1 Getting rid of the SCOAMF is the highest priority.

2 HOLD  FAST

3

Ugh. I'm sick and tired of the endless threads in which people argue which candidate sucks less.

Please let it be over.

4 Oh oh, here come the Dingleperrys...

5 That's pretty close to where they are at in SC s well. In one recent poll where we got to see the internals 75% said they were likely to change their choice before the actual primary.

6 But my question remains for these most recent Iowa polls:

Rasmussen has Gingrich 20, Romney 23, & Perry 10

Insider Advantage in almost identical time frame has Gingrich 27, Romney 12, Perry 13.  Why the difference? RasÂ’s polls have been strange this entire primary and I have been smelling a rat for a while now.

7

There is a little "nut" in all of them.   And it seems that the losers want to make sure the winner is so tarnished they can't possibly win the presidential election.  A sad display. 

8 Vic:  It all depends on who they are calling and how they ask the questions.

9

  This year?  NOBODY deserves to win going away.  It's not so much what they're saying out there, but it's the baggage they all bring with them.  If Newt '12 or Romney '12 had materialized out of thin air, they MIGHT be way in the lead.  The problem is that their previous statements and actions are hemming them in on damn near everything.

 

  Perry's the only one who can blame performance rather than baggage, even though he did bring in the 'tardasil and amnesty baggage.  Right now, Rick Perry is the biggest disappointment of the caucus, even though he's still in my top 3.  He came in with great expectations, but proved to be unready for the spotlight.  Once again, the old "I can wait until the last minute and breeze through the caucus" theory goes up in smoke.

10 Also depends whether they poll cell phone users or not.  More and more households only have cell phones. 

11 So, who are you in favor, Cool Czech, sorry about Havel, btw, that generation that includes Walesa, they don't make anymore.

12 ..or that 'tardasil is the greatest danger we face as a society.

Newt can state in a national televised debate that the government has a role and duty to help people buy a house or outline a boneheaded idea like draft boards deciding what illegals can stay here as second class citizens but Bachmann's "tardasil" statement is dis-qualifier? WTF is wrong with us?

13 Vic:  It all depends on who they are calling and how they ask the questions

Of course, but a legitimate poll would make sure that did not influence the outcome. if you have two polls taken at the same time, supposedly measuring the same variable, and they have outcomes vastly different, then someone is cranking the poll.

Ras's polls this cycle have been vastly different from all the rest.

14 "unless he thinks that "blowback" caused 9/11"

Yea, it was their hatred of our freedoms that caused that. Which is why Switzerland is also one of the main targets of Al Qaeda.

15 So, Russ.  What will be the deciding factor for you?

Do you think/hope something will change in the next 3 weeks to make the choice easier?

16 Bachmann ran afoul of science, not policy or ideology.  We cut very little slack when it comes to science.

17

Allen West needs to jump in at the last minute and start bitch slapping all the candidates right before he tears Obama a new one.

Yeah, I know.

18

L&S, that "tardasil" comment is a good one liner.  Bachmann is disqualified in my eyes because of how her team handled the ground game here in Iowa rather than how she handled the 'tardasil attack.

  She hired the worst of Huckabee's old Iowa and National team from '08, and that proves to me that her judgement is awful.  So no vote for Michelle.

19 Ras's polls this cycle have been vastly different from all the rest.
Posted by: Vic
..........
Insider Advantage?  Who the heck are they?

Why would you question Ras and not Insider Advantage?

20 Bachmann ran afoul of science, not policy or ideology.

Bachmann ran afoul of the pecan tree, not science.

21 Why would you question Ras and not Insider Advantage?

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at December 18, 2011 09:41 AM (UTq/I) 

You missed this at 14:

Ras's polls this cycle have been vastly different from all the rest.

And Insider Advantage is a well known local polling outfit.

22 I think Perry's strong debate on Thursday will help him a lot in Iowa. If he can pull off top 3 in Iowa and South Carolina, that should give him enough momentum to survive into Super Tuesday, which could be huge for him.

