Presumed Republican front runner Mitt Romney has now sunk to 2nd place in national polls. President Obama’s national approval rating has now crossed above 50%. In a head-to-head general election match up, new polls predict President Obama would beat each of the 4 Republican presidential candidates by 4-6 percentage points. Republican operatives are openly seeking an alternative candidate for the nomination, but are running into a plethora of difficult hurdles. This is not at all good news for the Grand Ol’ Party!
It might not be time for the Republican party to push the nuclear button, but they surely should be getting the codes ready. Their 4 year plan to be the “Party of NO!” and to defeat President Obama at all costs have gone terribly awry.
Let’s review the facts: Barack Obama is the incumbent president, with the power of the Oval Office and title of Commander-in-Chief as his propulsion. He is unopposed in his bid for reelection, meaning he can just be president instead of worrying about defending his record in a divisive Democratic primary. He has an enormous war chest of campaign funds at his disposal that has been barely touched. He also has the luxury of sitting back and watching Republicans slay each other, while his hands never get dirty in the trenches. The harsh reality most Republicans are beginning to realize is, this will be incredibly difficult to beat.
Republicans are also beginning to realize a rather inconvenient truth: Romney is too weak against Barack Obama; Rick Santorum is too conservative and his evangelical positions just don’t resonate with the all important Independent voter; Newt Gingrich is a toxic time bomb who is seen as a hypocritical womanizer; and Ron Paul is a fringe candidate who is not taken seriously.
So are Republican desires to reclaim the White House on an unavoidable collision course to crash and burn? Sadly for them, yes! The up and down leads in the primary combined with low polling numbers and extremely low voter turn out percentages are proof of the impending distress. With little more than 5 months to go before the Republican convention, Mitt Romney’s ability to put his GOP competition away speaks volumes on how he might fare against the powerful Obama machine. And with little more than 5 months to go before the convention, it’s a near numeric nightmare for the GOP to attempt to throw some unknown candidate into the race in hopes of them seizing the nomination.
The dates to get a candidate on most state ballots have long since expired. Any candidate entering the race now could only appear on 13 state ballots. Even if that unnamed candidate won each of those 13 states (unlikely), that would only give them just over 500 total delegates, far short of the needed 1144 to secure the nomination. Plus, donors and supporters of the remaining 4 candidates would likely stage an all out nuclear war at the August convention if the party tried to supercede their man.
Mitch Daniels, Chris Christie, Jeb Bush and other Republicans who are being begged to reconsider, are smart politicians. They realize any entry into the race at this point would be a suicide mission. Which leaves the Republican Party with a ton of questions and a very likely brokered convention. Stay tuned!
<span>"A Broken GOP". Oh come now DJ….you're being much too kind in your assessment. It is a DYING Grand Ole Party..and for good reason. Never have I seen a major political party work so hard, over the past 40-50 yrs, to KILL itself. The past 15 years in particular_and especially the last 3 and 1/2 yrs_have really been a nightmarish sight to behold. Paraphrasing Joe Scarborough this morning: "The Republican Party, My party, is not just shooting itself in the foot. It's looking around for weapons to put in it's mouth." For visual effect, Scarborough then positioned both of his hands in his mouth, as if they were guns he then pulled the trigger. He then went on to use a phrases I've OFTEN used over the past several years to describe the current state of the GOP. "TOXIC waste." "Lethal." "DANGEROUS." Forget Dem women being afraid of Repub leaders *WAR on Women* and Womens Rights…. Scarborough and Meghan McCain reported that NOW even Conservative Repub WOMEN are scared to death of Repub politicians thanks to the likes of Santorum and Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (right-wing religous extremists) given what Santorum has been spewing on the national stage in recent weeks_and what McDonnell and his state Repub supermajority are about to exact on the WOMEN of the great state of Virginia. SEE: VA state MANDATED "transvaginal" invasion. Related articles: 1. AP: "Va.House GOP Muscles Through Abortion Curbs" </span><span>http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/nation-wor…</span><span> 2. "Va. Delegate Says Mandatory Ultrasound Bill Will Turn Doctors Into "Criminals" Under the Law" http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/article/2012/02/17/…</span><span>3. "Is McDonnell Now Backing Away From a State-Sanctioned Rape Bill?" http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/article/2012/02/16/…</span><span></span>
