of the moon maybe

12/30/2005 1:20:57 AM

I think McCain is gonna do it this time.

Who do the Dems have? Hillary? Ain't gonna happen. Edwards? What does he have...a term in the Senate and a failed run as VP? John Kerry? Please. He just lost to one of the most wildly despised Presidents in history.

Biden? Hmm...I'm no expert on him, but he could be viable. I think McCain would destroy him in a general election, though, and I'm not sure the Dems are smart enough to go with someone like him instead of, say, Hillary Clinton. Gov. Warner also falls into this category.




Of course, nobody actually thinks that anyone really has a chance against McCain in a general election, and that as usual, the battle will be in the GOP primary. Who's looking at running? Giuliani? Gingrich maybe? Frist? I think Giuliani could be a great running mate, but for whatever misgivings the party faithful have about McCain being a RINO (which, in my opinion, are very largely unfounded), I think that everyone views Giuliani as further to the center, which isn't gonna help him in a GOP primary. Gingrich? He's been out of the game, and while he can lay claim to the "GOP Revolution" and the Contract With America/balanced budged, but between ethics charges and a fall from favor within his own party, I don't think he's that much of a threat. Frist? Polls aren't everything, but McCain has about 5-6x more support than Frist does right now.

The good thing is that it looks like the GOP might be taking at least a few small steps back towards being, well, Republican--no matter who gets the nod.

2/18/2006 1:53:50 PM

Frist doesn't have much chance IMO. McCain will have to look out for Sen. George Allen depending on how big his election victory is this year, or maybe Gov. Mitt Romney.

Barring those two, he might actually make it past a primary...

2/18/2006 2:06:15 PM

i could be down with the virginia battle

warner vs allen

2/18/2006 2:29:30 PM

hell [yes], that's my dream matchup

followed by Clinton vs Rice

2/18/2006 3:12:23 PM

Romney has little chance. The fact that he's a Mormon is going to hurt him badly in the Republican primaries and the general election as a whole.

Recent polls have indicated that people are more likely to vote for a woman, a black female, or a Jew before they vote for a Mormon.

2/18/2006 4:07:22 PM

I think that's a pre-9/11 philosophy though, people responding to polls don't realize they'll vote for a Mormon as long as he runs around chanting "We're #1! We're #1!" more than his opponents

2/18/2006 5:36:15 PM

A more interesting question is the vice-presidential tickets.

That is a difficult one.

I think its going to be Clinton/Who knows? and McCain/Allen

To really spice things up (although not ever going to happen)
Clinton/Lieberman v. McCain/Rice

That way the left courts the center (not really though) and the right courts the black and female votes.

That would be a fun race.

2/18/2006 7:48:41 PM

Warner v. Allen

please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please

I could vote for either of those guys and not get too ill.

2/18/2006 7:51:59 PM

Johnny, what do you consider yourself generally? Left, center, right, middle-left, middle-right, etc?

2/18/2006 7:54:36 PM

Clinton / Waner vs. Allen / Gulliani

You heard it here first.

I would rather see Warner at the top of the ticket but the Le7t has invested too much in getting its ass kicked to ever put a winner at the top, again.

Dream Match Up

Sharpton / Dean vs. Buchanan / Wolfowitz

Now that would be entertainment.

2/18/2006 8:10:15 PM

I almost vomitted until I realized you meant "dream" as in a comical sense, lol

2/18/2006 8:13:03 PM

Truthfully, I think we should make a reality show where Al Franken and Rush Limbaugh team up to run for "co-presidents."

That would be hilarious

2/18/2006 8:13:41 PM

^^I'm surprised you're such a big Allen fan. I think your politics are pretty close to mine, and from what I've read about him, he's definitely more into federal spending and less moderate socially than I am, and he's bigger into social engineering type stuff like:

Quote :

" Provide tax credits for companies that move job-creating industries into areas with high unemployment"

Quote :

" Provide tax credits for businesses that offer on-site child care"

Quote :

" Increase funding for national job-training programs that re-train displaced workers or teach skills needed in today's job market."

he's also a supporter of hate-crime legislation, which i think is stupid.




basically, i don't really dislike him...we could do a lot worse...but he's nothing to write home about, as far as i can tell.

2/18/2006 8:21:57 PM

Duke,

From our pm's I'm betting we're about 90% in agreement politically. I'm not a big Allen fan but could live with him if i had to. Warner would get my vote if it came down to that pairing.

Fiscal conservative, social moderate, moderate isolationist. I don't give a shit who wants to get married to whom, and I despise how the feds are spending this country into the ground. Thinks the religious nuts have to much pull with the present pubs. There doesn't seem to be a political party for me these days, but I've always registered independant anyway.

Pretty much on the Gridlock party ticket. There's no real difference in the parties, but I think we function best when one party isn't in control of the executive, legislative, most governorships, etc.

The pubs are fucking up all kinds of shit by not having an effective check on their voting and spending patterns. The dems would be doing the same thing if given the chance though.