23 In EVERY SINGLE POLL save one (Rasmussen), Gingrich is leading nationally and in 3 of the first 4 states (at times by HUGE margins), yet to read the news and blogs, one would think poor Newt had completely blown it and was languishing in single digits.  Even Intrade has him down to 12%, despite leading almost every poll.

I have a question for everyone here.

If the Left doesn't want to run against Romney, why do they want him to win the nomination so badly, and if the Left can't wait to run against Gingrich, why are they doing everything they can to make sure he doesn't get the nomination?

Think about it.

24 Oops missed that, then why did you ask? Its not just different from IA, he has been different from everybody.

25 Bachmann's quoting the tardasil mystery mom was damned close to "I read it on the Internet, so it must be true." That's not exactly what I want in the big chair. And Perry. Gah! He's still my top choice, but that "heartless" comment doomed him. All these people suck - some more than others. We need a "none of the above" choice, but we don't have it. Oh, well.

26 Mt rule of thumb in voting and supporting causes in the past has followed a simple rule:

Find out what the Left and their agents in the MSM least want you to do, and then do it.

** Is it possible that the entire Occupy Movement was purely a setup orchestrated by the DNC to create anti-Wall Street fervor in anticipation of a Romney run?

27

In general, Rasmussen is a great polling company.

However, I have to agree with Vic. Their data has been all over the place in their polls, and it has seemed to always fit with the political narrative of the week. If you get into the data, the crosstabs have been unusual very often in these primary polls.

I wouldn't necessarily make the jump to dishonest polling, but there is an instability that is not consistent with their prior figures.

Another strange thing about Ras is that there core tracking sample is now more favorable for Obama and Romney, yet there is little in the data to explain why this would be the case. Sometimes, polling companies change their opinions about party affiliation or update their demographic projections, but I don't see that in their data. If there is a reason why they think this is more representative of the likely/registered voters, no problem, but it really changed quickly with no explanation.

28 And Perry. Gah! He's still my top choice, but that "heartless" comment doomed him.

Perry is not perfect, but he is the best of the inferior choices. The only "purity" people I have seen this cycle are the Romneybots and Paulflakes.

I can live with the "heartless" comment. But why would someone want to call him unsat on immigration and then vote for Mutt or Newt, one who did support amnesty and the other who did and still does.

29

For me?  Right now I'm down to two candidates I could vote for on caucus night, another one that I MIGHT vote for if both of my two choices step on their dick between now and 1/3/12, and a few others that wouldn't cause me to start drinking heavily if they win the caucus.

 

I would have probably been an early Palin supporter if she had gotten in, but you can't choose a choice that's not available.  Plus, she might have said or done something to alienate me during the process....so I can't just say that I'm going to write her in.  It wouldn't be fair to all the candidates who have "done the work".

 

Honestly?  I've gone from "we need THIS guy" from 4 years ago to "we need someone who's generally right on the issues and then we need to Mau-Mau him on the ones where he's wrong".  Not exactly satisfying, but you have to do what you have to do.

30 Russ from Winterset at December 18, 2011 09:37 AM (NqRFe) What of Perry's agenda do you consider "amnesty?". And which of the candidates do you think will honestly be better? Everyone agrees the top priority is closing the border, do you think any of the candidates will be better on that front? Hint: someone who tells you they are going to put up a border fence views border security as a checkbox issue that they have to pay lip service to, but plan on doing nothing about.

31 Also, keep this in mind.

Anyone who scores in single digits in in Iowa is likely to be so weakened as to getting almost no support elsewhere or just dropping out altogether.  So, as the other candidates drop out, who gets their voters?

I honestly do not see how Newt, if he can hold on and win Iowa, doesn't win this thing in a walk, assuming he gets 51% or more of the supporters from other candidates who have left the race or become irrelevant.  I think that 51% or better is a safe bet.

32 Rasmussen polled people 'likely" to participate in the caucus or primary.  I can't find out who Insider Advantage polled. 

33 The one thing that I keep in the back of my mind is that Ras IS a Republican polling outfit. So I keep having this nagging suspicion he is fudging the samples to push what the Party bosses want during the primaries.

