I agree. Mitt is the better candidate now. His beliefs may be odd but at least he has beliefs. ww

Seems to me with stories fawning over McCain and media stories like this link the MSM is trying to pick the Republican candidate for us.

Seems like we're going down that same path, Jay. I backed Thompson, and am disappointed he dropped out. Romney is my "next best choice" candidate. If he drops, though, I'm not sure who my #3 would be. I'm not particularly impressed with any of the remaining candidates. I don't think Guiliani has a prayer... it'll either be McCain or Huck, and I'm not enthused about either one, at this point.

Huckabee is toast, and McCain has no chance at getting the nomination. Giuliani is an unknown at this point. He hasn't campaigned yet. He has alot of catching up to do though if he wants to beat mitt.

I totally agree - and luckily Romney is the only one with enuf available cash to run a good race. (nananana - McCain screwed himself with the McCain-Feingold campaign finance debacle!) Fred for veep!

I think his beliefs are totally indefensible, but so too are mine to many people so let's leave that aside. As it currently stands, Romney loses heads up against Hillary or Obama.

Go Mitt!

Oops - meant to say: nananananana plus phhhhhhhhhhhhht to the McCainaics! Hopefully that'll teach him not to mess with our constitution.

Jay, you're lucky you can have a plan B...I'm waiting for Pat Robertson do tell us what God's plan B for the Republicans is now that Giuliani's train wreck seems to be going over a cliff.

As it currently stands, Romney loses heads up against Hillary or Obama.

Let's see for Obama, gobs of executive experience including not being a lifetime career politician vs. 3 years in the Senate.

Let's see for Clinton, gobs of exective experience and no baggage either from personal scandal or political corruption vs. 7 years in the Senate and truckloads of baggage.

Yeah, I see your point. not.

Mitt Romney's a Mormon? Wow, next you'll be telling us that John Kerry served in Vietnam!

You know how you keep telling me New Hampshire is awesome and we should live there?

Consider it in the same spirit when I suggest that Romney should never, ever come near the Presidency.

OTOH, nobody running, and almost nobody alive, really should either.

John F Not Kerry: That is funny.

You know, I will say on the domestic front, Ron Paul says some good things. On national security and foreign relations, he is a whack job. Such a shame. ww

As my kid brother says, "the lesser of two evils always beats the greater of the two."

I hate having to vote like that, but I do, and always will when presented with the choice of voting for the lesser of two evils or sitting things out. Edmund Burke and all that.

And despite squishiness on conservative values, Mitt seems the least liberal choice. (I include Huckabee, who is a faux conservative, using religious conservatism to shield examination of his alarmingly liberal economic and foreign policy positions.)

Mark: agreed. Sitting home and pouting is simply not an option.

Well, later today, I have to make my choice on my primary ballot. I have to choose a Republican candidate (and Thompson is still on the Florida ballot, thank you) and whether or not to cut my taxes.

The choices on the Republican side really come down to McCain, Giuliani, or Romney. Since I refuse to vote for that charleton Huckabee, and won't vote for anyone in the "gang of 14" (didn't think I would remember, did you McCain?), I'm down to Giuliani or Romney.

Why did it have to come to this?

Holding nose and blackening a circle......

Then CUTTING my taxes, even if they will find other taxes to add in to make up for it, at least for a short time they will be lower, and it is sending a message.

Jay, I'm right there with you. Romney doesn't thrill me but he's competent.

Thinking about the VP slot, though, gave me some thoughts. I wonder if you might dedicate an essay to this? We Republicans don't want another Cheney, great VP but too old for a Presidential run, which Thompson would be at the end of a Romney 2-term Presidency.

Look at the big electoral states, then: California, Florida, and Texas. Arnold cannot run. Jeb Bush is a Bush, and there's too much baggage there right now. Rick Perry of Texas is... young, very conservative, impeccable credentials, and comes from a Southern State.

What would you think of a Romney/Perry slate? Would that energize the base and get Republicans behind a Romney Presidency?

I agree that Romney is the most palatable of the bunch, but he needs to do one thing if he wants conservative voters to be enthusiastic about him. He needs to disavow Romneycare and there is an easy way to do it. All he has to do is say that Romneycare was right for Massachusetts, at the state level, but is not necessarily the right plan for every state and definitely not at the federal level. With that statement, Romney won't convince us that Romneycare was right, but he'll reassure us that we won't be voting for a federal Romneycare when we vote for him.

A very strong arguement can made for another Cheney-like VP and I think Thompson would fit that perfectly. I'd also go for Perry or Charlie Crist or Haley Barbour. The thing with Thompson is that he has clout because mainstream conservatives are behind him and he can excercise that clout in the convention if need be. One thing to be concerned about with the nominee selecting his running mate without strong conservative input: that's how we got George H W and Quail.

