Good news for Mitt Romney:
Texas Rep. Ron Paul won the 2010 CPAC straw poll tonight, a victory that will further energize his already enthusiastic supporters but will have little effect on the coming presidential contest.
Paul, who ran for president in 2008, took 31 percent of the vote. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney had won the past three CPAC straw polls but placed second this time with 22 percent. Romney is considered the current frontrunner for the 2012 nod.
No other candidate scored in double digits. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who did not speak at CPAC, took third place with seven percent. (Full results are below.)
This is like a nine iron through the window of the Tim Pawlenty campaign.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
I’d still bet on Pawlenty over Romney, once they start whispering about his being a Mormon
Penon
That’s a great opinion at the end there, but what facts exist to back it up?
Omnes Omnibus
Rudy 9-11! Rudy 9-11! Rudy 9-11!!!!111!!eleven!!!
Ash
John Thune only got 2%. Guess he just wasn’t tan and good-looking enough.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
John Thune and Li’l Ricky Santorum tie at 2%. David Brooks is probably hurt, writing a despairing entry in his diary, and K-Lo is probably contemplating a savage tweet for those nasty people who don’t recognize Teh Santorum.
Woodbuster
I am sure that Obama will decide not to run again, knowing that Ron Paul is such a threat. Tee hee….
Comrade Luke
Why is CPAC getting so much coverage?
How are these people different from a bunch of Dems getting together and voting for Kucinich?
Short Bus Bully
So… Does this mean that CPAC is full of libertarian teabagger asshats?
Who knew?
YellowJournalism
CPAC attendees must be Family Guy fans.
mr. whipple
Not at all. This is just a message from the ‘base’ of the Republican party that Pawlenty will need to double down on the crazy. So, double down he will.
Within a week I expect he’ll call for the abolishment of the Federal Reserve and a return to the gold standard. Watch.
Nick
2400 people total? We had 1/3 of that marching across the Brooklyn Bridge for a public option today, and it did not make even local news.
drag0n
Heh, some teaparty group just friended me on facebook.
A Texas group too. This might be interesting.
MattF
Romney presents a sort of theological problem– the plain fact that he would sell his soul to become President is food for spiritual reflection, even for a winger.
MikeJ
I can’t imagine polls will ever mean anything to republicans. These are the same people that said Obama staged an “electoral coup” by daring to win more votes. Why would they pay attention to what the proles in their party want?
Comrade Luke
Twitter is all agog over Glenn Beck right now; I assume he gave a speech?
Help…
mr. whipple
@Comrade Luke:
Draft Glenn Beck for President!
trollhattan
All right Mister J, you owe me a keyboard, dude.
Eric U.
Paul’s victory was a surprise to me, seems like he’s not crazy enough or republican enough. Republican party is changing too fast for my tastes.
soonergrunt
Great! Keep bringing the crazy! That’s just fucking lovely. Really.
Obama will win re-election if they do. Unlike these guys, most of the rest of the country doesn’t like staring into the abyss. These guys like it when the abyss stares back. They think it’s God paying them special attention.
So, Obama will win re-elect. The problem is down-ticket, because you can’t get elected to Dog Catcher in Oklahoma unless you can prove your batshit crazy creds. The last relatively normal guy elected in this state to anything is Governor Henry who is term limited, and even he could get his winger on when he felt the need.
Omnes Omnibus
@soonergrunt: Ther concern is what happens if the crazy spreads. As it is, 27% of the population are crazy. If they get crazier, it is bad. But, if the crazy spreads beyond that, the we need to be worried.
If a wingnut in OK wins with 79% instead of 65%, not too big a deal. If wingnuts start winning regularly in MA, look out.
cat48
I think John McCain only got 12% last election cycle, Romney won, and Rudy came in 2nd so I’m not sure it means too much. I imagine Mittens is ticked though. BoBo’s new crush, Thune, only got 2%. He tied with “Man on Dog”. heh
Tonal Crow
Republicans are like a nine-iron through the window of civilization.
ajr22
The thing about the Republican base is they don’t really give a shit who they nominate. If its Pawlenty, Thune, Romney they will all at once discover they love em. I mean look at Palin, no one knew who the fuck she was, but she gets the nomination and within two days she is the darling of the conservative movement. I mean how the hell does someone become beloved by a movement when the movement just found out who she was 48 hours ago?
cat48
@Comrade Luke:
That’s probably because he wants the big government Republican’s and spenders to admit they were wrong like Tiger did yesterday. A lot of Serenity Prayer references. BoBo loves Niebuhr who wrote the Prayer so he was probably impressed. heh
One of the scariest speeches I’ve ever heard.
