Mitt not even on the short list?
Even after the guy drops out, the MSM still working overtime to keep him down. McClatchy spells out their list, six deep, and Mitt is nowhere to be seen. Here’s their list:
…here’s a set of names, with the pros and cons of each person most often mentioned by Republicans:
HALEY BARBOUR, 60, governor of Mississippi
Pro: Popular former national party chairman helped Republicans win Congress in 1994 and got very good reviews for his leadership when Hurricane Katrina struck his state in 2005.
Con: A long record as a Washington lobbyist that could clash with McCain’s reform message.
CHARLIE CRIST, 51, governor of Florida
Pro: He’s a popular governor whose endorsement helped McCain win the critical Florida primary. As running mate, he’d probably help put this big swing state solidly in the Republican column.
Con: His refusal to back an anti-gay marriage initiative and appointment of Democrats to head state agencies tar him as suspect to the party base.
MIKE HUCKABEE, 52, former governor of Arkansas
Pro: He’s shown his ability to win in the South and has support among evangelical Christians. A solid social conservative.
Con: He raised taxes as governor and supported equal benefits for the Arkansas children of illegal immigrants. Picking him might not excite conservatives.
KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, 64, senator from Texas
Pro: Offers a gender balance to the ticket and wins handily in her mega-state.
Con: Support for financing embryonic stem-cell research worries social conservatives. Also, she’s probably more interested in running for governor.
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, 53, secretary of state
Pro: First black woman on the ticket provides racial and gender balance against a Democratic ticket sure to have either a black or a woman.
Con: Nobody knows what she thinks about hot-button issues from abortion to taxes. Also, her record on Iraq and other security issues could provide a running debate with her own running mate, who criticized many of those stands.
MARK SANFORD, 47, governor of South Carolina
Pro: Young, vibrant conservative with a record of fighting spending while in the House, a McCain theme.
Con: Wouldn’t add a state to the McCain column. McCain should carry South Carolina without him.
Now, I’m completely undecided as to whether a Veep spot is really good for Mitt anyway, but I have a hard time believing that Mitt is not even on the top 6 list above some of these other people.
February 18th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Also, Pawlenty of MN is not mentioned. He is the likely front runner for the VP spot at this point in MHO
February 18th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Crist = Great choice.
Florida is key.
Not alienating independents with a hyper-conservative is key.
Conservatives will turn out to block Omama or Hillary or both regardless.
Any other choice listed could be disaster for McCain.
February 18th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
I think people don’t consider Mitt because he may be assumed to be above that position. Also, word is out that the two dislike each other.
February 18th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
When are you people going to realize that Conservatives are not going to keep following the GOP around on a leash - particularly if we aren’t getting a fair part of the bargin. You say that Conservatives will “turn out to block Omama or Hillary or both regardless”, but they won’t. If Conservatives see McCain and a moderate or liberal VP as a threat to the position of Conservatism within the party, they WON’T support him.
You act like McCain can take Conservatives for granted, like Conservatives will turn out in huge numbers to support any Republican candidate, just because they aren’t Democrats, regarless of what the candidate supports. How did that work out for you in 2006?
McCain could very well serve only one term - I’m not comfortable with another moderate as next-in-line, and if he doesn’t pick a Conservative VP, then the democratic candidate WILL be an appealing option.
Liberals are bad, the destruction of conservative opposition is far worse.
February 18th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
“I think people don’t consider Mitt because he may be assumed to be above that position.”
You don’t get very far “above” VP. Only President is higher, and the VP spot will serve as an instant springboard to the Republican nomination and the Presidency. Yeah, Romney wants the top spot, but VP is the perfect way to get there. Nothing gives you more press, nothing gives you more access to powerful people, and nothing is better as the crowning gem on a pre-run resume.
“Also, word is out that the two dislike each other.”
Neither did JFK and Johnson, and neither did Reagan and Bush I.
February 18th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Matt A.
I appreciate your comments, and I would like to see Mitt run as VP, if only to set himself up for 2012, but all you had to do was watch Mitt’s endorsement of McCain to see that one looked like a President and the other didn’t. You think that escaped McCain? No way. He has to be top dog and everybody knows Mitt will be a threat to that.
February 18th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
What all these candidate have in common: They are from the South (except Rice — where’s she from).
What became unfortunately clear is that Mitt cannot deliver the South, which is where McCain needs the most help (not that he doesn’t need help elsewhere….).
February 18th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
Matt A. writes:
“When are you people going to realize that Conservatives are not going to keep following the GOP around on a leash - particularly if we aren’t getting a fair part of the bargin.”
