On November 4, 2008 one item shot to the top of the Republican political to do list, make sure that President Obama is a one term president. Every candidate for the Republican presidential nomination uses a variation of this theme as a sure fire partisan applause line. For some reason a Kenyan, secret Muslim socialist Democrat, hell bent on creating a fascist society is bothersome to our friends on the right.
Congressional Republicans have taken this very seriously as well; they refuse to pass any legislation that would help the moribund economy, because an improving economy means an improved reelection opportunity for the president. And taking down the president is the paramount concern for Mitch McConnell and John Boehner, not creating jobs, fixing crumbling infrastructure or using their congressional power to help a struggling middle class. Indeed, the only passion we have seen this election cycle is the Republican’s steadfast protection of tax breaks for the top 1%, subsidies for the largest oil companies and preserving tax loopholes for giant multi-national corporations.
I don’t worry much about the ultra rich or the mega corporations, they will muddle through somehow, especially since the Republican Party has their back. But it strikes me as odd, that if President Obama is the greatest threat to the United States since the last Democratic president and job one is defeating him next November, why have they given us this sorry bunch of professional political hacks, amateur politicians and wannabe power junkies to challenge him? In any other election cycle, the current economy would have doomed an incumbent president, but even with a stagnant economy and 9% unemployment, not a single Republican candidate out polls President Obama nationally.
Given the importance of the 2012 presidential election, should we trust the party that gave us George W. Bush and Dick Cheney? Eleven years on we are still fixing the economic, diplomatic and military messes they created. Republicans followed up in 2008 by nominating famed maverick, Senator John McCain, whose very first decision was to put former half term Alaska governor Sarah Palin just a 72 year old heartbeat away from being the most powerful person in the world. I still shudder writing that sentence.
Apparently the main criterion for becoming the frontrunner for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination is not to be named Romney. So far this election cycle we have actually seen reality television star and megalomaniac Donald Trump rise to the top of the polls, mainly because of his embrace of the Birthers problem with President Obama’s citizenship. After reality finally intervened, The Donald crashed and the new frontrunner became Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, based on no discernable criteria other than her status as the Tea Party’s then Not-Romney favorite.
Michelle Bachmann was clearly just a placeholder until a more electable Not-Romney could be found, and sure enough someone convinced Rick Perry that another well funded, intelligence challenged, Texas governor with no relevant experience and no new ideas was just what the country needed. Governor Perry immediately shot into the lead and stayed there until he was forced to speak publically in the Republican debates. The rapid rise and fall of Governor Perry made Mitt Romney the de facto frontrunner again and desperate times called for desperate measures.
The next leader in the “I’m not Romney” sweepstakes was Herman Cain. He was by far the favorite frontrunner of the lefty blogs and fake news television shows, and contrary to conservative wishful thinking, Democrats are very sorry to see him go. Herman Cain, ever the capitalist, turned a simple book tour into a presidential campaign and improbably became the great right hope when Rick Perry self immolated. Sadly for Herman Cain, he was not ready for prime time. The secrets in his private life could not stay hidden from the withering glare of the 24 hour news cycle. His appalling lack of foreign policy knowledge and his 9-9-9 tax plan that cut taxes for the wealthy and raised taxes on the middle class had already doomed his candidacy; the salacious bimbo eruption just hastened the inevitable.
Newt Gingrich is the current King of the Not-Romneys, a deeply flawed candidate, with over 30 years of controversial and extremely profitable, insider Washington history working against him. However, with only Rick Santorum and Ron Paul left in the bullpen, Newt will be in the game for a while, a prospect that Real Romney dreads, but will delight the Obama reelection team. Now if he would only produce his birth certificate, it is game on.