Ron Beasley
This is certainly good news for John McCain!
cat48
@Eric U.:
Uh, no. They booed when Paul won. Evidently Paultards swarmed the ballot box, per HuffPost.
Omnes Omnibus
@cat48: They can’t even accept the results of their own votes? Wow.
Ash
@Comrade Luke:
I have been wondering this for a while now. There is no comparable even for Democrats/liberals, where we all gather and make shitty jokes about stringing Dick Cheney up by the balls and get it broadcast on C-SPAN.
cat48
@Omnes Omnibus
They are not called “The Party of No” for nothing. heh
Penon
We’d rather not fret over all the aLPACa jokes that would come from it.
darryl
@Ron Beasley: Is Ron Beardsley a real person, or have they automated the process of repeating this on every thread?
mcc
@Comrade Luke: Also notice this is the second week-long “conservatives are doing something, so it’s newsworthy” media event in a month.
Kinda makes me curious how much real attention the health care summit thing (not even a Democratic event technically) next week will get.
nepat
This is excellent news for . . . Jane Hamsher and Glenn Greenwald! They also have Paultard sympathies.
gbear
He deserves nothing less. I hope he’s feeling a severe throbbing butthurt.
Zifnab25
@Nick: Didn’t I hear (from DougJ or John Cole) about how support for the public option was so piddly and lackluster that these events didn’t actually take place? I seem to remember a flaming hissy fit over a “virtual rally” or some such, because those lazy liberals were too lazy to actually get together in front of a news camera in person.
I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure we can give credit to over seven thousand protest marchers if they didn’t pass there “Network News Considers This Important” litmus test.
:-p 2010 will be about voter turnout and corporate v. populist fund raising. All these high publicity conservative wank-fests will be that much sound and noise, signifying nothing but how loud old white people can shout with a corporate megaphone.
mcc
Oh, and can’t help but point out: according to the full breakdown (found this on TPM), 54% of the people participating in this poll were under 25 and and 75% were under 40. Does that sound representative of the GOP to you?
The Dangerman
@ajr22:
Tits and a Wink
Mary
@nepat: Funny you should mention that. Firedoglake just put up a post wondering if Ron Paul would be better for progressives.
Tonal Crow
@ajr22:
It’s e-mot-shun takin’ me o-ver, caught up in tard-ness, lost in the porn….
But seriously, we forget at our peril that most people decide most things emotionally most of the time. That’s why explaining the truth — without more — is such a disappointing loser.
JK
What happened to the alleged groundswell of support for Saint Sarah?
Omnes Omnibus
@Mary: Of course a conservative republican would be better for progressives. Everyone should have voted for Goldwater in ’64 as well. Dipsh*ts.
nepat
@Mary: The satire takes care of itself!
Joe1347
Of course this is all good news for John McCain.
Any thoughts on Petraeus?
Jean
@Mary: Spare me FDL’s take on anything. It’s hopeless over there.
drag0n
Off topic but…
Mens 1500 speed skating for anyone who cannot get it live.
Keith G
@Eric U.:
No Eric. Is just that the Cliff Notes version of Paul’s ideology dresses up okay. And he and his core support have learned to de-emphasize his loony shit when he does Maddow and college campuses.
No, Eric. Use teh Google, click the links. The dude drips crazy. He’s a gone fucker.
mcc
@Mary: I’m not finding whatever you’re referring to. Is that an actual FDL post or a user diary?
Keith G
@Joe1347:
Petraeus? No. I have heard him on several occasions speak to his lack of interest in electoral politics and I get the notion that he means it. I really think most generals would be ill-suited for modern campaign politics, especially right after retirement.