Matt,
My father used to favor that old truism that states, “Anyone under 30 who’s a conservative doesn’t have a heart; and anyone over 30 who’s a liberal doesn’t have a head.”
Point is, indulging yourself in suicidal tantrums over policy differences with a moderate Republican with an American Conservative Union rating averaging in the low 80’s over the last 20 or so years is thinking without a head. The independent moving is outpacing the growth of the conservative movement. The demographics are not trending conservative either. You guys can’t vote twice. And ardent, unyielding orthodoxy doesn’t make your vote count any more either.
Medved likes to call Libertarians “Losertarians.” (He’s so clever, ain’t he?) But if you stay home out of spite you’re also throwing away your vote, as Medved posits are the Libertarians. And you aren’t influencing the direction of the country in any way.
If you’re going to pack up your toys and go home because your guy didn’t get tapped doesn’t make you much a party man, does it?
I have an old roommate in Congress now who scoffs at people who say, “I don’t vote for parties; I vote for individuals.” That’s just not the way things get done.
Adapt or die, folks. Unless, of course you are guided by principles that don’t permit you to compromise in any sense on immigration, abortion, or homosexuality, in which you’re doomed anyway.
That’s what “we people” think.
February 18th, 2008 at 5:58 pm
McCain won’t anymore carry South Carolina against Obama and Richardson than a cow can fly. What are you guys drinking ? Look at the primary vote totals and then count 1/2 the Romney people sitting on their hands. You figure it out.
February 18th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
The reality is that there is really nothing that McCain can do to pander to social conservatives that will be seen as genuine. So why try? He is popular with independents and moderate democrats, and that is his key to winning. As much as I would like some guarentee that he will carry water on some of my key issues (abortion, judicial appointments, embryonic stem cell harvesting, etc.), I have no delusions that he actually will. McCain at CPAC is the most conservative we will ever see. At this point, turn out of social conservatives will be based on whether the McCain campaign can properly scare them to the polls by talking about the results of an Obama/Clinton presidency. Where else will the social conservatives go? You say that they will stay at home, but give the campaign 4-5 months to talk about all the crazy things that Obama would do, and trust me, they will turn out to vote (even if they have to hold their nose while they do).
February 18th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
Matt:
We need to email the McCain campaign and contact every source we know to encourage selection of Mitt as VP. I have emailed McCain and everyone I know. He is the logical one. I am from Florida and believe me, after the endorsement stunt Crist pulled in Florida, he will have a hard time with the conservatives next time around. He ran as a conservative and threw our candidate under the bus. Barbour has too much baggage for VP - Kay Bailey is too wimpy and Condi has had enough of the Washington BS.
We could have a lot of influence over this decision if we only get the numbers to contact McCain campaign - Ann Marie - can you help with this?
To Leslie:
Anyone looks more like a President than McCain. What a choice we have.
February 18th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Renna
I agree, I was sent a poll by max.com asking who I preferred for McCain’s VP. Of course I clicked on Romney. I will be interesting to see what the results will be.
February 18th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
I know one thing if he were to pick Barbour I would not vote for McCain.
I’m not excited with the rest of the bunch either.
Ugh…
Bah Humbug
Ann Marie
February 18th, 2008 at 8:29 pm
Mitt should stay out of it. I would not be surprised after that endorsement that he took a long, hot , shower. He got his impetus already. Tying himself to McCain, won’t get him anywhere. Let McCain sink or swim on his own. He has got to stay in the forfront after this election. He will figure it out, if he has the “burn” in 2 years.
February 18th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
McCain will NOT win the election come November. He is only pandering as close to the edge as possible, ONLY to get the nomination. And then, like he did in Arizona, will turn again to his own vomit (liberalism) and shun the conservatives like the plague.
No. McCain will not win.
I have been a life-long conservative, like my parents and their parents, but, I will not be voting for McCain, because I know as sure as I am on planet Earth, he will turn on us. His “stripes” tell us all we need to know.
He ain’t no Republican! And he ain’t no Conservative! Would you vote for Michael Jackson to be the President of the Boy Scouts? People who say they are conservative and vote for McCain are HYPOCRITES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Pure and simple. And it doesn’t get any easier than that.
February 18th, 2008 at 8:41 pm
Why be VP to a guy who will do his best to send him on un-important jaunts around the world, marginalize his strengths, and enjoy keeping him under his thumb or on a lease just because he has the power. There is no way McCain would vp anyone who overpowers his aura. He was blessed to have Huckabee trip up Mitt, and they played tag-team, till he did not need him anymore. I truly pray Mitt does not give himself an ulcer for the next few years, just for the party to beat the dems. There is just so much “throwing yourself down on your sword” he should do. I WILL NOT VOT FOR MCCAIN!! I will vote libertarian or Obama .
