Michele Bachmann, leading early in the primaries, was attacked as a flake, a wild-eyed zealot, crazy. She crashed in the polls. Rick Perry, entering the race as a putative front runner, was attacked for a rock on leased property, for being a slow-witted Texan with racist tendencies who liked to fry him up some humans on death row. He crashed in the polls. Herman Cain, enjoying a sudden rise thanks to being an amiable straight shooter, is attacked as a potential serial sexual harasser based on sealed settlements from the 90s, then deemed disqualified from the Presidential race for his failure to lie effectively — or at least, in a way that might convince conservative pundits that he’d be able to tamp down on media scandals, even as we ourselves do the work Politico began. How he holds up in the polls is anyone’s guess. But there’s clearly a move on in GOP circles to bring him down — to leave him like Bachmann or Palin before him, labeled “unelectable.”
Me, I see a pattern.
To borrow a phrase, I haven’t left the Republican Party. The Republican Party has left me. Good riddance.
Where does that leave us in the next election, though? I don’t foresee a viable 3rd-party candidate so we’re left either staying at home next November OR splitting the Republican vote, making the possibility of another 4 years of Obama much more likely.
It really feels like a no-win situation. Maybe it will be necessary to either replace or reform the current GOP but how bad will THAT hangover be?
Aside from the fact that Bachmann is a freak and Perry can’t debate his way out of a wet paper bag, I agree.
Scooter, where it leaves us is with Romney, of course.
It is his turn.
I’m willing to state, here and now, that I will NEVER vote for Romney. Not in a primary, not in a general, not for dogcatcher.
The Republican Party is an illusion, a phantom. It is a wing of the Democrat Party, pretending to be its opposition.
Get thee away from me, GOP — I know you not.
“It is his turn” admirably expresses the other truth(!) they’d have us tell: “You have no choice at your choice.”
Our question is: Oh, really?
I feel a moral obligation to vote for anyone who is not Obama. And that’s not hyperbole.
The idea that that will require “pulling the lever”/pushing the button for Romney will make it feel more like “taking my medicine” than voting might otherwise.
Again, though, there is the mortifying argument to made that maybe we do need another 4 years of Obama in order to well and truly dismantle the current GOP and build some better in its place, but at what price? Come to think of it, Romney might achieve the same end if he’s as bad as I rather expect.
Either way, it will be a long 4 years for America. On top of what it already sure to be a long 4 years.
The pattern of Barack Obama’s political career has been to have his main opposition eliminated from the ballot, be that person a Democrat or Republican, either by having the candidate disqualified or by forcing them into withdrawing from the race.
Why is the GOP doing his dirty work for him?
The only way I’d vote for Romney in the general is if it looks like we’ve got more strong TEA Party peeps heading to congress. Romney’s enough of a sackless loser that his own party can roll him if there’s a critical mass that has the will to do so. But otherwise, we might as well let boy loser have another term so he can burn the house down with the blazing heat of his fuckwitted incompetence. Then we can rule Dystopia!!!
1) there is no way I wouldn’t vote and
2) there is no way I’d vote for Obama
But, until I am faced with that – I am not willing to settle. And the next person who argues that I need to support someone who can win, I’m gonna punch them in the face.
By the way: now that Herman Cain has been effectively eliminated, who will be the next Republican to get borked for having the temerity to challenge Mittens Obama?
So we’ve finally reached the end game, where the ability to appear glib on television trumps all actual experience and success.
Saying we’re fucked doesn’t begin to cover it.
Abe, that would be our only hope – that the tea party could ride Romney like their bitch.
I doubt that Abe is looking for glib, as opposed to more forthcomingly substantive, but I’m just guessing as to Abe’s view. For my part, I like Gov Perry well enough to vote for him, but to close the deal it’s up to him to articulate his grasp of our mutually agreeable principles in depth — he doesn’t help himself by assuming I will guess what he understands.
We reached that a while ago. How else did we get the Teleprompter Jesus in the White House?
I will surely vote. But never again will I pull the lever for someone whom I know wishes to increase the power of the federal government. Rather than hold my nose, I’ll write in the candidate of my choice or vote for the least objectionable of the Other Party bottom feeders. I *refuse* to give my vote to someone who advocates for less freedom for me and my family.
From The Other McCain’s Smitty I learn that at least one MBM outlet isn’t completely opposed to all Republican candidates:
So hey! We’ve got that going for us.
Unfortunately, Both Rocky Anderson and Ann Coulter can’t both be right.
I don’t think Cain has been eliminated yet, but prophecies can become self-fulfilling quite easily.
yes Bachmann is a freak and Perry can’t debate his way out of a wet paper bag but I might have to vote for Romney cause God help me I want to retire someday or at least be able to labour under the happy delusion that I might be able to retire someday so we have to get bumblefuckstick out of the white house – even if the price is perverting the Team R brand by turning it into the faggy faggy Wall Street Romney party
and you know what honestly Team R branding is really not my problem and it hasn’t been since they nominated Meghan’s coward daddy and you saw this morning where the forty Rs wrote a letter begging begging begging the super committee to raise taxes
the Team R brand and a handful of shit is unsanitary, is what it adds up to
go wash your hands
I think our political process would be vastly improved if all campaign activity had to take place in written form *only*. No video, no audio, text only. Maybe graphs, but no photos.
Reduce the kneejerk, emotional, bullshit to a minimum and maybe some actual rational thought and intelligent discourse would result.
