2008: John McCain VS. Hillary Clinton

[BonosSaint]

All depends on whether he can hold on to his maverick status. That's his draw. We on the left (of center or further left) seem to love our mavericks. Only however, if they are Republican mavericks.

 

[phanan]

At a minimum, any state that Bush won in 2004, McCain would obviously win in 2008. Any state that Kerry only barely won in 2004( by under 5 percentage points), I think McCain would easily win. When it comes to the democratic strongholds, I think McCain has a good chance to win there.

Agreed with the first two sentences. So-called "battleground" states like Ohio and Pennsylvania would go for McCain easily. However, democratic strongholds like Massachusetts and New York would be very difficult. He'd certainly do better than any Republican SINCE Reagan, but he won't match Reagan's numbers.

 

[anitram]

Well what happens when all the fundamentalists who won Bush the election simply elect to stay home this time?

 

[STING2]

Well what happens when all the fundamentalists who won Bush the election simply elect to stay home this time?

Fundamentalists never stay home, those with a casual interest or no interest in politics are the ones that stay home. In addition, the Fundamentalists were not the ones that won the election for Bush, it was getting the more casual, "couch potato" Republicans to the voting booths that strongly contributed the election victory for Bush.

 

[Earnie Shavers]

So the way I read it, Sting says "All Republicans are fundamentalists and couch potatos". That's what I thought! What are we arguing about?

 

[BVS]

the Fundamentalists were not the ones that won the election for Bush,

Not what they claim at least.

 

[Lemonfix]

Well what happens when all the fundamentalists who won Bush the election simply elect to stay home this time?

The votes McCain would lose from that section of voters would probably be more than made up for by the votes he would gain from Reagan/Conservative/moderate Democrats, Independents, and others who did not go for Bush this time out.

Also I agree that while the "Christian Right" likes to take credit for the Bush re-election (didn't they come out in force in '96, too?) Bush should really be thanking moderate suburbanites who were worried about the war on terror. Hell, he should thank the moderate republicans who stuck by him when they had a lot of reason not to.