The 2008 presidential field at-a-glance

[jon1856]

FLDS issue could hurt Romney's VP chances
Last month's raid on the Fundamentalist LDS Church in Texas could prevent Mitt Romney from being picked as the Republican vice-presidential nominee, one of his longtime supporters says.

"Unfortunately, the FLDS issue has probably elevated considerations about what Romney's faith would do to the ticket," said Kirk Jowers, director of the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics and an early backer of Romney's failed presidential bid. Now, Jowers said, Romney has to once again confront concerns about his membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints because the faith is so often confused with that practiced by followers of the FLDS Church....
http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700224775,00.html

[Drolefille]

McCain and Romney really don't like each other anyway. He wasn't that high on the list.

[Thetagirl218]

Originally Posted by Drolefille

McCain and Romney really don't like each other anyway. He wasn't that high on the list.

They may not like each other, but McCain is going to have to pick someone like Romney or Huckabee for his VP. Otherwise he can say good bye to the presidency now as he will never win the conservative vote without a strong conservative VP. Most conservatives I know would rather vote for Obama than McCain just because they dislike McCain so much.

As for Hillary, I think she will win West Virgina and coincide on Tuesday on a high note, for the good of the party. Just my prediction.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by Thetagirl218

They may not like each other, but McCain is going to have to pick someone like Romney or Huckabee for his VP. Otherwise he can say good bye to the presidency now as he will never win the conservative vote without a strong conservative VP. Most conservatives I know would rather vote for Obama than McCain just because they dislike McCain so much.

A lot of people are talking about Charlie Crist or Bobby Jindal as McCain's running mate. Crist may be too moderate, and there's the whole "maybe he's gay" thing being discussed in Florida political circles. Jindal is very conservative--fiscally as well as socially--and would be the first non-white VP.

As soon as that damned harpy gets out of her denial, the happier we'll all be.

[Thetagirl218]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

A lot of people are talking about Charlie Crist or Bobby Jindal as McCain's running mate. Crist may be too moderate, and there's the whole "maybe he's gay" thing being discussed in Florida political circles. Jindal is very conservative--fiscally as well as socially--and would be the first non-white VP.

As soon as that damned harpy gets out of her denial, the happier we'll all be.

I am quite familiar with Charlie Crist as we are both from St. Petersburg. I acutally voulenteered on his campaign, but I am not very happy with the things he is doing as a governor right now. I truly hope that McCain does not pick him, because 1. He is way too moderate and 2. He needs to focus on being the Governor of Florida.

I haven't heard of Jindal before. Where is he from?

[GeekyPenguin]

Tim Pawlenty (MN governor) seems quite confident he's going to be McCain's running mate.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by Thetagirl218

I am quite familiar with Charlie Crist as we are both from St. Petersburg. I actually volunteered on his campaign, but I am not very happy with the things he is doing as a governor right now. I truly hope that McCain does not pick him, because 1. He is way too moderate and 2. He needs to focus on being the Governor of Florida.

I haven't heard of Jindal before. Where is he from?

I suspected--nay, hoped--you were familiar with Charlie Crist, what with being from Florida and all. A lot of people in North Florida are unhappy with his performance in Tallahassee, and feel that his focus has been the national stage and not the state one.

Bobby Jindal is the current governor of Louisiana.

[jon1856]

President Apostate?
BARACK OBAMA has emerged as a classic example of charismatic leadership — a figure upon whom others project their own hopes and desires. The resulting emotional intensity adds greatly to the more conventional strengths of the well-organized Obama campaign, and it has certainly sufficed to overcome the formidable initial advantages of Senator Hillary Clinton.
One danger of such charisma, however, is that it can evoke unrealistic hopes of what a candidate could actually accomplish in office regardless of his own personal abilities. Case in point is the oft-made claim that an Obama presidency would be welcomed by the Muslim world.
This idea often goes hand in hand with the altogether more plausible argument that Mr. Obama’s election would raise America’s esteem in Africa — indeed, he already arouses much enthusiasm in his father’s native Kenya and to a degree elsewhere on the continent.
But it is a mistake to conflate his African identity with his Muslim heritage. Senator Obama is half African by birth and Africans can understandably identify with him. In Islam, however, there is no such thing as a half-Muslim. Like all monotheistic religions, Islam is an exclusive faith. .......
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/12/op...5e6&ei=5087%0A