Newt Wins South Carolina
Politico and the NYTimes are reporting a Gingrich victory.
Here's my analysis: Republicans are tired of tongue-tied, deer-in-the-headlights candidates. They're tired of gaffes and weasel-worders and stammering apologists and candidates who always need to have their words clarified by handlers. They're tired of candidates who can't debate or think on their feet or answer complicated and embarrassing questions. They're tired of watching presidential debates with their hearts in their mouths.
They compared the way Gingrich answered the question about his ex-wife to the way Romney answered the question about his tax returns and they decided that they'd rather have Gingrich go up against Obama.
It's high-wire-act fatigue. And they may have made the right choice.
- Comment (144)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (6)
Comments:
Aug '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Samuel Amaral
Newt it from Orbit, it is the only way to be sure. · 10 minutes ago
Damn, I wish I'd thought of that.
Edited on January 22, 2012 at 2:22amDec '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
This might have been a great time for a live chat...
May '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Voters (at least on our side) don't want to hear, "I can reach across the aisle." What they want to hear is, "I'm ready to club the socialistas and their media toadies into submission."
Aug '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Forget who won what state for a moment.
Instead, what's the total delegate count so far?
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Isn't this Newt's backyard and therefore kind of expected?
May '11
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Which is which? Don't follow either, but just listened to the most recent (January 9) Left Coast Right Coast podcast this morning, and Jennifer's contemptuous dismissal of Newt is kind of funny now.
Dec '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Misthiocracy: Forget who won what state for a moment.
Instead, what's the total delegate count so far? · 3 minutes ago
Info here. Sorry about the source.
May '11
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
TerMend
Which is which? Don't follow either, but just listened to the most recent (January 9) Left Coast Right Coast podcast this morning, and Jennifer's contemptuous dismissal of Newt is kind of funny now. · 2 minutes ago
That was poorly written. They're both advocates. And they feign objectivity by praising candidates who are not a threat (Santorum). Until they are.
Edited on January 22, 2012 at 2:31amSep '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Are you by any chance a refugee from Little Green Footballs?* Well do I know that Charles banned people for, ah, "adventuresome" conjecturing.
Oh good heavens, I'm on a metaphoramania at the moment and am running out out noun contortions to torture.
Jul '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
He was down by like a million last Sunday. Not expected.
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
If this is true, and holds up in other states down there, is the term "Bible Belt" no longer relevant to our politics?
Feb '11
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Ouch. Perhaps we could say sycophants instead? Bootlickers? Can we please leave toads out of it?
**edit (I am only kidding EJHill, and in point of fact "toadies" is a great word, satisfying in the mouth to say, satisfying in the mind to hear...please continue to use it in good health!)
Edited on January 22, 2012 at 2:39amSep '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Mama Toad
Ouch. Perhaps we could say sycophants instead? Bootlickers? Can we please leave toads out of it? · 2 minutes ago
Once we toss out toads and lizards there's not a lot left.
Sep '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Rob,thou hit the nail on the head and I think it goes well beyond this election cycle. It includes the previous presidential election and eight years of GW Bush. Conservative ideas need to be clearly and persuasively argued because there are a lot of Americans sitting in the middle or slightly to the Left that need to be convinced that government as we know it cannot continue and it must be greatly reduced, even it means they lose some of the handouts they've grown accosted to.
Oct '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Newt? Newt? If Adrianna Huffington announced her return to conservative orthodoxy, would she also win in South Carolina? Of all candidates, why did it have to be Newt? Obama will flay him alive!
Dec '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Rob,
It looks like the Newtron Bomb was too much for those Romney good looks. I, of course, am a Perry man. I still think he was the nicest guy running and the 20/20 tax plan is the most conservative move that can actually be done (9 9 9 was just crazy). I put two bumper stickers on the car before he declared. I couldn't very well let him down because he couldn't tap dance and that's what the MSM said every candidate must be able to do.
Now that Perry has withdrawn I took the bumper stickers off my car. I'm leaving the space open. I'm in no rush to endorse anybody. I'll be watching and when I see what I really like I'm going to fill the space on the bumper.
Oct '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
And btw, how is Newt anything but Establishment--with a capital "E"?
Nov '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
Remember Newt's answer to the question "what would you have done differently?" Perhaps current events are a massive repudiation of the notion that you need a "professional staff of handlers" to win a campaign. Perhaps we're now in a political environment in which the handlers are more of a problem than a help. Note what happened to Cain.
Mar '11
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
I think something that's forgotten is that most of the people who vote are over 40 years old like myself. We easily remember the early 90's when Bush 41 was shooting himself in the foot by raising taxes, Congress controlled by Democrats, and this young Governor from Arkansas surging to the lead. And there was one guy who, undaunted, lead Republicans despite the current circumstances: Newt Gingrich. That kind of street cred earned during dire circumstances, no matter what else has happened since, goes a LONG way. Romney has NO street cred and it's beginning to show.
As for Jeb Bush's upcoming endorsement, I think that's the absolute worse thing that can happen to Romney. The Bush name is still dirty to many people, including a lot of Republicans. And it doesn't matter that his first name isn't George. The Republican Party is over the Bush's. Good guys, good family men, just conservative enough but in the end they hurt the Party more than they helped it.
Now, if Marco Rubio endorses Romney--and I'm not sure that will happen, then Romney might have something to be happy about.
Edited on January 22, 2012 at 2:45amDec '10
Re: Newt Wins South Carolina
I think you're wrong, but even if not, at least he'll go down swinging and not preemptively surrender.