The Occasional Observer

As I look at the primaries, I become increasingly convinced of one thing - neither McCain nor Obama will finish in the top 2. I think Dems will be Hillary - Edwards - Obama, Republicans will be Mitt - Rudy - Huckabee. McCain's real appeal is among independent voters and central-leaning Dems. Unfortunately for him, neither of those two groups vote in Repub primary. Once the candidates become better known, I don't see McCain's appeal over Mitt or Rudy. If you aren't concerned about social issues but you want a strong leader and conservative fiscal policies, Rudy's your man. If you want conservative policies both fiscally and socially with good leadership, Mitt's your man. I'm not sure who ends up picking McCain over these or other candidates once the dust settles, except for the group who believes that in the general election only McCain can beat Hillary.