GOP Presidential Field: Odd Game of Where's Waldo/What's My Line

by Karen Hatter | September 29, 2011 at 08:50 am

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Among the field of declared candidates who have sought or are seeking the Republican Party's nomination for President of the United States in 2012 have been/are ....

Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann, Jon Huntsman, Newt Gingrich, Herman Cain, Gary Johnson, Fred Karger, Andy Martin, Jimmy McMillan, Tom Miller, Ron Paul, Buddy Roemer, Rick Santorum, Vern Wuensche, Thaddeus McKotter, Tim Pawlenty, Donald Trump

.... with several of these candidates having dropped out of the race, as in the case of the campaigns of Tim Pawlenty and Thaddeus McKotter.

The Where's Waldo? aspect of this exercise is sort of obvious; many within the Republican Party, including the Republican Party's core constituents evidently, as well as the so called establishment within the Republican Party, are searching for a candidate they want to support for their party's nomination in November 2012.

The What's My Line? game show aspect of this process would be what occurred at the very end of each segment, after panelists had questioned the contestants.

At the end of What's My Line?, after all of the contestants did their best to fool the panelists with their responses, it was the panelists' task to discover who, among the contestants before them, was the real person whose biography had been read at the outset of the show.

The show, What's My Line?, a teaser to the end, had the host of the show instruct the contestants, "Will the real whomever please stand up?" Each of the three contestants, with two being impostors, would take turns rising in their seats. Then, finally, the real person described at the beginning of the segment would stand.

That's sort of how the 'I may be or may not be but, I'll keep 'em guessing' tease game is proceeding, being led by Sarah Palin and Donald Trump. Speculation continues to swirl regarding another possible entry into the race, with many refusing to take New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's 'No, no, no, no, no!' declarations as an indicator he really, really isn't running while still others continue to plead with him to enter the field of candidates.

It is believed by some that Governor Christie, for his part, has been teasing those who ask him his intentions as they cling to hope he will enter.

Before this teasing game is over, there may be even more names bandied about as considering joining the GOP race for presidential nominee.

This early preliminary exercise among the field of the Republican Party's 2012 presidential hopefuls has indicated, through polling data, that the current field of candidates has not tickled the fancy of the majority of Republican or Republican leaning voters. They keep wishing and hunting for someone else. This seems to be occurring throughout the entire Republican Party. The prospect of some GOP nominee appealing to all segments of the Republican Party during the primary process looks bleak.

Those candidates that appeal to the Right Wing of the GOP, those TEA Party supported/ influenced/oriented voters, according to the majority of polling collected, do not appeal to so called GOP moderates and establishment types within the Party.

Inversely, those Republican Party candidates, perceived by the TEA Party/TEA Party influenced voter of the Right Wing as so called moderates or GOP establishment candidates, do not enjoy much support from that segment of the American electorate.

GOP presidential hopefuls attractive to the Right Wing within the Republican Party are also not attractive to so called independent swing voters or the rest of the electorate in the United States.

As the political games continue and until the GOP primaries are concluded nationwide, with this process resulting in a presidential candidate to be announced on the convention floor during the Republican Party convention, scheduled to be held in the summer of 2012 in Tampa, Florida, we'll have to wait to see who the real Republican Party presidential nominee will be, as most of the Republican Party and GOP leaning voters cross their fingers for an electable presidential nominee in the general election in November 2012.

Will Right Wing Madness Totally Consume the Republican Party?

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The 1

at 09:40 on September 29th, 2011

"the Republican Party and Party leaning voters cross their fingers for an electable presidential nominee in the general election in November 2012"..

Thats right, the republicans don't seem to be able to come together, because as you rightly point out, their base is divided between the more extreme element of Tea Party followers and the traditional republican base. No one person can fill both shoes and still be electable in the general election.

Karen Hatter

at 10:02 on September 29th, 2011

Thanks, 1.

It's an uncertain reality how those most desirous of unseating President Obama no matter what, those diehard TEA Partiers and TEA Party leaning voters, the alleged base OF the Republican Party, will react and respond if their guy or gal isn't the nominee.

In past elections, that specific constituency has shown it is less inclined to follow the so called establishment GOP, requiring they hold their noses and vote for whomever emerges as the Republican Party's nominee.

Theirs is a majority articulated position that proudly opposes the establishment arm OF the GOP.

That highly possible likelihood presents an interesting, possibly dire, dilemma for the Republican Party.

The 1

at 10:19 on September 29th, 2011

That highly possible likelihood presents an interesting, possibly dire, dilemma for the Republican Party.

Oh well..lol

Karen Hatter

at 15:54 on September 29th, 2011

Yeah, 1, I agree. Oh well!

The GOP trying to articulate a strategy to appeal to and round up those perceived errant folks to get them behind a nominee other than a TEA Party type, even those of the TEA Party within their own party who are being enthusiastically encouraged to buck the GOP machine BY their TEA Party chairwoman, Michele Bachmann, those who don't want the GOP's advice or embrace .... not so sure that's gonna happen.

YankeeJim

at 10:56 on September 29th, 2011

Is there a Republican not running for President beside Chris Christie?

Karen Hatter

at 11:37 on September 29th, 2011

Not sure, Jim.

It appears the what may be remaining of the so called moderates or middle of the GOP is attempting to coalesce around Mitt Romney but, his nicknamed Romneycare health care issue in Massachusetts sets many party members' teeth to grinding and the TEA Party folks, well ...., they're just not that into him!

As I said above, the folks the TEA Party seem to like, like Bachmann, Perry and any other Right Wing leaning candidates as yet having entered, aren't likely to appeal to any voters other than that base and those that are attracted to their sentiments, which has been gauged at less than 25% of the electorate, so those other voters can't, and most likely won't, get into THOSE TEA Party favored candidates!

Every week there is some name tossed about by someone on the GOP side, I guess, in the hope that they will take the plunge.

It's gonna be a very long, interesting, maybe even more so, peculiar13 months.

Albert Milliron

at 17:21 on October 11th, 2011

There will be no further entrants. Bachmann will be gone so don't worry too much. If the Tea party were that powerful, Bachmann would remain soaring in the polls. Huntsman will be out and so will Santorum. By the End of January their may be 3 candidates. You do remember the Democrat field in 2007-2008? There was a sleuth of them as well.

Karen Hatter

at 11:20 on October 12th, 2011

Hey Al!

I tend to agree with you. At this juncture, what we see is what will be the slate of Republican candidates and as you correctly point out, as they slowly thin out and leave the race..

You're absolutely right about the Democratic Party's field of potential nominees. There were a bunch of them. However, during that 2008 contest, there was not the 'will he/she or won't he/she?' guessing game going on for months like the on again/off again field of Republican candidates this time 'round.

The only guessing game back then, after the majority of pledged delegates had been gained during the primaries by Senator Obama in March 2008, leaving only the Super delegates to be had, was when would Senator Clinton get out of the race.

I guess the only wild card left in this process at all may be the Donald running as an independent.