Ah, yes, the ultimate empty suit, Mutt the bling-bling Mormon.

Who let the dawg out? who? Who? Who?

Landslide Mutt, that's who

The lefty that actually said Mitt is an empty suit, yet his party embraces Clinton with her meager experience and tenure in the senate and Obama that has absolutely no experience. Too rich. This is why we think lefties are nuts. ww

The Thunder Run has linked to this post in the - Web Reconnaissance for 01/24/2008 A short recon of what's out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.

Limbaugh said McCain would destroy the republican party, so guess who I am voting for?

McCain is a pro-war Christian. Republicans are nothing if not picky.

I was torn between Rudy and Fred. So Mr. Thompson took care of that decision. I could see a Rudy/Fred ticket being very competative. A northerner and a southerner. The VP slot is not that important for future presidential candidates since most good recent presidents have come from the rank of governors not VPs or senators.

I might consider Romney if he does what kbiel suggests, not that I'd believe it, but at least saying it suggested he might stick to it. We will probably move out of MA over RomneyCare, and the last thing I want is to see it be imminent nationally.

Jay ~ Well, there's the Kiss o' Death for Mitt . . .

Barney ~ So they let felons vote in your state?

Matthew ~ Just think: in five or six years, you'll be eligible to vote, too! In the meantime, remember what Mommy said - "If you're too sick to go to school, you're too sick to be on the computer!"

All you need to know about Jay Tea's credibility:

Then:

"Why I can't vote for John Kerry"

http://wizbangblog.com/content/2004/10/31/why-i-cant-vote.php

"1) John Kerry lacks consistency."

Now:

"So go, Mitt!"

Sad Jay. Just sad.

i'm contemplating Sunny Lucas =)
http://rachellucas.com/?p=580

Breaking: 286 Days 'til Election 2008

More than enough time for Mutt to adopt 286 different positions on any given issue with which the public may be concerned or become concerned.

Who says, "You can't teach an Old Mutt new positions?" Just ask Ann.

BTW Rumor has it that the snacks on Mutt's plane are Milk Bones & Beggin' Strips.

Jim, since you care, I'm nearly 26. I was 16 when Clinton was in power, I meant. I vote whenever I can, in Toronto/Ontario/Canada. I read stuff and argue with people here because I have nothing of great significance to really disagree about with other Canadians.

"I vote whenever I can, in Toronto/Ontario/Canada"

Libtards in Canada too?! Who knew! aye...

VOTE FOR FRED

Fred Thompson has withdrawn from the race for president. Fred Thompson is still our choice. Fred Thompson, a young attorney working for the justice department, hand picked by Ronald Reagan, helped defend some of our choices to vote for "the Republican," Richard Nixon. Fred Thompson, as a senior Republican diplomat, left us with a coherent interpretation of our conservative views. Fred Thompson gave us a conservative focus that allowed us to find a new interpretation of ourselves as Republicans. Fred crafted thoughts and opinions into simple effective coherent statements and published those, point by point on his website as a primer to assist in finding our way as a nation. Fred has set an example and laid the groundwork for the next generation Conservative.

Fred Thompson's withdrawal from the race for president is not about your pain or your anger; we've all been there at one time or another. This is about us and our mutual decision to choose Fred Thompson, a committed conservative to lead. Fred owes us nothing. We don't owe Fred. We do have a responsibility to ourselves to be responsible for our own decisions. We can't blame someone else if we are not happy.

Fred Thompson is still on the ballot in many if not all states. Fred Thompson is still a viable choice for president. This is chess not checkers. A unified vote would give Fred the choice at the convention and would prevent second choices from looking more powerful than they deserve.

Vote your principals, GIVE FRED DELAGATES IN THE CONVENTION, no need to waste the signs, keep them up as a symbol of principal. We now have a responsibility to choose again, as for me, I'm going to vote for Fred if his name is on the ballot.

Sticking to our guns and strength and standing by Fred now costs one vote. The campaign for the White House was about us, not Fred. The campaign for the White House was about who we chose to lead, not the available choices. Give Fred the delegates in the convention to symbolize our conviction to our principals, not for Fred, for us.

We can always join the Alamo, Fred is the only candidate that none of the empowered candidates want in the race. Our best choice in this race is still Fred, he has my respect for not denigrating the process into the "American Idol" format. Sanjaya Malakar is not my choice for president.

The right to choose cost some of our fellow citizens, countrymen and family the ultimate price. Our price for our right to choose based on our principals is one vote.

VOTE FOR FRED...

Dennis McIntire, "The Constituent"
www.dennisforlife.com