And just when things are going bad enough for the GOP…..Us4Palin.com: "Palin: Republican establishment 'will Never come to me"Appearing on Fox News’ “Hannity” program Tuesday night, Gov. Palin and host Sean Hannity talked almost exclusively about the GOP presidential race:When Hannity steered the conversation to the possibility of a brokered or open convention and asked if she would accept a draft, Sarah Palin simply said, “The establishment will never come to me.” She said Republican should not “be afraid” of a brokered convention. […]Video & story: "Palin Tells Hannity She ‘Wouldn’t Be Afraid’ Of A Brokered Convention"http://us4palin.com/sarah-palin-the-establishment…Palin seems to be playing a kind of "I dare ya" game with the GOP establishment. I suspect that deep down inside she wants the GOP nomination_well, kinda sorta anyway. But she doesn't want to have to do a d*mn thing to earn it because she's knows, on her own, She.Would.Fail.However, if she could somehow convince enough of the GOP *base* to believe that she _and ONLY she_is the answer to taking on_and defeating_ the President than all out Christianist WAR would be a certainty at the Republican Convention later this year in Tampa.Heck. If you ask me, the GOP is already in the midst of an all out Christianist war. But anyhoo… My guess is that Palin thinks when the dust settles she could very well BE the nominee. At the very least, she wants the GOP establishment to gravel at her feet. Give her a kind of "King-maker" role if you will. Hence, "the establishment will NEVER come to me"…bullsh*t. As if to say, "I dare ya to come to me."A patently ignorant and clinically *problematic* woman. But she's clever. And given that her party is the Republican party, it doesn't take much to manipulate ANY faction of that party, including the elite faction. SEE: Their choice of Palin for McCain's VP pick. They thought she would be easiest to control.HAH. What a party.
<span>A few rigth-wing reaxs to Palin's latest comments….. Hotair Commenter: I have to admit I have no clue what game she’s playing here. She’s publicly questioned Mittens’ conservative cred(no problem there as many of us are skeptical), and she’s praised Newt….yet she won’t come out and endorse him. She’s also been dismissive of Santorum, but she also suggested he not drop out after Florida and defended him over the Satan nonsense. She’s in favor of a long, drawn-out primary so there’s sufficient time for vetting and debate. Yet she’s also receptive to a brokered convention in which an entirely new candidate could emerge as the nominee. </span><span></span><span></span><span>I don’t think she’s trying to position herself to get the nomination. She’s smart enough to know that ain’t ever happening. And if she’s hoping to be a kingmaker, it makes far more sense to try to do that now rather than at a brokered convention where no one would be able to predict what would happen. Again, I’m at a loss as to what she really wants out of all of this. Unless she’s just trying to screw with everybody for kicks like last year during her endless contemplation over whether or not she would run for President when she likely knew very early on she wasn’t going to. […] </span><span>………………………………………………….</span><span>Hotair Commenter: Sarah is such a coward little b!tch. There I said it. Sue me!! I mean seriously, what kind of person: – Doesn’t have the courage to see something through when it gets tough – Drags followers emotions through the mud – who claims to have the fire in the belly, and then turns around and say…family comes first….but still would throw her name in the hat at a brokered convention – who claims to have a greater purpose in fighting for conservatism….but DON’T HAVE THE GUTS — OR WANT TO DO THE WORK — TO RUN FOR THE MOST IMPORTANT OFFICE IN THE LAND WHEN IT IS MOST NEEDED, BUT IS WILLING TO RIDE IN THE CONVENTION TO CLAIM THE NOMINATION???? […]</span>
Uh-Oh….Streiff @Redstate: "VA Governor Bob McDonnell Hangs VA GOP Out To Dry"[UPDATE: I'm informed by someone very much in touch with the Virginia political scene that the root of the problem is the Bob McDonnell's staff are, at the best, pro-life squishes and they are presently negotiating with themselves over the best way of selling out.]Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, <span>a Romney suporter and leading contender for the VP spot on a Romney-headed ticket,</span> demonstrated his complete philosophical alignment with Romney yesterday by flipflopping on a bill he has championed and in the process hanging VA GOP delegates out to dry.For those who haven’t been paying attention, Virginia’s legislature has been going after the abortion industry root and branch. Last year they passed a law requiring aborttoirs to be regulated as if they did what they do: perform a surgical procedure which can be life threatening. This year a bill is being finalized that requires a woman seeking an abortion to see ultrasound pictures of the baby.Up until yesterday, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell had <span>unconditionally supoorted the bill.</span> [….]Read: http://www.redstate.com/streiff/2012/02/22/va-gov…However, TODAY it's being reported that the right-wing Governor is now "backing off his unconditional support for the bill." Read: "Virginia governor no longer fully supports ultrasounds before abortions"http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/v…
