OxBlog

# Posted 8:12 AM by Ariel David Adesnik

McCAIN VS. ?????: MSNBC reports that McCain and Obama were both in Minnesota this week, stumping for local candidates and providing a preview of 2008 (presuming that both parties have the good sense to nominate their strongest candidates).

But for the moment, it is the primary contests that may be most interesting. George Will weighed in with a column this week arguing that George Allen's fall from grace benefits no one more than Mitt Romney. Will' s logic runs as follows: McCain is the big dog in this race and wants to have multiple candidates divide up the rest of the field, so that no one challenger can gather up all of the remaining votes. Without Allen in the race, Romney may be able to do that.

But what about Gingrich? And Giuliani? Or possibly even Dick Armey? Dan McKivergan thinks Will should be paying much more attention to Gingrich, who scores well in early polls and still excites the base. In contrast, Giuliani doesn't seem to have gotten his campaign machinery moving just yet. As Dan observed even before Will's column came out, Gingrich could do a very effective job of making life hard for Romney.

(10) opinions -- Add your opinion

Comments:

McOld is getting somewhat daffy and dowdy. He is 70.

Gingrich does have that divorce papers to his wife while in the operating room thing, and then there's that cheating on wife #2 with an aide/wife #3.

Giuliani will be wonderful to watch self-destruct. He chickened out against Hillary the first time.

What the Republicans should do is run Lieberman as a national unity candidate. Then upright and solid Right Wing evangelicals like Ted Haggard could really get behind Joe and support him.

No, it comes down to Jeb. Or Neal.

# posted by

Anonymous : 6:34 PM

David,
I see anonymous has just posted his 10,000th comment of today on the net! I think all commenters should have to provide a valid e-mail address.
McCain is the nominee because, barring death, he'll beat the sh-t out of any Democrat contender.
What you all should be "punditing" on is, who'll be his VP? McCain is almost surely a one term president, due only to health and age, and his chosen successor will surely be superior to any of the current crop of Donk wannabe President.
Mike
mikdaley@gmail.com
SEE!

# posted by

Anonymous : 8:14 PM

David,
I would like to withdraw my last comment.
I have come to see the errors of my ways and the futility of my life. Fearing that this consciousness may be short lived, I am going to take steps to have my citizenship revoked so that I can't vote, and then I will enter a monastery without an Internet connection.
Mike
mikdaley@gmail.com

# posted by

Anonymous : 11:39 PM

McCain may receive the nomination of the Republican Party. He will then be torn apart by the MSM and Democratic machine.

He has no hope of being the President.

# posted by

Anonymous : 6:24 AM

How can McCain win the nomination when he's alienated so much of the Republican base? They're not going to forget McCain-Feingold and the Gang of 14 debacle (proclaimed The McCain Mutiny by such people as Thomas Sowell). His only chance is that the base will be divided over midget candidates, and will fail to come together before McCain can win enough primaries.

# posted by

AlanKH : 8:48 PM

The latest hat in the ring is Congressman Duncan Hunter - and we could do a lot worse.

# posted by

Anonymous : 9:34 PM

Davod,
The MSM and the Democratic Machine couldn't tear apart Bush, and his supposedly inferior intellect. How do you propose they do it to McCain?

Alan,
I suspect the gang of 14 will be quickly forgotten since the outcome was lopsidely in Bush's favor. He got what, all but 1 federal judge approved, and 2 supreme court justices in? McCain-Feingold is another matter, and McCain (and every signatory) should rightly be lambasted for that piece of trash legislation...

# posted by

Anonymous : 10:29 AM

For more check out http://holdthesenate.blogspot.com/

I guess with the midterms just a day away, its not too early to talk about 2008. I am not too pleased with the GOP's prospects in 2008.

The real problems is that the Republicans in '08 have no viable candidate right now and history demonstrates that the party out of power during a two-term incumbent presidency usually wins (Bush I being the exception not the rule).

Gingrich doesn't have the people skills necessary. He has some interesting ideas but if you ever watch him work a crowd on C-Span you realize that he doesn't really enjoy interacting with people. Furthermore, he has significant personal baggage.

McCain is reasonably old and in fairly bad health. He is not palatable to the base not because of his voting record which is fairly conservative but by his lack of partisanship (much like Lieberman) and the perception that he cares more about earning media acolades than his party.

Romney is a one term governor who had a successful business career but a mediocre stint as governor and would probably not be re-elected back in Massachusetts. Furthermore, he has flip-flopped on a number of social issues to present himself as the conservative alternative to McCain, when Romney used to be regarded as a moderate.

Giuliani, is my personal favorite candidate but he has way too much baggage from both his personal life and political dealings (i.e. Bernie Kerik and political deals with the Liberal Party boss Harding). He also made many prominent enemies in New York like Mayor Koch, who really dislike Giuliani and will go out of their way to hurt his chances of becoming president.

Right now, I am still waiting for a viable alternative to emerge but barring that I suspect that headlining the '08 ticket will be either Romney or McCain.

# posted by

The partisan moderate : 5:41 PM

people confuse "the base" with the pundits who claim to speak for them. The pundits get hung up on Senate votes, more than actual voters do.

To the Kos et al, Hilary is the nasty triangulator who voted for the Iraq war. To millions of liberal voters, shes the advocate for universal health care, who articulates their values well, and who is hated by the far right.

George Will, High Tory, who cares most of all about preserving class privilege, will never forgive McCain for McCain-Finegold. Hell, Georgie's columns on Iraq ooze with the idea, that this was a mistake, cause, like why would we want to spread democracy - bad enough we have to take it as given here at home. Most ordinary Republicans, I think, see a patriot, who articulates their values well, who was a war hero, and whos sound on most GOP issues.

# posted by

Anonymous : 3:39 PM

Now that's decisive!

McCain McCain Plans a Committee to Study ’08.

# posted by

Anonymous : 1:13 PM