John Huntsman. But it seems a lot of folks I know socially tend to like Gingrich. What I'm going to say is going to sound trollish, but it's not, I honestly believe this. This country would be better off with Barack Obama as President than Newt Gingrich.
I am not an Obama supporter. But Gingrich is an absolute nightmare for me.
Interesting. I'd be curious as to the general politics of those in your social circle who like Gingrich.
I think each of the GOP candidates has some base of support that they appeal to.
Romney appeals to the pragmatic moderates who see long term value in simply having the WH again. As someone said this morning, his support is a mile wide, but just an inch deep.
Gingrich is the bombastic guy who, even if you don't like a particular policy, is appealing because he is so assertive and you just feel like he'd get things done. I think he appeals to people who just feel like the country is stagnant and want something to change, for better or for worse.
Paul appeals to the intellectuals, the theoreticians. They know deep down he can't win and can't really be counted on to run anything. But they like the purity of his thinking and they want to feel like they see the bigger picture. He is going to appeal to the college kids.
Huntsman is the guy that appeals to what I will paradoxically call the super moderates. He worked in the Obama administration -- he can actually broker deals. And he's not a loon, in any respect. I'd say his support is a quarter mile wide, and an inch deep.
Then you have Bachman and Santorum. The true social conservatives. They are running at the wrong time, because anyone with any sense realizes that abortion and gay marriage is about as relevant to the moderates in the general election as what color socks the candidates are wearing. Their support, split as it is, is 100 yards wide, and three miles deep.
Romney wins. There isn't a ton of enthusiasm, and it all comes down to whether the economy has percolated enough by about August-October that people pay any attention to the race, at all.
If Romney loses the general, he probably wins in 2016, with maybe Rubio on the ticket as his VP.
/thread