This aint the 1950s and he aint Eisenhower.
burnspbesq
@Zifnab25:
You’d better hope not, because if it is, progressives and their causes will be well and truly fucked.
Allan
This is like Ron Paul flew a blimp into the Mormon Tabernacle.
Just Some Fuckhead
@mcc: I looked for it, couldn’t find it either.
mr. whipple
@Allan:
LOL.
Looks like Paul is the one with the magic underwear.
eastriver
This is sort of off-topic, and a few bloggers have already plowed this field, but this take down is FUCKING EPIC:
http://driftglass.blogspot.com/2010/02/monster.html
Ron Beasley
@darryl: Yes I am a real person and I can usually be found here.
Jonny Scrum-half
MikeJ @14 — Who said that Obama staged an “electoral coup”?
Task Force Ripper
@Mary: Where? Link to it or STFU.
JK
testing
Omnes Omnibus
@Task Force Ripper: How about this?
Diarist, not front page.
Nethead Jay
@eastriver: Ouch. That is a world class ripping. If Brooks had any sense of shame, he’d never show his face again.
dr. bloor
@Task Force Ripper:
Ooh, someone hit a nerve.
gbear
@eastriver: Wow. That’s an amazing post. Sad that Brooks is never going to get it.
Omnes Omnibus
@Task Force Ripper: Did you read it yet?
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
Every time Task Force Gooper posts I have to click on his name-link to see if his site is still fucked up. Yup, still fucked up!
Just like Task Force Gooper, it returns errors every time…lol!
Task Force Ripper
@DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal): Damn. Did that go batty again? Thanks.
Just Some Fuckhead
What you propagandists, mental patients and assorted drug addicts don’t seem to realize is that a diarist on FDL’s diary site doesn’t actually speak for FDL any more than your lame comments represent the views of John Cole.
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
@Task Force Ripper:
And you give the same response every single time this is pointed out…lol
Omnes Omnibus
@Just Some Fuckhead: Whatever.
Task Force Ripper
@Omnes Omnibus: Yes I did. Thank you Mary.
Task Force Ripper
@DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal): And if you weren’t so fucking stupid that might clue you in a bit…but I doubt it.
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
@Task Force Ripper:
Naah, I just keep web, game servers and databases up 24/7/365 with nary a problem. I wouldn’t have a clue. Gotcha. Something tells me that if you are ‘fixing’ something again and again, you ain’t fixing it.
But hey, you know better than me…lol!
Jim Once
Thank you for this – and thank driftglass. The best thing I’ve read in months (or more).
mai naem
Whatever happened to Li’l Ricky, did Larry Craig and Mark Foley attend CPAC today? Also too, Haley Barbour?
Spork
testing….testing….had blog comment fail, so forgive the OT post, if it ever shows.
Comrade Kevin
If you want to read the ravings of a loon, check out This guy who claims to be running for congress.
Yutsano
@Comrade Kevin:
BoB is running for Congress. Whowouldathunkit?
Task Force Ripper
@DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal):
Part of this is right. Moran.
Comrade Kevin
@Yutsano: I gotta say, when I first encountered that guy, BoB is exactly what popped into my mind as well.
Jean
From the NYT, a column by Lincoln Chaffee, a comment on Evan Bayh’s retirement and the idea of a third party, Centrist, which leads to what Obama has done wrong:
“So far, I’m sorry to say, he’s proving my assertion that Republicans lead in the wrong direction and Democrats are unable to lead in any direction at all. His difficult first year in office can be traced, I believe, to his appointment of the hyperpartisan Rahm Emanuel as the White House chief of staff, and his failure to devise a stimulus bill that could win a single Republican vote in the House. That crucial first test set the tone for the stalemate on health care reform — an issue that should be popular with the American center, and could be, given the right leadership.”
Rahm, check.
Creation of a bill that can win a Republican vote, check.
I like Chaffee all right, compared to most Republicans, but this is b.s. There are no Republican votes no matter what bill is created and no matter how much in it attracts Republicans or includes their “ideas.”
eastriver
@Just Some Fuckhead:
True dat.
