Palin’s choice? No one as of yet AFAIK.
New PPP primary poll Hovde 28% TT 25% Neumann 25% Fitzgerald 17%.
Fitz is the most deserving in my opinion but he has consistently polled at the bottom of the GOP field and done the worst in matchups with the Dyke.
Hovde is clearly the leading alternative to TT but it looks like Neumann is still in the picture. DJ though you say Neumann is the weakest candidate?
Poor TT! He could have walked in a Senate nod if ran in 2010 or earlier but he didn’t have the b*lls to run against an incumbent. I hope the next popular Governor who turns down pleas to run for the Senate to wait for an easier race takes heart of this lesson.
Though Hovde has no exp I’m willing to take a flyer on him. Depending of whether or not TT is really a lock in GE. If Hovde would do no worse there is no reason to back TT.
That being said,I have to agree with Fieldmarshaldj as far as considering Jeff Fitzgerald the strongest choice we could run, and Newmann the weakest. I don't think Newmann would be as disastrous as Katherine Harris's bid in FL or Angle in NV, but there's no doubt his track record in political campaigns is poor and he would be in an uphill battle against Baldwin in November if he were the GOP nominee.
We keep snatching defeat from victories in these Senate races because some in the "Tea party" insist the weakest candidate in the primary is the only "true conservative". I'm not buying it, they're all reliably conservative and we need to run a strong candidate.
I really haven't looked into Eric Hovde as he's the unknown in this primary. I'm hesitant to believe he's the second coming of Ron Johnson aside from the superficial similarity of them both being successful businessmen before throwing their hat into a Senate race.
In this were the late 90s or early 2000s, TT would win the Senate primary in a walk and go on to crush any Democrat. Alas, this is 2012 and it's been 12 years since he held elective office, so he's no longer the powerhouse he used to be. I thought a presidential bid was doable but unfortunately it went nowhere, and now it's 5 years since the Iowa caucuses and he's very old to be starting a freshman career in the U.S. Senate, especially with the 6 year terms they have. His name is probably still held in high esteem by those who remember his tenure as Governor, and I think he'd make a good Senator, but his best years are behind him.
I see a lot of potential in Jeff Fitzgerald, he's been in politics for 12 years and is a solid success story, as well as a solid part of the Walker revolution that has transformed the state. At 45, he's also young enough to be a rising star in national politics. Curiously, his website mentions some conservative favorites like staunch pro-2nd amendment views, but is silent on social issues. I'm pretty sure he's socially conservative so I wonder why the omission.
>> But prefering Thompson over Newmann? No to status quo. <<
How is Thompson the "status quo" but Newmann isn't, Syncro? Mark Neumann is a former U.S. Congressman with lots of national connections, who has been running for federal office in Wisconsin for the last 20 years. You must be one of those freepers who was convinced that Newt Gingrich and Rick Perrry were "Anti-establishment". lol. Being in politics for decades doesn't make someone an "outsider", sorry. (even if they're part of a political fringe like Ron Paul, they still have plenty of clout in government) And when it comes to their respective records in office, I'll take Thompson over Newmann any day.