2/18/2006 8:35:29 PM

I can't for the life of me figure how McCain is viewed as a RINO. If I were a member of the political left, I would be shaking in my boots at the prospect of a McCain administration, not heralding him as a Republican that I'm ok with.

I mean, I understand why he's respected and liked by people across the political spectrum, but you're kidding yourself if you don't think that he's a Republican to the bone.

http://www.vote-smart.org/npat.php?can_id=S0061103

[Edited on February 18, 2006 at 8:38 PM. Reason : asdf]

2/18/2006 8:37:47 PM

It's the likeablity factor. He's more of a republican than these assholes are.

2/18/2006 9:17:49 PM

i would vote for mccain (assuming the democrat's balls dont drop in the next couple years)
but im pretty moderate and enjoy his more traditional conservative positions

2/18/2006 9:30:17 PM

How about the "Stuck-in-a-Political-rut" tickets...

Hillary/Bill vs Laura/George

2/19/2006 12:20:52 AM

I hope the GOP picks a governor, although I think Allen from Va would be decent. Senators haven't fared as well on the national scene, not nearly as well as former governors. I think a lot of it has to do with the structure of the governor's position in state government and leadership role thereof.

2/19/2006 8:48:06 AM

^Allen WAS a governor, right?

So he should count there.

2/19/2006 11:03:10 AM

i think part of it is that Senators have a long voting record to pick apart...they end up voting for pork projects and other stuff they don't want slipped into bills they otherwise support.

2/19/2006 11:32:35 AM

i think in the next election i will vote purely on the candidates' stance on stem-cell research (since i would like to have job security). mccain seems somewhat moderate on the issue but the fact that he's like 'oh noes abortion' makes me skittish. also, the fact that he wants to keep me from constantly burning the american flag is pretty retarded.

[Edited on February 19, 2006 at 11:41 AM. Reason : .]

2/19/2006 11:41:34 AM

Hey, I was just reading through a Navy/USMC aviation internet forum that I look at from time to time, and saw that a Navy officer on there claimed that Sen. McCain told him face to face in December that he is going to run in 2008.

I know that's internet hearsay, and it looks like a foregone conclusion that he's going to run anyway, but I figured I'd throw that out there.

4/10/2006 12:15:57 AM

i hope mccain runs...into a wall.


in other news...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/08/AR2006040800921.html
^HUGE news for allen if you ask me

4/10/2006 1:37:15 AM

^^ Which face was it? The maverick-Republican face or the Jerry Falwell-kissing face?

4/10/2006 2:25:10 PM

either way i'm not voting for him now

dude is supposed to be above pandering

but now he is speaking at the fucking Liberty graduation?

com'on man

4/10/2006 2:27:05 PM

I've been researching this Allen fellow, and he has a few stances that concern me, especially regarding drugs and immigration.

http://www.vote-smart.org/npat.php?can_id=CNIP9093

he supports

Quote :

"f) Grant U.S. citizenship to children born in the US only if their parents immigrated legally. h) Establish English as the official national language."

at least he doesn't seem to hate gay people too much

4/10/2006 3:37:38 PM

^^^i don't know...and i'm disappointed with that (and not just his hanging out with Jerry Falwell. He's been doing some other pandering, too).

^i'm ok with making English the official language. but yeah, if I remember correctly, I looked through Allen's views, and he's less fiscally conservative than I am (or McCain is)...prob a little more socially conservative, too.

4/10/2006 3:44:13 PM

double post

[Edited on April 10, 2006 at 3:44 PM. Reason : asdf]

4/10/2006 3:44:13 PM

The citizenship thing is the one that bothers me more. I mean, citizenship by birth comes from the 14th ammendment. It would take another ammendment to change it. I'm willing to forgive some deviation from my beliefs on immigration, but Allen must be hardcore on the subject if he realistically would support an ammendment.

4/10/2006 3:51:23 PM

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12227764/site/newsweek/from/RS.5/

Quote :

