Posted on 07/13/2012 11:37:05 AM PDT by Uncle Miltie
I doubt Romney is seriously considering Rice, because it seems so obvious that she would be a disastrous pick. Just in case there are people who do not see this, let me run through some of the reasons.
1) Her selection would seriously offend many social conservatives — possibly enough to depress their turnout. In general, I think claims that conservatives will stay home in this election are overblown: Opposition to President Obama is running pretty hot. A vice-presidential nominee who is “mildly” in favor of letting a million unborn children be killed every year, though, would be one of the few things that would make this scenario plausible. Keep in mind, she would be the first pro-choicer on a Republican ticket since Roe v. Wade — unless she flipped and made herself look like a political hack just as the country was being introduced to her as a candidate.
2) Related: Her selection would require Romney to go back on his word. During the primaries, he committed to picking a pro-life vice president. (See the South Carolina forum held on September 5, 2011.)
3) Further related: Her selection would reinforce doubts conservatives already have about him.
4) He might get a convention fight. It only takes a majority of six states’ delegations to force a floor vote on an alternative vice-presidential nominee. Imagine what a mess that would be for Romney.
5) We have no idea where she stands on, or how much she knows about, or how comfortable she is discussing, a lot of issues. Where does she stand on same-sex marriage? If the press challenges her on the Ryan budget’s “draconian” cuts to Pell Grants, what would she say?
6) She has never run for anything. Yes, she has been in the public eye. Running for office, let alone the vice presidency, is a very different experience — one she may not be ready for.
7) Her foreign-policy views will draw opposition from some segments of the party without drawing enthusiastic support from any of them. I’m neither a Paulite nor a neoconservative on foreign policy — though I’m closer to the latter — so it doesn’t bother me that she too belongs to neither camp. As a supporter of the Iraq War who opposed the surge, though, she is in something of a political no man’s land in the Republican party.
8) We’d get to relitigate the foreign-policy decisions of the Bush years. Remember the “sixteen words” controversy, which led to Plame-gate? You will by the end of a campaign with her on the ticket.
9) Any attempts to distance Romney from the Bush years in general would instantly be undone.
10) Romney puts a great deal of stock in his experience as an executive and a manager. How good is Rice’s track record in this respect? My understanding — and I could be wrong — is that one of the main things a national-security adviser is supposed to do is manage the national-security apparatus of the executive branch so that it’s working as one. This is something that famously did not happen during Rice’s time at the NSA, when the Pentagon, State, and the CIA were working at cross purposes. (“Unity in the executive” was something the Bush administration believed in theory.)
11) Meanwhile, I don’t see the upside. Are there uncommitted voters who really miss the foreign policy of the Bush years? The notion that picking Rice will help Republicans make inroads against Obama with black voters is a pathetic fantasy.
Romney would be nuts to pick Rice. He’s not perfect, but he’s not nuts.
This moron is splitting hairs while Obama is loading the unborn into dumpsters with a pitchfork.
It’s going to be Bobby Jindal.
1) He’s a minority, so it mutes the lefts “lily white Republicans” battle cry.
2) He’s pro-life and a Christian (raised Hindu, he converted to Christianity as a young adult).
3) He’s universally admired for his abilities (by both sides of the aisle). There’s not doubt he could handle the presidency if required. Putting Biden next to him on a stage would be like putting a Tonka bulldozer next to Caterpillar bulldozer.
4) He has government LA as a conservative.
5) While Asian-Indian Americans only account for 1% of the population, they are still up for grabs. If it ends up being a tight election that 1% could make a big difference. Also, they would likely become very active foot-soldiers.
BTW, when it comes to the natural born citizen question...the Supreme court just did pretzel twists to ensure ObamaCare was Constitutional. Does anyone really think they’re going to say someone that was born on US soil isn’t a natural born citizen? Not a chance; not a snowball’s chance in Hades; not in this day and age.
It doesn’t matter what YOU think, it only matters what the court does. And, the Supreme court won’t go there; I doubt they would even agree to hear the case in the fist place.
I think Condie is a brilliant choice. I honestly think Obama would lose if Romney chose Condie. Who cares about the social conservatives. Even Democrats would vote for Condie to make up the loss.
Much a-doo-doo about nothing. About a dude to attend foreign funerals. Choose me, I’m the best when it comes to doing nothing!
You're on the wrong site, bub. You must be looking for truebluerhino.com.
So you've been a member for all of 4 days. With posts like these, I smell zot in your near future.
LOL!
Good one.
Rice and first lady Laura Bush spoke for the administration at the Oct. 10 [2006] swearing-in at the State Department where Dybul was accompanied by his male partner, Jason Claire.
Rice, during her comments, referred to the presence of Claire’s mother and called her Dybul’s “mother-in-law.”
Rice's approving 'gay' remarks rankle GOP base
http://www.wnd.com/2006/10/38405/
The only negative against Jindal was that a speech he gave (as a rebuttal to the State of the Union) got panned as boring (I didn't sse it myself).
Condi is someone who looks good on paper but the reality doesn't live up to the billing.
Reminds me of something I read recently of a man in a pastry shop admiring a beautifully-decorated cake. The baker was an honest man and told him, "I'm afraid, sir, it won't be much for eating."
Look how the RNC's grand Michael Steele strategy worked out. Condi is a talented and brilliant woman who did a good job in the context of the Dubya administration. That said, pandering to skin color is not a good look for Republicans.
For that speech he was told not to speak in his usual style, but rather slow it down and be deliberate. The result: it bombed.
Jindal has a quick, almost Brooklyn style of speaking (some parts of LA have accents and speaking styles that are indistinguishable from Brooklyn, NY—it’s kind of amazing/weird). He is a good public speaker, but not in the conventional sense.
The fact that he is soooo out there recently (making speeches, on TV & radio) representing Romney recently makes me think that the Romney campaign is behind it. They’re getting the national press accustomed to him, so when he’s announced as the VP pick there won’t be any of this he speaks funny or looks funny stuff.
I don’t see any other potential VP candidate making the rounds like Jindal has been. Certainly not as an outright Romney surrogate the way Jindal has been doing. That leads me to think it’s all but a done deal.
Allen West!
No, he’s not. He clicked something wrong.
It's refreshing to hear a writer from the NR openly state the obvious. Dubya is toxic to the GOP and for good reason.
Now you may have something there. He has strong character, something Romney might be concerned about, but West is also disciplined and will do his part in a team environment.
There would be less excuse for blacks to not vote Republican, and West may pull a few more .mil votes. I did a little looking at his record on abortion and same sex marriage and I believe I could manage to vote for such a ticket, if Romney stated or implied that West would be allowed to work toward making abortion illegal (doubt that happening though).
Certainly a Romney/West ticket has many more possibilities than a Romney/Rice or an unknown like the one guy who has been mentioned in the news recently.
One other positive, we sorely need someone with military experience in a top level executive position, now that Obama has set the Middle East on fire.
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