34

What of Perry's agenda do you consider "amnesty?".

 

One word:  "heartless".

35 Like I have said all along.  Whoever gets the nomination, I will be behind 100%.

So, let the process play out.  The people will decide.

If it makes any difference by the time the Illinois Primary rolls around, I will vote for either Perry or Romney.  Newt is a weasel..  So is Romney, but he's a predictable weasel.  Newt is unpredictable, and one never knows what cockamamie big gov't scheme he will come up with.  We need to get the economy moving - that's job 1.  And I think Romney can do that better than any of them.

Perry will shrink government, sure.  But growth is going to take someone who can take a hard look at our trading partners and be able to make some hard decision about who is screwing us.  I know Romney can do that.. not sure about Perry.

On the other hand, Perry has the most consistent record.  But the way Texas is set up, that's fairly easy.  Is it Texas's record, or Perry's?

All in all.. not the best lot to choose from.. but this is what we got, and we'll have to make the best of it.

36 Michele Bachmann's gaffes are no stupider than any of the rest of them.  She's still on my list of poeple I would vote for happily.

37 Heartless does not = amnesty, far from it.

38 All these people suck - some more than others. We need a "none of the above" choice, but we don't have it. Oh, well.

Posted by: Andy at December 18, 2011 09:45 AM (XG+Mn)

That's why this post is on target.

They're all fuck-ups as far as I'm concerned. I'm going to let everybody beat eachother over the head and then vote for the last guy or gal standing.

It's not worth a single fucking thought to me trying to figure out where each candidate stands on any given issue. Besides, I'm not smart enough anyway.

The GOP disgusts me. Anybody but Obama.

39 She's still on my list of poeple I would vote for happily.

Not me, the Gardacil thing was one pecan too many from the tree. I can take a few, but after a while there is a cumulative effect.

As I said Friday, key question: Would you trust her with the missile keys?

40 >> One word: "heartless". Yep. There was a perfectly good answer to that question that had the benefit of being true - namely, that in-state tuition bill in question was passed by an overwhelming majority in the Texas legislature. It was broadly supported and was a practical solution to dealing with the effects of the federal government's complete abdication of their responsibility to control the border. But no. He goes for the heartstrings a la McCain and GWB.

41

"Heartless" might not equal "amnesty", but it puts you on a path where the easy choice at the next fork in the road is equivalent to amnesty.  Just because you're not saying the a-word doesn't mean that your "solution" to the problem won't look exactly like amnesty once the smoke clears.

42 >> On the other hand, Perry has the most consistent record. But the way Texas is set up, that's fairly easy. Is it Texas's record, or Perry's? No matter what, he's managed to avoid fucking it up for 10 years. Meanwhile SCOAMF.

43 Well, be that as it may, with Newt and Mutt, there is no doubt about it. They have BOTH supported the real amnesty and one still says he does. (the other still will if given a chance)

44

#34

I have never thought that about Ras, but I have to admit that I have thought the same thing as well this election cycle. The polls start off not great in the primaries, and end up coming closer to the results near the end of the cycle to a larger degree than with other polling companies.

There are some legitimate reasons why this can happen like changes in intensity or the increasingly difficult task of finding independent voters who are really conservatives or liberals rather than just taking them at their word that they are 'independents'. You have to weight your sample with the appropriate number of 'right-leaning' or 'left-leaning' independents rather than just independents to do a good job in a larger election. You have to do the same thing with various wings of the party in a state or primary election, and I have concerns that Ras is not doing this very well.

Or, as could be the case, they are doing it very well and finding moderate Republicans much more easily than other firms. The other concern here is turnout, moderate Republicans tend to be more urban and have higher incomes than other Republicans. They are easier to find, and if you don't have other reasonable checks on demography and ideology that make sense, it can be easy to make certain types of errors.

 

 

45 Oh.. one more thing..

On immigration, I agree the most with Romney.

Yes.. try to close the border as much as possible.  But Perry is right on this as well.. you can't do it.  It's too big.

