fresh air that Gov. Huntsman offers.
His state is fortunate in many ways, but the unfortunate (Indians) in South Dakota live on the margins.
They are all but forgotten - suffering record poverty, unemployment, depression and alcoholism rates.
Thune acts as if they don't exist, since they aren't his base.
Christy seems to be liked and tells it like it is. Paul Ryan has the most knowledge on how things work in our government and dose not have baggage. Newt Gingrich has much knowledge and experience but has "flaws". If none of these men with with Rommey choice they are wonderful cantidates as highy positioned advisors.
He would NOT help Romney get the female vote.
From dictionary.com:
La·ti·no /ləˈtinoʊ, læ-/ Show Spelled[luh-tee-noh, la-] Show IPA
noun, plural -nos.
a person of Latin-American or Spanish-speaking descent.
Since President Obama Took Office, 189,790 Pennsylvanians Have Fallen Into Poverty And The Poverty Rate Has Increased From 12.3 Percent To 13.4 Percent. (U.S. Census Bureau, Accessed, 11/23/11)
As Of October 2011, Over 512,000 Pennsylvanians Are Unemployed, Over 50,000 More Than When Obama Took Office. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 11/23/11)
As Of August 2011, Over 1.7 Million Pennsylvanians Receive Food Stamps, 7.7 Percent More Than August 2010. (“Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Number Of Persons Participating,” USDA, 10/31/11)
So maybe this is why, after listening to President Obama's speech in Scranton, my friend called wanting to know more about Ron Paul.
Abraham Lincoln is turning in his grave. Hell's bells, RONALD REAGAN is turning in his grave!
Global bankers were very much aware of the impending melt-down as early as 2005. But they were raking in a sh*t ton of cash and so let it slide.
Being politically independent, I hold both parties accountable for their actions. The Democrats failed to act when they held majority. The Republicans are being ridiculously and dangerously childish. Both ignore the Constitution and rule of law.
This is why I keep urging folks to research not only the Presidential candidates, but also their House & Senate reps coming up for re-election in 2012 and their oppositions for those seats. The Internet makes it easy to find out who donated to their campaigns, what committees they served on, what bills they introduced and their voting record. Look beyond rhetoric and party and vote for the candidates who best represent and defend what is important to you.
Hopefully, we'll avoid that deafening flush.
Ask Ron Paul what his plan is to return the nearly 500 IT jobs lost in my company to Bangalore in SE PA in the last year.
Paul and his son, mini-Paul, would do nothing whatevfer for Americans in need of disaster assistance or a good job.
Congress and corporations created this catastrophe we live in. Putting any Republican back in the White House would simply finalize the end of America.
Tell Paul and his kid to get their TGOP Corporate friends to get off their hands, and do their work, before they do us in.
Mitt Romney:
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/contrib.php?cycle=2012&id=N00000286
Ron Paul:
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/contrib.php?cycle=2012&id=N00005906
http://www.debt.us.org/debt/us-national-debt/ron-paul-best-suited-for-us-debt-crisis