The GOP Establishment is Freaking the F*ck Out.
This week we saw little boomlets about Chris Christie and Paul Ryan joining the race. Karl Rove said it himself on Fox, in that he expected both to join the race. And then came stories that Christie was focus grouping an announcement speech, and rumors that Ryan was “seriously considering” getting in the race.
Yesterday, both of them personally said that they had no intention of getting into the race.
So why did the boomlets, or trial balloons happen?
Because the GOP Establishment is freaking the fuck out.
Wisconin Republican Primary, Public Policy Polling (8/12-14, Republican primary voters):
Michele Bachmann: 24
Rick Perry: 20
Mitt Romney: 17
Someone else/undecided: 11
Newt Gingrich: 10
Herman Cain: 7
Ron Paul: 6
Tim Pawlenty: 4
Jon Huntsman: 1
(MoE: ±5.2%)
Look, Romney has no chance. He may win New Hampshire, but that’s really it. Bachmann or Perry will win Iowa, come in second in NH, and then win South Carolina, so any momentum Romey gets from New Hampshire is blunted immediately. So your GOP nominee, whether it is Perry or Bachmann, will be insane, and not just the normal batshit politically insanity that all Republicans possess. Clinical insanity.
The GOP will try to stop at nothing to prevent their nomination. They will try to destroy Perry and Bachmann. Think about the GOP brushback given to Perry after his Bernacke treason / assassination comments. Have you ever seen the national Republican establishment go after one of their own prominent presidential candidates / big state governors in such a way?
And the Establishment will stop at nothing to get what they perceive as more palpatable candidates in the race. Hence, stories about Christie and Ryan. We may start hearing about Senator Thune of South Dakota. Hell, there have been even some stories about Jeb Bush, for God’s sake. Yes, running another Bush is more palpatable than uniting behind Perry or Bachmann. In the end
Eventually, though, the GOP will come to accept what has to happen: the crazies have to have their turn at the wheel. And only after the GOP car has been driven off the cliff can the GOP credibly say to them that crazy doesn’t win elections.
“crazy doesn’t win elections.”
Just ask Rand Paul, and Scott Walker, and Joe Wilson, and …….
Fun as it would be to watch Nominee Perry go down in flames, I just dont trust Obama to win…. and by that i mean, i dont trust the Leftybags to keep the batshits out of the White House because they didnt get their pony.
There will be no late entry dark horse GOP savior, but once the press scrubs Perry, he’ll have a lock on 49% of the vote.
Democrats better be carefully about what they wish for. Al Gore wanted to match up against the last crazy Texan.
LOL… the Establishment Repubs are about to get O’Donnelled. Perhaps they can consult Mike Castle to find out what not to do.
“i dont trust the Leftybags to keep the batshits out of the White House because they didnt get their pony.”
That was supposed to be funny right? Obama is doing everything he can to turn off leftybags with his policies and “undecideds” with his foundation-less dithering. He was never going to pick up GOP votes, so if Obama loses, certainly it will be his fault, not mine.
No, it will be your fault if you don’t vote for him, Jason.
Are we really going to have the tired Nader argument again, because that’s what this is.
I obviously voting for him. I think Obama has a little more power over whether he wins or loses than I do. That’s all I’m saying. I wish that was not controversial.
Ok then. I misunderstood you. I am writing up a piece now that should be ready this afternoon that will address this whole horrible topic. I expect a flame war.
I think pretty much all of the active Democrats now criticizing Obama from the left, are going to go to the booth and vote for him.
For a critic from the left to say they won’t vote for Obama, or call for a primary, is mostly an (entirely justified) cry of frustration.
It’s the independents and less committed Democrats who are going to fall into the enthusiasm gap Obama has dug. The people who are actually going to stay home on Election Day aren’t posting on this site.
Wanna get depressed? Watch this Les Mis Obama 2008 Lipsynch video all the way through, then try to imagine the vibe in the 2012 campaign headquarters.
I haven’t missed voting in a Presidential election since I could vote, and I have always voted for the Democrat except for John Anderson.
If the nominee is Obama, I may not vote for the Democrat this year. And I am not alone.
And if all partisans like Del Dem have is to offer is that Obama is not a Republican, that ain’t good enough.
For a lot of voters, the only pony they want is a job.
Jason, yes it was half sarcasm, half maybe not sarcasm…. i really dont know what my opinion on the topic is anymore. My ;ast refuge is to say things that will cause arguments.
DD, readying my acetylene torch for the flame war
A1, is president Perry better than President Obama?
Asbestos underwear in place.
“A1, is president Perry better than President Obama?”