So you simply dry up any work for illegals.  You prosecute employers.. not the illegals.  The workers will be heading back down across the border quicker than anything.  This bad economy has proven that.  Illegal immigration has slowed to a trickle and a lot of them have gone back already.

Deny them work.. deny them services.  Then also try to shut down the southern border.  But you also have to deal with the folks who come for a "visit" and never go home.  Not so easy.. but if you deny them work, it becomes easier.

46 I got no problem with someone dismissing Bachmann on her judgment then deciding between Perry and Santorum. What I don't understand is conservatives dismissing Bachmann then supporting Romney or Gingrich, that makes no fucking sense to me.

47 Speaking of the Corn and Bacon State, Russ did you see this piece by Iowahawk?

48 I was going to say something good about Paul and  Bachmann but I misread the house.gov chart.  They didn't vote against the omnibus, they just didn't vote.

49 On immigration, I agree the most with Romney.

Which Romney? The 2005 version that supported McCain-Kennedy amnesty or the 2007 version that was running for President?

50 The "Left" isn't especially attacking Gingrich.  It's Romney surrogates.  The Left simply hates Gingrich and never hesitates to point out that he's a pompous doof.  But the real damage to Newt is coming from Romney. 

The surprise is going to how well Ron Paul does.  What happens in Iowa is going to be a reality check for the GOP and the anointed "voices" of the conservative movement.

51 Evidently I'm the only one that wonders why we let frigging IOWA decide our nominees.

52

  Agree 100% Vic.  I'm not setting all three of them next to each other and picking Perry as the least desirable of the trio.  I'm simply stating that Perry had a chance to overcome his baggage on that issue and shot himself in the foot. 

  Remember back in July?  Palin hadn't made a decision yet, and Perry was on the verge of declaring.  All I heard here and elsewhere was "Why are you still supporting Palin?  Perry is SO MUCH better than she is."  Well, if you want to set up expectations don't bitch about my disappointment when you fail to meet them.

53 Ron Paul is not a conservative.

54 Well Russ I have saying since this race started that I did not think Palin was going to get into it. She was on my short list wit a lot of others in the beginning but I didn't expect her to run. I didn't expect Perry to run either because I think he said a couple of time he would not. .

55 54 Ron Paul is not a conservative.

Posted by: Truman North at December 18, 2011 10:03 AM (I2LwF)

He's the most liberal GOP candidate out there. Take away his views on the size and cost of government and Paul is about as far left as you can get on everything else.

56

Ron Paul is not a conservative, but he may hold part of the ability to win the Presidential election. We can't afford to lose his 10% or so of Republican and Republican-leaning independent voters in the general election.

I am not concerned that he will run third party as much as I am concerned that he will do what he did last year. He didn't endorse McCain, and just continued this narrative that it is Paul v. everyone in both parties. He has a larger following this year, and I think the consequences could be more severe.

57 Evidently I'm the only one that wonders why we let frigging IOWA decide our nominees.

Posted by: Lone Marauder, pre-denounced for your convenience at December 18, 2011 10:03 AM (mt49B)

Iowa state law requires it, the RNC allows it. The establishment cocksuckers choose our candidates for us.

58

Unde Cided/Gen Eric Rupublican 2012

59 Ahhh, after months of diddling around, the Winston-Salem Occutards FINALLY occupied something. About 20 of them milled around outside City Hall last night and were dispersed at 6 AM today. Talk about being a day late and a dollar short.

60 Rasmussen has been a bit odd and somewhat suspect of late.  Take for instance that Obama has routinely polled 5 to 7 points stronger on Rasmussen than on Gallup.

Additionally, in head-to-head matchups, Rasmussen had Newt losing 10 points to Obama in a matter of weeks.  He also is the ONLY pollster showing Romney winning in Iowa.

So, because Rasmussen is supposedly a "Republican Pollster" and he knows who is likely to hire him to do polling, the idea that his polls are leaning in the direction of the Republican Establishment would be unsurprising.  As a matter of fact, if he were doing just that, these are the kinds of poll results you would expect.

