Romney Most Popular among Conservatives
An interesting straw poll: Mitt Romney receives most support from those attending CPAC. Giuliani is second, Brownback third, Gingrich fourth and… McCain fifth with only 12% of the vote.
McCain has made a tremendous mistake: he thought that he would be able to appeal to the conservative base while not losing support of more moderate elements within the Republican party. This straw poll indicates that he succeeds in neither.
Romney: I wrote at my own blog recently that I think that Romney might surprise a lot of people. I expect support for him to rise significantly during the next couple of months.
UPDATE
The always insightful Andrew Sullivan agrees. Andrew:
I know what the national polls say. I know he makes John Kerry look like a stopped clock on, well, anything. But he’ll have an understanding with the religious base: I’ll do whatever you want, give you the judges you want, and you’ll forgive me for being a Mormon. He has no core principles, and they understand that. What matters to Dobson et al is results. They’ve had enough of men like Bush who are sincere evangelicals but useless in actually implementing the theocon agenda. Romney’s their tool – and a very competent, effective one. And they are his tool. It’s a solid basis for a political marriage. I think he’s the most formidable long-term candidate on the right. Up against Clinton, he’d probably win.
Will it become a (close) race between Giuliani and… Romney?
opinions powered by SendLove.to
9 Responses to “Romney Most Popular among Conservatives”
I have read from a couple of blogs from CPAC that Mitt stuffed the convention with his supporters in order to win the straw poll.
None of the candidates got jack to offer. Romney won’t surprise because he can’t aford to.
question: What does it take to win the White House?
Answer: not much of what really matters.
Reality: What it takes is a bunch of money, a lot of BS, a political party willing to claim every word that falls from their candidate’s mouth is pearls of wisdom.
Romney’s perfect. He been getting ready for this since he ran for Gov. That was ambition dressed up to look like public service.
Plus he’s alot like Bush was in 1999. kind of a blank page. a known guy but but not known. Kinda guy the party big boys can make whatever image they want (translation: need)
And best part for the party big boys is he’s bends like a willow tree. AND THAT’S NO SURPSRISE, is it?
Serious people with serious things to say don’t become president anymore: Hagel, Lugar, Nunn…forget it.
[...] When The Romnoid 2008 was launched by Brand Romney, it was set on an auto pilot course to The Right. Taking a 21 percent share of the straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference, the latest version of Mitt Romney has hit its target audience. [...]
While this gets attention at blogs and MSM without a missing blond girl or wife, remember the straw polls results from a year ago.
I guess the Allen/McClown ticket is a lock. Lets all do a ‘Dean Scream” for real conservatives.
You would say this Mr. “Quote of the Day.” Wonder if he’ll ever comment here.
I personally think there is a relatively good chance that the very well organized “Christianist” movement can anoint whoever they want since they should dominate the primary turnout if history repeats itself. McCain got pummeled in 2000 primaries and I can’t think of one Republican friend that wasn’t going gaga over him. Even half of Democrats supported him, so they were looking forward to a landslide victory. Lots of people have pointed out correctly that the movement is pragmatic but I just don’t think they’ll bite on Giuliani once the mud starts flying.
I would say Brownback could get it if he had any support from moderates but as it stands, I agree with you that Romney has a good shot.
Rudi this time I think it’s a grasping at straws poll.
Polls two years out is like predicting the Superbowl or WorldSeries two years out. The pundits have to do something to validate their supposed expertise. Like sports prognosticators they’re usually wrong.
Like, BriGuyRn, and Liz at GOPProgress I think this result means absolutely nothing.
These staw polls are almost always rigged, as each camp buses in partisans to vote for their guy. They aren’t representative of the electorate in fact they’re guaranteed to be skewed.
As for Sullivan’s comment. Romney has proven that he’ll lie to the voters to win. Then he’ll screw them over once he’s done with them. His constant attacks on the people who elected him don’t prove he’s a conservative. They prove he’s a self-centered user.
When he was Governor of Massachussets he’d attend GOP events and put down the liberal nature of the people of his state. Not a great endorsement.