Iowa vote gives candidates green light, for others it’s red
’Tis the season… Gone is the fancy wrapping paper, sparkling lights and around-the-clock Christmas music.
But renewed is the media’s obsession with the Presidential Primary Season and its endless barrage of debates, front-runners, speculation, and scandal.
Newt Gingrich enjoyed big leads recently and appeared to have a lock on the first few caucuses and primaries, maybe more, with a combination of charisma, intelligence, communication skills, and confidence.
He has faded since with Iowans, but his skills and conservative message may give him a second surge, which becomes more likely with Michele Bachman having exited, Rick Perry sizing up the doorknob, and Rick Santorum still living out of his car when it comes to campaign cash.
But if Newt were to emerge as the nominee, Republicans might find him not to be the best challenger to President Obama.
Despite his solid political values, Newt’s moral values have tended toward the soft side.
Numerous are his “skeletons” that rattle behind a paper- thin closet door, ready to overwhelm him should he square off with family-man Obama.
Also, his right-of-center ideas, though perfect for a Republican Primary, would not likely win him much favor among general election swingvoters. His confidence and ego could be off-putting too.
Mitt Romney seems less encumbered by personal baggage, though Republicans have been reluctant to embrace him, going back years.
Still, he is probably their best chance for November victory.
Why is Mitt so unpopular?
He is perceived to have “flipflopped” on some key issues.
He went from somewhat liberal, while governing left-leaning Massachusetts, to more conservative positions.
Fact is, though, politicians must adjust policies to get elected— they have to speak to whichever audience they are seeking to represent.
So it can’t be surprising that Romney would update his stance as a presidential candidate to suit a more conservative national base.
Each voter will have to decide whether the sincerity of a candidate’s “evolved thinking” is sufficient to earn their trust.
It’s also worth remembering that, should he survive the primaries, Mitt’s “flip-flopping” may actually prove advantageous in the long run with independent voters seeing it as an attractive sign of open-mindedness.
Romney also matches Newt’s debate skills, minus the ego (which is already becoming tiresome for some).
It would seem Mitt has the best chance in the general election of all the Republican candidates, and maybe voters are starting to agree as evidenced by his strong finish this week.
Still, with the first caucus behind us and several key primaries ahead, we all have fresh chances for looks at these candidates— even some Iowans have dismissed.
After all, ‘tis the season.
You can follow Colin Criss on Twitter @ADKCurrent