February 18th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
I agree RC, enough already with VP talk. Since they are noteven talking about Mitt, that is cool with me. If Mitt wants to go for it in 2012, he does not need to compromise anymore for party sake. There are too many who just do not trust McCain, that is why he has been unable to get to the delegates he needs without Mitt and others help. The party is already trying to marginalize Huckabee, because McCain could not even sweep the rest of the primaries without help. Unless the dems implode, he is toast
February 18th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
If McCain even had a serious shot at winning I would say that Mitt should try to go for the VP slot, and then move on in 2016 for President. But nobody is even talking about McCain anymore. People are bored with him. He is a loser candidate, and the republicans will be out in November. Bush just endorsed him today, but all the talk was about Obama. Even Clinton is getting kicked to the side.
February 18th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
McCain and our country need someone like Mitt as vp But I don’t know what Mitt’s stance is on being vp. I am having a really hard time with this election. McCain is NOT at the top of my list by far, but I will not sit back and let the liberals ruin this country. I have been debating these libs for years. Hillary and Bill had their chance in the White House. Barack Hussein Obama is full of words. NO solutions. When Obama’s church magazine, last year, gave the Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. Trumpeter Award to a man it said “truly epitomized greatness.” > Louis Farrakhan. I was shocked! I am a hardcore conservative, and will vote for what is best for the country. Unfotunately, the best (Romney) got pushed under the rug, because of cruel slurs against his religion and the liberal media. I will be voting McCain. He is the only one strong on our national defense.
February 18th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
Charlie Crist is supposedly gay…that should help get the conservative vote out…
Huckabee was a religous bigot and as people watch this race unfold will realize what a disgusting choice he would be…If McCain want to be Pres…He needs someone to help him with the midwest and western states…They still are in the US. I’ll hold my vote for McCain until he chooses his VP. If he chooses wisely he gets my vote…If he chooses unwisely….he doesn’t get my vote….a Democrate will.
February 19th, 2008 at 12:00 am
I will never vote Dem….NEVER!!!! I agree with CT though…if McCain chooses the VP wisely I will vote for him…if not it will be a write in or third party.
February 19th, 2008 at 12:41 am
I doubt McCain, hence the Republicans, will win, considering the momentum Obama now has as well as the national disapproval of the last 7 years with Bush and Iraq. I believe it’s the Democrasts “turn” now. In that case, it will be good for Romney to not be on the ticket. He needs to position himself as the standard bearer for the conservatives and the GOP in the next election.
February 19th, 2008 at 12:50 am
“I will never vote Dem….NEVER!!!! I agree with CT though…if McCain chooses the VP wisely I will vote for him…if not it will be a write in or third party.”
Um… if you don’t vote for McCain that is voting Dem. So is staying home.
Seems like the strategy among many around here is to hope that the Dems hurt America so badly that the Second Coming of Mitt can happen. A bit like the (tele)evangelist fanatics supporting Israel based on the premise that it will hasten the end of the world.
Or let me try a less metaphorical analogy. This attitude will lead to these mopey fair-weather Republicans to do PRECISELY what the Democrats are doing now with regard to Iraq and the economy; that is, so heavily investing in a narrative of FAILURE that they are politically unable to sustain any successes… actively promoting America’s downfall in anticipation of their own Second Coming of Barillary.
A pox on both houses!
If there are any Americans left out there, please join me in supporting the next President of The United States.
February 19th, 2008 at 1:02 am
IT WILL NEVER BE ROMNEY. McCain wants a lap dog, not someone who will steal the limelight.
McCain’s VICE PRESIDENT: Sen. Lindsay Graham from South Carolina.
They have been buddy-buddy for years, all throughout the amnesty. And, if you’ve noticed, Graham has been following McCain on ALL of his campaign stops.
Graham, another open-border zealot, for V.P.
February 19th, 2008 at 11:16 am
It doesn’t matter who the VP is. The Republican Party is broken, just like Washington. When Mitt Romney was still in the race, did he not promote a change in Washington? Did he not ask what Washington has NOT done? Yes.
This Party is BROKEN. It does not matter who the VP is, because the Party is BROKEN. The Party has splintered into so many divisions, that coming together is almost impossible. It has splintered because of 1) religous bigotry 2) the war on terror 3) open-border policies 4) domestic issues, and finally 5) self-centeredness.
Just as Mitt said, sending the same people back to Washington to just change seats is NOT going to change Washington. Sending the same type of people as our Republican nominee, to go against the Dems in the General Election, to just change positions is NOT going to win the White House.
In order to win the White House, we have to “fix” and “change” our Party. And that ain’t going to happen before November………………………