(Hamsher, love yer new handle. “Just Some Fuckhead.” Sweet.)
Yutsano
@Comrade Kevin: I swear I’ve seen BoB say that exact line or something very similar before. It definitely fits into his style of nonsense. I don’t know where he’s running but hopefully he has zero chance. From the return tweets he could be in a blue district but who knows.
eastriver
@Yutsano:
(I think the “running for office” thing was a j-o-k-e. Kidding around. Humor. Ha-ha. Not serious. I’m stopping now.)
eemom
@Just Some Fuckhead:
riiiiight. Because FDL is so well known for its diversity of opinion and encouragement of rational disagreement.
Mike in NC
In ’08 I encountered an amazing number of Republicans who seamlessly pivoted from the Cult of Bush to the Cult of Palin in roughly 24-48 hours. The right-wing hive mind and party discipline are truly impressive.
feebog
Task Force Ripper
Took me ten seconds to find something on the google.
http://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2008/12/obamas-coup-dtat-must-be-stopped.html
Try doing a little research yourself.
Just Some Fuckhead
@eemom: You retards are free to go over there and set up your own diaries and push any viewpoint you like. How about that for diversity?
I don’t know why you think every thread here has to be turned into an anti-FDL deal.
Anya
@eastriver: This is my favorite part of the takedown:
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
@feebog:
He can’t do that because he’s too busy telling me that he has ‘fixed’ his website (which still isn’t fixed). That last comment he made to me is a real laugh. I get the impression that Task Farce Gooper is one of those people who are always right and everyone else is wrong.
His shit may not work but hey, he’s right and he’s fixed it!
Nick
@Zifnab25:
You heard it from me too. I was very pleased to see the turnout today, although I felt that most of these people would be fine with a bill that passed even without a public option. Many of them were pointing out that the House could end this by just passing the Senate bill, but since the public option is alive, they were fighting “for the best bill can get”
Sam Sewell
Create a Crisis! The Left Needs a New Tactic. We are Catching on!
My StatCounter tells me that this article just isn’t getting the attention it deserves. So, I have reformatted it, put it all in bold font, and sent out a mass Email to call attention
“Let us screw you, right now, or the world will end and it will all be your fault!”
That just doesn’t work with American citizens any more.
http://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2010/02/create-crisis-left-needs-new-tactic-we.html
Joey Maloney
@Omnes Omnibus: Um, December 2000, anyone?
Michael
Just want to point out that Ron Paul aims for an unaccountable set of local theonomies that can then link up and become an unaccountable national theonomy in a fascist way.
He’s a libertarian in the way Adolf Hitler was a libertarian.
Gravenstone
@feebog: Don’t look now, but I think something followed you out of the sewers. I think you got some Birther slime on your shoes. Might want to burn ’em, just to be safe.
liberal
@Michael:
While most of Paul’s take on issues is garbage, he’s pretty good on foreign policy, which means he’s hardly comparable to Hitler.
Snarky Bastard
Keith G is correct. As one of Paul’s constituents in the 14th Texas, I can confirm that he’s unelectable at the national level, and has a long record of saying crazy stuff, and affiliating with even more crazy folks.
Now, I think this CPAC poll is great — it further shows up the rifts in what are supposed to be the purest batch of conservative activists in the country.
Remember, too, that Ron Paul is being primaried by three teabaggers, who are upset with him in large part for not bringing enough federal assistance to this area after Hurricane Ike. (Yes, you read that right — the teabaggers are upset that Paul didn’t bring enough federal cash their way — get your heads around that.)
But it’s not all bad if Paul stays right where he is — after all, he brought in $398M in earmarks to the district last year, one of the biggest pork-gorgers in the region, a full third more than ultra-liberal Sheila Jackson Lee. Go Ron Paul!
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
@Gravenstone:
I thought I smelled something…lol! That Birther crap has a stench all its own.
@liberal:
Those who love him can have him. Every time I see him or someone mentions him, the first thing that comes to mind is that Ron Paul a racist. End of story. He will never be president.
Never.
lol
@Ash:
Netroots Nation is comparable and about as equally relevant to the real world. In 2007, they had a straw poll that Edwards ran away with.