Hard to kneejerk when you’re listening to the radio Darth —it takes too much effort to pay attention.
The MBM and the Establicans have their hooks in him. It doesn’t matter if none of their claims are true, or even gross exaggerations, they will get their prize.
Both major parties are parasites. The difference is one of them knew it needed to preserve the life of the host.
It knew. I don’t think it still does.
I doubt that Abe is looking for glib, as opposed to more forthcomingly substantive, but I’m just guessing as to Abe’s view. For my part, I like Gov Perry well enough to vote for him, but to close the deal it’s up to him to articulate his grasp of our mutually agreeable principles in depth — he doesn’t help himself by assuming I will guess what he understands.
You’re right, of course. But mainly what I was getting at is that Jeff can be a little overwrought in what he attributes solely to the forces of malevolence.
I’ve never been a ‘pure’ GOP’er. They’ve been an unpleasant albatross to wear since Bush 41, BobDole and even with Bush 43. After that McGinnis anal pore took out Sarah Palin, chances that we’ll win this cycle have speedily circled the drain AFAIC.
McRomney winning? Does that really matter, at this junct-ure?
Tell that to Orson Welles on Halloween, Ernst.
If we give up on a candidate just because the MBM wants it that way, we’ll have no one else to blame but ourselves.
I cheated away from the implication (in which I agree with you) in order to focus on the glib charge. Gov. Perry seems hearted aright to me, but too willing to dip into a bag of conservative cliche, rather than engage his brain in generative expression of his views.
I think that rather proves my point Darth, if you made the effort to pay attention, you would have known exactly what it was you were listening to —disclaimers and all.
Unfortunately, Ernst, we’ve seen fit to grant the franchise to people who willingly (even wilfully) avoid paying attention to anything other than soundbites, web blurbs, tweets, and something Jon Stewart says between Jersey Shore promos. Maybe if we made it boring and involved to get information about candidates we could avoid mistakes like Jug-Eared Jesus.
Sorry, I’m curmudgeonly lately. Can someone please come stand on my lawn so I can yell at them to git off’n it?
Come on. Lets at least be honest here. I hate the GOP establishment as much as the next guy, but don’t paper over candidates true problems and highlight the ones you want.
Michelle Bachman flamed out after claiming a vaccine can and did cause mental retardation
Rick Perry flamed out after claiming the only way you could oppose in-state tuition for illegal immigrants is to be “heartless”.
Neither of those things are reasons the “GOP establishment” opposes candidates. Those are reason ALL rational people oppose candidates. And immigration is specifically a Tea Party issue that Rick Perry fails miserably on.
You think you’re curmudgeonly? I’m turning into hybrid quasi-monarchical counter-Enlightenment liberal of the extreme right and I’m not even Catholic! So imagine how grouchy I am these days.
German people with fancy book learning scare me.
Sure, deadrody.
The Newsweek cover of Bachmann? Never happened. And Rove has never ever ever gone after Perry — just as the rock story didn’t happen.
Listen: all the reasons you (and abe before you) mentioned for the way certain candidates have fallen are true; in fact, I was very critical of Perry’s debate performance and his “heartless” comment. But it’s the ancillary stuff that tends to push people one way or another in a field where they consider a number of the candidates pretty much interchangeable. Which is why the ancillary stuff gets so much play.
Every candidate has weaknesses. But it’s the caricaturing of them that is broadly used to dissuade people from supporting them. That’s what the whole “electability” argument is about.
My problem with Cain has nothing to do with salacious media BS. But a couple days ago he gave an interview where he gave the impression he didn’t know that China had nukes. You don’t have to be a foreign policy wonk to know that, you just had to have been paying attention to current events. China has had nuclear weapons since 1964 fer cryin’ out loud.
And I still don’t have a clue what his 9-9-9 plan is – other than it’s 6-6-6 upside down.
I like his feistiness and candor, but his apparent ignorance of the world beyond business is appalling.
I’d say you took the impression. I understood him to be aiming at China’s ongoing nuclear weapons development. As to his tax thinking, he’s been at it a long time, so you’ve got some catching up to do.
The China-Nukes story has already been debunked.
Cain actually thinks people are asking him to discuss policy positions. When what they are doing is checking his polish — these people who demanded no more business as usual in DC.
really? I think a “veterans hiring tax credit” is every bit as much a gay-assed abrogation of the free market as anything else what’s been done during president fuckhole’s reign.
Does the Republican Party actually have any for reals principles? Yeah I know about the fetus thing already.
Except for one vital factor that CANNOT be emphasized enough: he gives the LSM, and the Copperheads, the ability to stagger out of the wreckage and scream “BI-PARTISAN!!!eleventy! Republican policies!!!!
BUUUSSSHHHHROMNEY!!!!!”And is it really worth that to go off the cliff at 80 instead of 120? Hell, no.
If Clorox Obama is the nominee, I’ll vote straight Dem. Because obviously Americans haven’t “gotten it good and hard” enough, and a gentleman makes sure his partner gets all the satisfaction desired.
Clorox Obama, I like that.
Well, happy, all I know is that Rick Perry told a bunch of Iowa politicos led by a former governor to take their ethanol subsidies and shove them up their asses.
1st link:
2nd link:
Sounds plenty staunch to me.
Clorox is based in Oakland
I think Perry is plenty staunch Mr. SDN and I’d vote for him in a heartbeat… but he doesn’t seem to understand the moment and he certainly doesn’t seem to know what place he wants to have in it
plus he lacks basic skills