Did McCain win the election last Saturday?

The biggest problem McCain has faced in drawing support so far has been in energizing the conservative Republican base.  Well, after hearing listener response on Rush and the opening of the Hannity show, I think that problem has been solved... at least, for now...

Folks from all across America are repeating many of the things I said in the post directly below this one.  I predict a massive surge for McCain - and the momentum will continue to build even during the DNC convention (the conservative base will be rallied even more by seeing what the left really stands for).  Add in a 60-day ad campaign comparing "Saddleback McCain" to the inexperienced leftist Obama, and there is no way McCain can lose... unless...

Unless McCain grinds his momentum to a stop with a controversial VP choice.  If the Saddleback performance hadn't occurred, and McCain still needed to shake things up, he might be tempted to do something daring, like choosing Joe Lieberman.  But now McCain is in a position where his strategy should be "do no harm."

Because of this, I expect McCain will eliminate from consideration Joe Lieberman, and possibly also Tom Ridge, Rudy Giuliani, or Lindsey Graham.  I am not certain what this means for Mitt Romney: it is unfortunate that Mike Huckabee is still out there attacking Romney, even though the primaries are over.  This does nothing to help the GOP, or Huckabee, for that matter.  McCain no longer has a problem with values-voters, so there is ZERO possibility of him choosing Huckabee to shore up a weakness.  So Huckabee is doing nothing for himself or the party here in attacking Romney.  So Romney may or may not be out of the running if Huckabee's rants have any impact.

Who is left?  Well, Pawlenty is still an option, but he is such a yawner!  I'd like to McCain find a running mate who not only will keep the base upbeat but also add a little pizzazz to the ticket.  Bobby Jindal has already pulled a Sherman in stating he doesn't want the job.  So... Sarah Palin?  But would her relative inexperience on the national scene be a liability?  Fred Thompson?  The base loves him, but did the media damage him too much in the primary?

I've heard a few people bring up some "dark horse" names like Mike Leavitt and John Engler.  I think either one could do a good job, but would their relative anonymity among the general population do anything positive for McCain?

Folks are still talking about Colin Powell... for both candidates.  I could see him working with McCain, and I could see McCain choosing him.  But there are more and more rumors about Obama and Powell teaming up somehow.  I guess all we can do is wait and see with Powell.  But there is one other military leader who just might make a surprise appearance on the GOP ticket:

David Petraeus

McCain named Petraeus first among people to whom he would turn for guidance.  He is a true hero and our number one expert on the Middle East.  He also had a strong background before the Iraq War working with NATO in Eastern Europe; given the Russia/Georgia situation, we need that sort of experience.  And let's not overlook his intellectual credentials: he earned his M.P.A. and Ph.D. from Princeton while serving full-time in the Army.

I have no idea where Petraeus stands on non-military issues.  But he is clearly an attractive potential candidate, who has already impressed McCain.  I would not be surprised if McCain is very, very quietly vetting Petraeus and asking him detailed questions about his beliefs on social and economic issues.

So... assuming Petraeus embraces typical conservative Republican ideas about socio-economic matters, what would you think about him on the ticket?

Comments

[Independent Thinker]

Well you pose your Petraeus question with a really big IF. However, IF he turned out to be generally (pun intended) in favor of limited government, lower taxes, enforcement first, gun ownership, and strict constructionist judges, I could forgive him if he needed some more evolution on the finer details. But if Petraeus as VP would support taxing the rich, restricting gun ownership, gay marriage, abortion on demand, amnesty, etc., then merely being a war hero would get him nowhere with me.

So it would really depend on seeing where he stood if nominated.

But I doubt he would be nominated at all. McCain already has the Iraq issue wrapped up in his favor as much as he is going to get it. He'd be better off with someone like Engler, who really understands the economy and manufacturing while maintaining good conservative credentials on other issues.

[nate]

I think Romney does best in the swing states, and with the Rush conservative crowd.

[Sakaki]

Hell no. Romney is nothing but a weasel and won't bring any states that would be considered even remotely "crossover".

I think I already know who is gonna get the nod, and one of the reasons I know is because he isn't touted in the press and he has the capability of taking at least 1 distinct group that the Democrats have relied upon for help: The Jewish vote.

Call me crazy, but if Eric Cantor gets the nod for VP, then you can almost guarantee that Virginia and the Jewish base of NYC that would be voting for Hillary will switch.

I'm thinking that a no-name may actually turn out to be the best name out there.

[Gullyborg]

Romney isn't that bad. He is not my first choice, but he is perfectly acceptable. And, he would bring more money from his own checkbook as Obama has raised in almost two years of fundraising. That would allow the RNC to dump all its cash into Congressional races. As in, we take them back.

That said, I *just* saw on the news that McCain is scheduling his VP announcement for Aug 29, in Ohio. That might mean...

ROB PORTMAN

http://www.ontheissues.org/oh/Rob_Portman.htm

This is a guy the base will LOVE.

[Rivrdog]

"Rated 0% by FAIR, indicating a voting record loosening immigration. (Dec 2003)"

Considering that the "base" is 70+% AGAINST the current immigration policy, and Portman is for it, how does that make him the obvious guy to love?

Immigration is a biggie.

[SurvivalTopics.com]

I am having trouble with all the candidates but I agree that there could very well be a sweeping change of heart as the process continues.

[Gullyborg]

Portman agrees with McCain on immigration - and McCain won the nomination while guys like Tancredo never broke out of low single digits. And even though McCain and Portman support amnesty, they are far and away better than Obama, who essentially favors no border at all.

So, while immigration is vitally important to me, it is not a factor in this race other than in preventing Obama from holding executive power.