Posted on 02/10/2008 3:47:32 AM PST by drpix
Although Arizona Sen. John McCain has seized a commanding lead in the race for the GOP presidential nomination, Washington's Republican caucus-goers showed they are still very divided on their party's nominee.
With 87 percent of precincts reporting Saturday night, the state party declared McCain the victor with only a narrow lead over former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, and Texas Congressman Ron Paul a fairly close third. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who suspended his presidential campaign last week, also received a sizable chunk of delegates.
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In Auburn for his caucuses, former state Republican Party Chairman Chris Vance said he wasn't worried about GOP enthusiasm for McCain in November.
"By the time fall comes around, I have no doubt that all these people will be ringing doorbells, putting up signs, standing on street corners, campaigning for John McCain, Dino Rossi and Rob McKenna," Vance said.
(Excerpt) Read more at seattletimes.nwsource.com ...
Gee childish me... with a choice between the Democrats' favorite Democrat and their favorite Republican, how could I have been so foolish as to not fall in line at McCain's beck and call - like you.
Wake up! Put aside your McCainish arrogance aside and deal with reality. My vote and many others has to be earned and not taken for granted.
Yet now - because he makes a few campaign speeches claiming to be the champion of Conservatism - we must believe that once in the WH he will be our bulwark against these same Democrats.
Do you realize that that argument depends on either you or me being a fool.
Missed that 1st time. So McCain(-Feingold) will protect our 1st amendment rights?
‘Mitt’ and ‘other’ got a larger vote (30%) than the presumptive nominee (26%)...hard to spin that as a win!
For all practical purposes, he has the nomination sewn up - and still got just a quarter of the vote. Amazing!
Conservatives are not sold on McCain. And if they do eventually rally around him, it will only be grudgingly, and if he’s elected, he’ll be regarded with skepticism.
Thank God that Ronald Reagan was able to form a solid coalition between moderates and far left groups that brought him his landslide victory. If that coalition had not been built, we would have never won the Cold War.
John McCain has a similar challenge. I am hoping for the future of this nation that he can create a miracle cure on a divided party.
McCain is not doing a great job building a coalition between the moderates and the conservatives. I think he also has to take a lesson from Ronald Reagan, who has a similar task in 1980 before his landslide victory. It was Barry Goldwalter’s run for the Presidency in 1964 that brought the John Birchers into the Republican Party. Many of the Moderates saw the John Birchers (incorrectly I may say) as the loony right. The Democrats exploited this element of the Republican Party by trying unsuccessfully to label Ronald Reagan as part of the loony right.
To Ronald Reagan’s credit, the effort to cast him as a part of the far right backfired and gave him the landslide victory in 1980.
We only hope the McCain has the wisdom to build a powerful coalition that will crush the Democrats on all levels of government this fall.
I can dream can’t I?
"Com'on bend over. McCain will be a lot gentler than Hilary or Obams.
Thanks, but no thanks. McCain's is a slow death. Hillary's quicker. I'll choice the neither column.
If you ask me, the primary has been rigged. 10 candidates. Split the conservative vote. Giuliani or McCain steal the nomination.
I'ld like to see the results of Washington State: McCain v. Huckabee or McCain v. Ron Paul. That goes for the rest of the states as well. This primary has been a joke.
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