Friday, December 09, 2011

An Alternative? Maybe not.



Newt Gingrich is unelectable.  It is hard to see the evangelicals voting for a thrice-married man with a marital scandal involving a martyred wife.  Whatever they may feel about Obama being black, there has never been a whiff of scandal about his marriage to Michelle and they have the two lovely little kids.  The Reverend Wright ridiculousness will stand him in good stead because it graphically put him in a pew in a Protestant church for twenty years.  A faithful church-going family is hard to beat with Newt for the evangelical vote.  

And it is hard to see women voting for a man who is every wife's nightmare of what her husband might be up to.

His influence-peddling career may well splinter Tea Party members for whom he is precisely what they hate about Washington.  Not even Koch's money would be able to clean up that stink and keep the rednecks on board.

And to a television electorate, it matters that Gingrich is fat and rumpled-looking whereas Obama is tall, slim, younger, and looks good in clothes.   

The most effective political commentary I see is John Stewart on the Daily Show.  How appropriate is it that the Republic is guarded most honestly by the Sixth Estate, the comedians.  When politics becomes a joke, the jokers are the ones to explain it.

6 comments:

  1. The primary season is doing what it is supposed to do. Candidates are being publicly vetted, the ones that don't stand a chance one the are scrutinized are dumped, (Cain, Perry, Gingrich eventually) and what may be left is a candidate with no scandal who will be a fair challenger to Obama. Too bad for Obama.

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  2. I agree with Harvey. The logical consequence is that Romney will be the nominee. I predict Obama will win narrowly.

    I read speculation that Condoleeza Rice might be Romney's VP nominee. Same reasoning as picking Biden - to have foreign policy experience on the ticket. She also might divert some black votes from Obama.

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  3. Anonymous7:40 AM

    Since hipocracy is the hallmark of the Republican mind set, don't underestimate the GOTP's ability to turn a blind eye to their most loudly professed beliefs for political expediency. Deficits are bad except when a Republican is in the White House. Our constitutional rights are sacred, except for those they don't like. Big government is abhored except if it relates to what consenting adults do in the privacy of their bedrooms. On and on ad nausum.

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  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  5. Jack, you can't "out" anonymous. People post anonymously for a number of reasons, one being that once something is on the internet, it is there forever. Respect anonymous posters!

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  6. Harvey is right. I hadn't thought it through.

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