"A Rising Star, Out of the Blue While rivals Frist and McCain fumed over the collapse of the immigration bill, Romney made solving thorny problems look easy. April 17, 2006 issue - Smooth-faced Gov. Mitt Romney is trying to win the 2008 Republican presidential nomination from Massachusetts, one of the bluest states in the Union. In the Democratic Party, hailing from the other team's territory is considered an advantage, which is why Democratic Gov. Mark Warner of red Virginia will get a close look. But in the GOP, the betting for months was that Romney, for all of his charms, would not be able to flee "Taxachusetts" quickly enough for the conservative base—that his moderate record would seem liberal to the right-wingers who dominate the primaries. Even though he did surprisingly well in a recent Tennessee straw poll, Romney has been viewed as strictly second-tier. Until now. With the help of forces ranging from the impeccably conservative Heritage Foundation to Ted Kennedy, Romney drafted a health-care plan for his state that passed the overwhelmingly Democratic state legislature last week almost unanimously. While rivals Bill Frist and John McCain fumed over the collapse of the immigration bill in the Senate, Romney made solving thorny problems look easy. Unlike the health-care spending accounts for the comfortable that President Bush was futilely hawking last week, the Massachusetts plan actually addresses today's systemic meltdown. "I ran against Ted Kennedy [in 1994]. We disagree on almost every issue," Romney told me as he prepared for a splashy signing ceremony in Boston. "But this shows that Republicans and Democrats can work together to get things done." It also shows why four of the past five presidents have been governors first. Each built a record of accomplishment that could sell nationally, from Georgia Gov. Jimmy Carter's proving that a Democrat could be fiscally responsible, to Texas Gov. George W. Bush's using a home-state education bill to show he was a "compassionate conservative." (Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton also used their gubernatorial records to good effect.) This time, the payoff could be even bigger. Because the health-care mess is seen as especially intractable, Romney will get extra props. The jerry-built bill, which owes much to Democratic leaders in the legislature, offers a way to insure the half-million Massachusetts residents who currently have no coverage by essentially turning health insurance into car insurance. You have to buy it by next year or face penalties. (The penalty will average about $1,200.) But if the program works—a big if—the poor and working class currently left uncovered by Medicaid will be subsidized to the point where coverage is affordable. The insurance industry wins again (big surprise) by getting to sell lots of new policies, while consumers win a new state agency, already commonly called "The Connector," which will, in theory, police the insurers, bargain for better deals and make it easier for businesses to help their employees get covered with pretax dollars. It's not single payer, but single player for the subsidized. One key to making the reform work will be shredding the exasperating paperwork by putting everything online. Romney, a former Bain & Co. CEO who helped straighten out the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, is working all the angles. He intends to line-item-veto a part of the bill that fines companies with more than 11 employees $295 per worker if they don't offer insurance. That way he can tell the GOP nationally that he was against "employer mandates" while resting assured that the legislature will override the veto and keep the bill intact. This isn't very responsible: why shouldn't employers have the same carrots and sticks as employees? But at least Romney's flexible. One of Bush's worst qualities is his unwillingness to set aside his preconceptions, roll up his sleeves and fix things when they're failing. Romney is striking a different note. "We'll need to make corrections," he says with the fluid expression that makes him an anchor-quality TV performer (he's also got the hair). "It looks like a great idea, but we want to see if it works." If it does, he'll get a leg up in 2008. He's been skillful at negotiating cultural issues like gay marriage and stem-cell research (he's for using in-vitro clinic embryos that would otherwise be discarded, but against cloning). Romney's religion could be a problem with some evangelicals who don't believe that Mormonism is "truly Christian." But most just want a believer, regardless of faith. And he's not likely to be gaffe-prone, having learned the hard way from his late father, George Romney, the GOP front-runner in 1968 until he said he had been "brainwashed" on the Vietnam War. Mitt seems more supple. Republicans worried about their narrow margin the last time might be ready for someone out of the blue."

That's the shape of leader we ought to elect into the foreseeable future. Regardless of political bent.

4/10/2006 5:50:07 PM

warner vs romney would be fucking amazing.

4/10/2006 7:30:34 PM

two purple gov's squaring off

hell yeah

4/10/2006 7:36:03 PM

bttt

last poll I saw was Giuliani slightly leading McCain, with everyone else waaaaaay behind.

5/29/2006 7:20:49 AM

I'm pretty sure the South would never support Giuliani for president.

5/29/2006 1:46:22 PM

well, i don't think the religious right would, anyway.

i'm not saying i think he's gonna get the nod...just that he was leading the poll i saw.

maybe someone's running mate...

5/29/2006 5:51:22 PM

Giuliani will not win the Republican primary because he is pro-choice

that will not fly around here

it will probably end up being McCain vs. Clinton

5/29/2006 11:15:53 PM

the pundits hate mccain now after last week, so im sure they'll rally support against him, thus giving us some social conservative that liberals all hate as a frontrunner.

5/30/2006 12:07:17 AM

because it's important for Republicans to nominate candidates that the liberals like, when 1) liberals won't vote for him/her anyway and 2) liberals haven't exactly been all that talented lately when it comes to that whole "winning elections" thing...

---

Quote :

"prep-e: Giuliani will not win the Republican primary because he is pro-choice that will not fly around here it will probably end up being McCain vs. Clinton"

apparently McCain is pro-choice too, at least by GOP standards. I don't think either will make it past South Carolina. 

5/30/2006 12:49:15 AM

thats unfortunate

get ready for president Frist

5/30/2006 12:56:35 AM

If I had to bet money, I'd say it's between Allen, Romney or a comeback bid from Gingrich

5/30/2006 2:10:09 AM

you really think that Gingrich has a chance?

5/30/2006 2:11:07 AM

^in a pie eating contest

5/30/2006 2:34:24 AM

^^
no, but he's got the name ID to raise $texas so you never know how much that can help/hurt in the early primary states

5/30/2006 6:33:18 AM

Warner/Romney or Romney/Warner = one hell of a ticket. I like both those guys.

Regardless, my vote is going to come down to whether the Dems manage to not fuck up the midterms or not. No way in hell am I voting to have another republican president with a republican congress. That's been an unmitigated disaster.

Gridlock is your friend.

5/30/2006 2:28:51 PM