<span>Quote What I find somewhat infuriating in the language of the linked poll is the notion that wanting to recriminalize all abortion in every state and end all civil unions/marriages for gay couples is somehow "conservative." It would be radically opposed to the state of affairs that has existed in this country for decades. Opposing marriage equality can be called many things, but "socially conservative" is simply not one of them. When you favor weakening the social signals that encourage commitment, responsibility, family integration and stability, you are not socially conservative. You are, in fact, advocating the kind of social signal that deems a small minority of society outside of and beneath all moral norms. [….] ~ Andrew Sullivan, Wed. Feb 22, 2012 The Dish: "Santorum's Base" http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/02/s…</span>
<span>Quote One of the arguments Senator Rick Santorum made on behalf of his campaign was that if he were the nominee, he’d succeed in making Barack Obama the subject of the election, not himself. That was was before Santorum shot to the top of the GOP field. What candidates can never fully anticipate, until they’re considered a frontrunner, is the sheer intensity of the focus on their past record and words. That’s now happening to Santorum, and suddenly he’s on the defensive, despite his best efforts to avoid that from happening. </span><span></span><span>The main (though not exclusive) problem for Santorum is his rhetorical approach to social issues. He’s said he would be the one president who would talk about the damage contraception does to American society. He’s spoken quite openly about criminalizing doctors who perform abortions. He’s made a passionate case against prenatal testing. He’s been quite forthright in his views against homosexual acts, about women in combat, and about women in the workforce. He’s given a speech in in which he’s said Satan has systematically targeted the key institutions in American life. The danger for Santorum is that, fairly or not, these statements and stands, separately and (especially) combined, create a portrait of a person who is censorious and sits in critical judgment of the lifestyle of most Americans. </span><span></span><span>The prospect of an American president using the “bully pulpit” to speak out about the dangers and damaging effects of contraception on American society (including among married couples) is not a reassuring one. [….] ~Peter Wehner, Wed. Feb. 22,2012 Read: "Rick Santorum and the Social Issues" http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2012/02/21/sant…</span><span></span><span>Just an FYI: CNN is hosting the Arizona (and perhaps final) GOP debate tonight. As usual, I won't be watching it. But I will be periodically checking in on Sullivan's live-blogging of the event. </span>
<span>Roger Simon @Politico: "Republicans are sighing, not cheering" The most notable factor in the Republican presidential race thus far is the depth of despair into which Republican voters have sunk. They cannot find a candidate. Faced with a Democratic incumbent who appears shockingly weak to them, the Republicans have been unable to find a big nominee with a big voice to oppose him. </span><span></span><span>Instead</span><span>, they are finding a series of small nominees with squeaky voices. Some think the Republican Party’s problem is that its voters have failed to “coalesce” around a single candidate. That is not the problem. The problem is that there is no candidate around whom Republicans can coalesce. The field is not just weak, <span>it is barren</span>. The GOP is now the party of woulda, coulda, shoulda. If only this governor had run. If only that person had not dropped out early. If only there had not been so many debates to introduce the candidates to the American people long before the candidates were ready to be introduced. Today, what ushers forth from the throats of loyal Republicans is not a cheer, but a sigh. [….] Read: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0212/73139.h…</span>
Good read here DJ. And on point as usual Truth with your take on the whole thing. I honestly think the Republican party is dying. Or at least they are becoming fringe party. Unless something crazy happens no way they beat Obama in the fall.