Nevertheless, in Iowa, Rasmussen is not the gold standard but rather stands alone.

61 Ron Paul is not a conservative.

He is 'conservative" on some issues, more than most of the candidates it fact. He is really more of a Libertarian. Its the racism and absolute foreign policy insanity that keeps him out of the running with conservatives. And maybe the drug shit as well.

62

OT: I don't, as a matter of principle, link to Obama voter Ann Althouse, but this is a good one:

 

#OWS slogan:  "We need more; You have more."

63 Ron Paul is not a conservative.

Posted by: Truman North at December 18, 2011 10:03 AM (I2LwF)

Ron Paul is an enemy of the state.

I know people who wish they could vote for him if he would just "drop the crazy."

Really? Really?

64

He's the most liberal GOP candidate out there. Take away his views on the size and cost of government and Paul is about as far left as you can get on everything else.

 

Yep.  Libertarian.  If you legalized pot, his support would be about 2-3%

65 I've got an public-school-kindergarten-teaching cousin in Newton who is angry about the Register's endorsement of Mittens.  It appears she doesn't understand they had to endorse a Republican in the Republican primary; she expected them to endorse SCOAMF, because he's so dreamy!  If you live in Newton and have young children, please, PLEASE consider home-schooling.

66

#63

What a terrifying slogan. It just sums up liberal envy, anarchy, and totalitarianism.

67

Oh!  Here's a fun game:  I just saw a daily tracking poll that had the top three in Iowa at 28-24-10. 

Without using the Internet as an aid, who gets 28, who gets 24 and who gets 10?

68 He is 'conservative" on some issues, more than most of the candidates it fact. He is really more of a Libertarian.

And Libertarians are basically liberals with a dash a fiscal conservatism and anarchism thrown in.

69 Hey, Heather, I think all Newtons must be off-the-chart lefty.  Newton MA is just as bad or worse.

70

Good work by Iowahawk, as usual.  Since he's another one of those retarded Iowa Hawkeye fans, the professor he's parodying in his piece is "one of his" (a U of I product).  He can slag the guy all he wants, he's still tied to him in my eyes.

 

  Oh yeah, and Okie is going to dismantle Iowa in the Insight bowl.

71 Which Romney? The 2005 version that supported McCain-Kennedy amnesty or the 2007 version that was running for President?
Posted by: Vic
.........
The top 3 have ALL been all over the place on this issue.  You have to take them on their word they will try to accomplish their current campaign promises.  If you don't, then you have to equally throw out every single candidate that has ever changed their policy. 

I have no problem with a candidate who sees his entire base demanding a certain solution to a problem and him/her moving in that direction.

72

#68

Gingrich, Paul, Romney?

73 Book thread up.

74

"The one thing that I keep in the back of my mind is that Ras IS a Republican polling outfit. So I keep having this nagging suspicion he is fudging the samples to push what the Party bosses want during the primaries." - Vic

I agree 100%.  It is easy to "fudge" numbers.

"Numbers do not lie, but liers can number."  Like just throwing out the numbers they don't like.  Like calling areas where the outcome is predictable.  It goes on and on.

75 Yep.  Libertarian.  If you legalized pot, his support would be about 2-3%

I don't think his North Texas district has enough pot heads to explain his long term of service in the house.  A long history of voting no on just about everything and the talk about not reforming but eliminating several agencies and departments has a lot to do with it.

76 Few had a problem with Ras when he was the first one showing a Newt surge in Iowa. By the way, Gallup tracking basically vindicates Ras. Newt's lead over Romney is down to four. Its was 15 a couple weeks ago.

77

Gingrich, Paul, Romney?

 

Eh, close enough.

 

 

OT again:  Can anyone identify the name of the perp, or if not, why he's being protected?  I've got one guess...

78 I'm voting for. . . . . . . BACON!

79 63 OT: I don't, as a matter of principle, link to Obama voter Ann Althouse, but this is a good one: #OWS slogan: "We need more; You have more." Posted by: Truman North at December 18, 2011 10:09 AM (I2LwF) Come Get Some - Needy Pussies.

