The Occasional Observer

The more I think about it, I really hope the RNC is doing some behind-the-scenes organizing to make sure that the Republicans remain in position to win in '08. That is to say, minimize negative attacks on each other leading up to primaries; avoid revelation of potentially damaging info in general election that could be used by other side; etc. I would take almost any of the present Republican candidates over Billary, Obama, Edwards, or Gore. In particular I find almost all the Republican candidates to be strong on key issues of GWOT and fiscal policy.

I wonder which of the current candidates would be willing to run as VP? If Rudy really does retain his stranglehold on the front-runner position, this is something all others will have to ask themselves. I think it would be a good choice for Mitt: he has relatively little political experience so serving as VP could bolster him in that area, and he's young enough that delaying a presidential run for 8 years is not out of the question. On the other hand, if Rudy added someone with strong SoCon appeal, that could expand his base of voters and make him a virtual lock in '08.

That said, I really hope Rudy's appeal fades over time and Mitt makes a power move to lock up undecideds or weakly aligned voters, to propel himself into first place. I still see him as the best balance of conservative policies and pragmatic politics. He's done well at both CPAC and first televised debate, time to translate that into increased supporters.