Chan Lowe: Rick Perry's fading lone star
I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Rick Perry is toast. This really isn’t that risky a position, and here’s why:
Both Perry and Mitt Romney have big war chests, but ever since Golden Boy And Possible Vice-Presidential Candidate Chris Christie endorsed Romney, the establishment Republicans have been falling into line.
The logic was clear all along. Presidential elections⎯because there is no way that only two contestants can make three hundred million people happy⎯have always been about holding your nose and voting for the person whose face on the TV is least likely to make you toss your Hamburger Helper for the next four years.
Perry has a dedicated and feverish following, but it’s small in proportion to the noise it makes. There’s no way he’ll appeal to moderates, who tend to look askance at any person who truly believes the world was formed six thousand years ago, and that mankind lived, Flintstone-like, alongside the dinosaurs. Leader of the country? No way.
Romney is universally detested by his party, but his very flip-floppiness, currently being condemned, will be his strength in the general election. Nobody trusts him as a conservative, so what’s to prevent him from flip-flopping leftward once nominated, thus attracting the all-important middle? Republican money people know he’s a chameleon, and being pragmatists, they know only a chameleon can win. If they get on his bandwagon now, they’ll own him early. As Don Corleone used to say, this is business, not personal.
The nutty right will hold their noses and vote for the wishy-washy quasi-Christian apostate because the alternative⎯four more years with the Muslim⎯is even more horrifying. Moderates don’t hate Obama, but would vote for him out of fear were Perry the standard-bearer.
That’s my take, anyway. Correct me if I’m wrong.
CHAN LOWE has been the Sun Sentinel’s first and only editorial cartoonist for the past twenty-six years. Before that, he worked as cartoonist and writer for the Oklahoma City Times and the Shawnee (OK) News-Star.
Comments
Actually Chan, how would you know how conservatives would vote? You're as looney left as the come.... As far as conservatives are concerned, we would gladly put up Ron Jeremy if it meant the end of the Obama error. We gave him 1 trillion dollars of our money for a 9.1% unemployment rate????? What will his 500 billion dollar "jobs bill" give us, 8.9%? What a bargain!!!
Posted by: Brian | October 12, 2011 4:48 PM
In the past I have railed against your group of lefties, who after being given the keys to the castle in '08 have managed to blunder their way through three years of governing. As difficult as this is to say, the real problem is not with the lefties. The real problem is with the attitude that this country is not worth the effort needed to make it better. Day after day I read comments from whiners who complain about special interests or or some millionaires club disenfranchising them. Standing on the sidelines spitting on the parade as it marches by is a total waste of time and energy. If you don't like the current situation, work to change it. If you don't think it can be changed then either suck it up or move your couch to where you think you will be happy. Even the King of the left got it right when he said "take off you bedroom slippers and get to work"
Posted by: WinJeff | October 12, 2011 6:40 PM
Sorry, now is not my time.
Posted by: Ron Jeremy | October 12, 2011 10:08 PM
I just want Perry gone, then I'll decide who gets my vote. I don't even know how Texas stands him
Posted by: Mel | October 13, 2011 11:49 AM