80 Oooh, bacon. I'm baking up a pound right now.

81 I've got one guess...

I asked on the Open thread this morning when I linked this if NY law allowed this kind of shit as "special circumstances". Still haven't received  a response from anyone. If it isn't it needs to be.

82 Unlike most classic horror films, the more times that you see Ron Paul the more he scares you.
That fact combined with the zombie drones that follow him and Odumdum mindlessly and it's no wonder zombie shows and foolish vampire stories seem to multiply on a weekly basis.

83 i was going to make bacon but i have to get to the mall......

84 .......i don't like romney...i will cry if i have to vote for him but damn that man is good looking.......

85

Russ,

It was a really stupid thing of him to say, I'll grant you that. He has admitted that.  However, that doesn't equate to being for amnesty, and the policy which he was talking about at the time isn't really amnesty either. 

I think also, Perry, having dealt with the issue does realize that despite the magnitude of the problem, it is important also to realize that there are people involved, which is where that comment came from.  Remember the national outrage at Elian Gonzalez's removal?  Perry's plan for temporary guest worker programs with a chance for renewal if the worker self-deports when it expires, is probably the best of the lot. and certainly miles ahead of Gingrinch's review boards.

I think you have to consider whether Sheriff Joe Arpaio would support Perry if Perry was really for amnesty. 

Perry has been overall good on the subject of immigration, particularly on border enforcement. 

86 Perry. The rest come with big compromises.

87 Perry is ill-prepared and terrible on stage. Newt is a loose cannon who will say anything off the top of his head. His ideas are not main stream. Bachman has never done anything remarkable. Huntsman is a nice guy, but can't break through. Working for BHO didn't help is cause. Santorum was destroyed in his own state for a reason. Ron Paul will destroy 200+ years of building the US. He and congress will never get anything done. So...it's Romney. In the tank.

88

cvb, in what way do you possibly expect Romney to govern as a conservative?

89 I don't think his North Texas district has enough pot heads to explain his long term of service in the house.  A long history of voting no on just about everything and the talk about not reforming but eliminating several agencies and departments has a lot to do with it.

Posted by: Bob Undead Saget at December 18, 2011 10:16 AM (dBvlk)

Funny...I figured it was the earmarks for this district that he tacks onto every appropriations bill that goes past him in the House.

90 .i don't like romney...i will cry if i have to vote for him but damn that man is good looking....... Then he starts talking...

91 46: in rem forfeiture for the fruits of illegal immigration. Problem solved.

92

Newt is a loose cannon who will say anything off the top of his head. His ideas are not main stream.

Wait, what isn't mainstream about the Giant Newt Space Mirrors to light our highways and reduce our carbon footprint? I hear people talking about that everyday.

93 This is a big football day. Where's our Tebow pic?

94 off sock

95 Here's one everyone can enjoy.

96 Oh boy, Tebow and Titbow

97 We can always agree on tits.

98 If it turns out that Ron Paul was a test subject for Gardisil, I might believe Bachmann's hysteria.

99

For those questioning Rasmussen's polling, I remember his outfit skewing results for Obama and against H Clinton in 2007-08.  I thought he was a rat then; I haven't changed my opinion.  He is for Obama and probably Agenda 21 and everything anti-American and anti-free market. 

Am I too rabid?  Probably.  But read E.M. Smith at chiefio.wordpress.com on his sifting through the email dumps of ClimateGate1 and ClimateGate2.  Also note that a "regular" citizen blogger in England has had his computers taken by (6) police (with "warrant") and that the U.S. DoJ and Dept of Energy were involved.  Other blogger in Canada and the US  (scientific skeptics -- as all scientists should be) have been warned, too.

I also remember Google during that time.  Just as interested then in Obama's election, wiping sites free of Obama's history, and promoting the "green agenda" as now.  Global bureaucrats with their corporate lackeys using socialist methods to control the world, keeping their pockets full of "gold", global junkets flowing, in addition to tittilating themselves with ultimate power and control.  Remember all those action hero movies where justice always triumped over evil "total power and control"?  Which of the candidates are on the side of justice?