At this point we are just arguing about the size of the tax cuts for the rich and the Medicare cuts.
We know what they are, now we are just haggling over the price.
even if the republican is crazy town? look, i’m as disappointed as everyone else but i cannot understand the thought that you would in good conscience elect a president Bachman or Perry out of spite (either by actively voting that way or staying home). It’s reckless and stupid.
My only answer to protest votes is this: Supreme Court Nominations
Jason, If you remember… continuing the metaphor, the students in Les Mis were slaughtered by the soldiers because no one showed up to help them when things didn’t got exactly as they had hoped.
Of course I’ll vote for Obama. Voted for Carter’s reelection, too.
Have about the same enthusiasm for this one as I did for that one.
PRESIDENT Obama is a product of this ugly depression that you can blame on Bush or whoever you want. Without the crash or 2008 he never would have been elected. But this terrible economic environment is a double-edged sword that will come back to cut him on his ass. He has failed to turn things around, and whether or not it was even possible will not matter 14 months from now. If things don’t turn around in this economy, he’s toast. Look for things to shift hard to the right. Sorry.
the economy has actually gotten worse since speaker boner promised to create jobs…. instead they just created another fiscal crisis by threatening to default on our debts like the deadbeats they are.
not to mention, OF course it will take more than 2 years to un-fuck everything Bush fucked up. How impatient as a society have we become to where if something that took almost 12 years of bad policies to happen isn’t fixes in 2 months, we can even remember how it got broken in the first place.
Republican policies messed things up so badly it was gonna take years to fix anyway. Add to it that MORE FUCKING REPUBLICANS are stalling the process and suggesting that we douse the embers of or nation in gasoline…..
i cant do it anymore. Jan 20 2013 i figure i have a 50/50 shot of moving to Canada
waiting for someone to tell me that Canada is a horrible place for bad people so it makes sense that i would go there. yes, i love canada’s baby killing, racist, oppressive, bad health care,…. whatever.
Puck wrote:
And the record of job creation in Texas is a whole lot better than the record of job creation nationwide. Governor Perry will claim some of the credit for Texas’ job creation and President Obama will try to run away from the nationwide economic and job creation record during his term.
If the national economy turns around, and we see visible economic improvement and significant job growth, President Obama will be re-elected; if things stay pretty much the way they are now, the Republican nominee will be elected. The President gets held responsible for these things, whether he actually did anything to cause them or not.
Yes. If you love minimum wage jobs, Perry’s Texas is goddamn paradise.
“A1, is president Perry better than President Obama?”
No, definitely not. Rick Perry is pure evil.
http://www.outsidethemachine.com/?p=1520
From the Republican point of view, tax cuts for the rich ARE their jobs program, and Obama is blocking them. Never mind that Obama signed the biggest tax cut for the rich in history (it is bigger than the 2001 cut in total dollars because the rich have so much more money now).
The total elimination of investment taxes and corporate taxes, paid for with cuts in the safety net, IS the Republican jobs program (see: Ryan budget).
Texas job creation?
If you like low-paying, no-benefits work…or, gasp, jobs created by thr federal stimulus.
Yes, a repackaging PR miracle!
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/truth-rick-perrys-texas-miracle/story?id=14328858
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/08/chart-of-the-day-government-jobs-led-to-perrys-economic-boom.php
Texas job creation came from sucking up Federal money. How do you suggest Perry can reproduce that from the White House?
I think there a huge pent-up demand for a sane Republican candidate. Somebody who will say “Look – we won historic low tax rates. We even got the other side to sign on to them. We got what we asked for, now we have to show we can make it work before we ask for more.”
I think even the Repubs are sick of their own base. A sane candidate like that could catch fire for being honest and maverick-y.
LMAO – What fucking planet have you been on for the past two years? The only thing Republicans want is more mayhem.
I guess you are right. Teabaggers have educated Repubs that taxes are too high. It would be asking too much for a Repub to un-educate them.
That’s right I’m right. If you see any pushback against the crazies from so-called sane Republicans like Ken Grant let me know. He’ll be at the convention rooting and tooting for Rick Perry with the best of ’em.
My nightmare is that the coming economic collapse will be dealt with during a Republican administration. And instead of drowning government in a bathtub, they will make it more powerful than you can imagine.
….In the name of “security” of course.
Also, if there is a Perry in the White House, I’m sure a big stimulus project will be tearing down schools and libraries in order to use the bricks to build Churches.
And yes, I’m serious.
Delaware Dem, I am surprised that some political prognisticators are not paying you hundreds of thousands of dollars per year for your insightful thoughts