Who we gonna pick
It’s getting down to crunch time and I haven’t fully determined in my mind who it is I would vote for in the GOP race for President of the United States. By crunch time I mean…weaker ineffectual campaigns are getting crunched and eliminated from even appearing on the ballots of upcoming primaries and caucuses, and they are dropping out. In my case I can’t actually vote for a candidate until March 3rd when Washington State has its caucuses and by then it’s not likely to be a contest at all. But since my decision has never been fully made I thought I would ruminate about the remaining five candidates.
Let’s start with who I won’t vote for.
Crazy Ron Paul
I won’t vote for Ron Paul. The Congressman from Texas last night during the South Carolina debate looked every bit the crack pot that I’ve maintained he is for four years. His foreign policy is a dangerous joke. And what is really offensive is the fact that his ardent followers have actually compared Paul to Jesus. I’m not making this up. I’ve seen it on Facebook. If by some miraculous disaster Paul actually did win the Republican nomination I would have to vote for Barrack Obama.
When Governor Rick Perrymade his late entrance into the field of Presidential hopefuls I was very enthusiastic and hopeful.
Perry came in too late.
His long record of success in Texas and his strong Christian beliefs had me thinking he could really be something special as President. But unfortunately he got such a late start in the race that he was clearly unprepared and overwhelmed at first. He has clearly improved his debate performances. Last night I thought he was terrific at articulating some strong Conservative ideas, and he didn’t look like a moron when he went after Mitt Romney about release of his tax records. His early gaffes I think I can comfortably say can be attributed to lack of preparedness. And in a way there is something endearing about the fact that Perry hadn’t been thinking he would run for President for years like some (Romney); and as such his entrance to the race, later than any of the candidates we’ve seen these last 7-8 months, left him flat-footed and ill prepared. Alas, it’s all gonna be moot soon. I strongly suspect Perry will drop out of the race following Saturday’s primary in South Carolina; as he probably should for the good of the party and the Conservative movement.
Mitt Romney
That leaves Senator Rick Santorum, Speaker Newt Gingrich, and Governor Mitt Romney. I could happily vote for any of the three. I think Romney will win the nomination. I don’t believe Santorum can hang on for much longer, perhaps dropping out after Florida at the end of the month. Money being what it is. I think Gingrich will stick around for a good while primarily because he seems to have a multi-billionaire sugar-daddy who will keep feeding his Super PAC money. But by the time March 3rd and Washington’s caucus comes around…Gingrich may be gone at worst or completely ineffectual at best.
So ultimately I don’t think I’ll have to decide. I think the decision for me and most of the rest of the country will be decided no later than the Nevada caucuses on February 4th. Nevada has a strong Mormon population and Romney is expected to win there handily. Certainly we’ll have no doubt come this year’s Super Tuesday elections March 6th when 10 states have primaries or caucuses. And if I’m right, and I am, and Mitt Romney will be the GOP nominee and it will be firmly determined that he is by February 4th and at that point only 5 of our fifty states will have voted…how sad is that?
Thanks for visiting. Comments are welcome.
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