 

100 "I am not concerned that he will run third party as much as I am concerned that he will do what he did last year. He didn't endorse McCain, and just continued this narrative that it is Paul v. everyone in both parties. He has a larger following this year, and I think the consequences could be more severe"

The majority of those voting for Paul will not vote for any of the other republican candidates, even if Ron came out and endorsed them (which won't happen).  They will either write-in Paul, vote for the constitution/libertarian party candidate, vote for Obama, or they won't vote at all.  This is why a third party run by Paul is really irrelevant. 

101 "I have a question for everyone here.

If the Left doesn't want to run against Romney, why do they want him to win the nomination so badly, and if the Left can't wait to run against Gingrich, why are they doing everything they can to make sure he doesn't get the nomination?

Think about it".

False premise - all of the data I have looked at show that a majority of the attacks from the white house are directed at Romney.  Over 80% of Axelrod's political tweets are anti-Romney.  The White House has spent money on anti-Romney ads - and I am not sure about this - but I do not think they have done any anti-Newt stuff let alone anti-Perry.

Romney makes it very hard for them to go negative on him by digging up dirt.  Newt would be a Godsend for them.  Perry - I loved an Coulter's debate score for him on the last debate B- (but A on a curve).  Even when Perry has a good debate - for him - he seems like he is trying sooo hard to think and not screw up.  Even worse for Perry he is using identity politics to bust himself - short term it may help, long term it will kill him in the general.

102 Many see Perry as dumber, less articulate, George Bush.  Not a good guy to run in the general.

103 Not a good guy to run in the general.

Meh.  The SCoaMF is going down to any of these candidates.  I'm still planning to vote for the guy I think would be the best president.

HOLD  FAST

104 I am already behind a candidate, or type of one. The majority of candidates are no-vote types. If Reps can only put up left-lites, I would rather the lefties be in charge so everyone knows who is really who. It is when Republicans can easily be confused for Democrats when things get so confusing that only leftism is seen and both parties are blamed for the same things. I am not going to vote for THAT.

105 Ron Paul is a "Liberal" in the classical sense....  people should be allowed to make their own decisions and deal with the consequences of those decisions.  You knock him for wanting to legalize pot...  But, really, pot heads tend to take care of themselves.  Either people try it (or don't) and don't let substance abuse take over their life.  Or they get high until they learn their lesson or just kind of wither away.  In any case, I don't see why we need to spend billions a year trying to stop something that they can't stop.  The only way you'll stop potheads is to test people regularly and punish them with extreme methods....  and that has no place in a free society.

106 People are quick to dismiss Santorum, suggesting he lost his last race as a disqualifer.

Romney has lost his last three, essentially.  Walked away from re-election as governor, torched in a Senate run, and failing to win the nomination against Grampa McCain four years ago, a pretty big feat if you think about it. 

Gingrich was dispatched by House conservatives as their leader for heaven's sakes, and has the lowest favorability score among ALL candidates for President in this race among voters nationwide.  Lower than Obama.  He would be a disaster in a general election.

Bachmann is a show horse, and not a work horse and belongs on the back bench in the House until she generates some accomplishments.  And Paul's ridiculous foreign policy stance probably eliminates him from broad consideration. 

I haven't heard Santorum foul up on the issues, particularly foreign policy, and he is solid across the board as a conservative's conservative.  He is outworking all the other candidates on the ground here in Iowa, and he deserves to stick around. 

He lost his last race, true, but in a very bad year for the GOP against a pronounced "conservative Dem."  I don't think Pennsylvania Republicans would say the same about Casey now, however, and they dumped Casey the first chance they got.  The worst thing Santorum ever did was to support Arlen Specter for re-election at the request of George W. Bush.  All the other candidates have far greater offenses on their record.

I'll be supporting Santorum at the caucus.  He's the best conservative standing.

107 You made a few good points there. I did a search on the matter and found a good number of people will agree with your blog.

108

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