McCain Has Yet to Exceed 50% in Texas Polls
Recent polls show that John McCain is in for a struggle in the Republican primary contest in Texas. Despite a recent endorsement from former candidate Mitt Romney and a declaration by much of the American press that McCain is the Republican Nominee, McCain has been forced to stay on the campaign trail and fight for the final delegates needed to win the nomination.
If we have learned anything from this election cycle it is that the polls are not to be trusted. So a 4 point lead in Texas is negligible at this point for McCain. McCain could be further ahead or it could mean a virtual dead heat. A loss or even a close call in Texas would expose McCain as extremely vulnerable in the general election and would not encourage Republicans to consolidate behind a candidate who is not able to carry Bush’s home state even with the President’s stamp of approval.
McCain not being able to crack 50% in his own party after Mitt Romney and the Republican establishment is beginning to line up behind him spells big trouble in November for the GOP.
McCain’s two remaining competitors, Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul, are showing no signs of dropping out and in Ron Paul’s case; he has stated that he will remain in the race at least until the Republican convention.
How did it get to this point? Well the Christian right refused to put Romney over the top or give Ron Paul, who reflects their values, a closer look. Instead they tried to push Huckabee from the back of the pack to the frontrunner with their support alone, and it just wasn’t going to happen.
It is increasingly looking as if many Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul supporters will never fall in line with McCain. Those that don’t write in or go third party will likely sit this election out, making a Republican win in November highly unlikely. This exposes the fatal flaw of the two party system; it ostracizes well meaning citizens from being able to participate in the process with out holding their nose or feeling their vote is being wasted.
Looking ahead, this year’s election cycle could very well have an effect on the Republican Party for years to come. Romney’s early exit tells us that he hopes to have a future in the Republican Party, possibly to run for President again in the near future.
If McCain goes on to lose in the general election and Romney runs again in four years, it could very well mean the permanent fracturing of the Republican Party, with the Christian Right only supporting the mainstream candidate when he is one of their own. Romney was flatly denied the nomination by the Christian Right and by not taking no for an answer and receiving similar percentages in four years, he would be paving the way again for a centrist Republican candidate who is able to do well in the delegate rich states as McCain has done, but would likely lose to a Democratic incumbent.
Comment by MJ on 18 February 2008:
Thank you for your article. I am a Texan and I support Ron Paul. I will not vote for McCain and a good number of my friends will not either. If the Republican’s dont want the republic anymore than we will continue to try to take over their and every other party as well but WE will never support their party without their parties unwavering support of the Constitution. We have compromised for too long and are on the verge of compromising away our values and our country. No more compromise we are fighting back and will not stop. NO MCCAIN. NO BULL. LIVE FREE OR DIE!!!
Comment by Keith on 18 February 2008:
McCain shouldn’t even be around now. He will sink like a stone when the public is reminded that Mr McCain left POW/MIA to rot in Vietnam and Korea. What he has done to these men and their families is unforgiveable!
Comment by Bob Smith on 18 February 2008:
You assume that these ostracized third parties would prefer Clinton/Obama over McCain. That is a very dangerous assumption, which I think is not backed by any reliable data.
Other than your opinion.
Comment by Don on 18 February 2008:
McCain will do nothing to stop illegal immigration that is killing the Texas economy….and he expects me to vote for him? Not a chance. Juan McAmnesty will get no support from me.
Comment by Billy Coffey on 18 February 2008:
I will never support McCain. If the Rupublican party sells us out to a democrat in Conservitive’s clothinga and allow the democrats to have the country again, I will write in Ron Paul and then drop out of the Republican party.
I will never give my support to another Republican again.
3rd party all they way.
There are no more conservitives left in the Party with the exception of Ron Paul.
Comment by christopher X on 18 February 2008:
McCain is not eligible to hold the office of President of the united States. The Constitution clearly states that it is required that a Presidential candidate is “Natural born”, meaning born in the united States. John McCain is not eligible because he was born in Panama. John McCain became a citizen automatically from both of his parents being US citizens. But John McCain was “Naturalized”…which means he was not “Natural born” because he was not born in the United States of America. The Constitution of the united States of America forbids John McCain for ever holding the Presidency of the united States
Comment by bubba on 18 February 2008:
Remember the Alamo!!! Vote Ron Paul!
Comment by Keith on 18 February 2008:
If you live in Houston do me and America a favor and call the Houston Chronicle socialists(713-362-7171) and tell them that their endorsement of Juan McCamnesty is pure BULLS##T. Riddle me this how is it that Juan McCamnesty won a grand total of 5 STRAW POLLS before the primaries and now has the bulk of straw (mostly uncommitted) delegates
The chronicle email is here: viewpoints@chron.com
UNBELIEVEABLE ARE WE IN THE TWILIGHT ZONE OR WHAT..THIS IS INSANE!
Comment by Greg Butko on 18 February 2008:
McCain, Obama and Mrs. Bill Clinton are all Council on Foreign Relations approved candidates. That makes them unacceptable to me. I would never consider voting for a CFR stooge.
I will write in Ron Paul, or support the Constitution Party nominee. I won’t waste my vote on a candidate who is dedicated to destroying this nation.
Comment by Storm on 18 February 2008:
Beep beep beep beep beep…We interupt this program for a very important message…
McKing has WON!!!! ‘Stop the Vote’!
To the remaining 16 states…you are being asked to stand down by GOP Washington insiders, the Media, Talking heads (whose guy is no longer running)…, disgruntled Romney supporters, pundints, and those that have ALREADY voted.
You are asked to stop any further action towards a free vote. The decision has already been made for you.
LONG LIVE THE MCKING! LONG LIVE THE MCKING!
(NOT)
Go Huckabee!
Comment by Kenny on 18 February 2008:
Why would you expect anyone to vote in a party primary for someone other than their favorite candidate? Why should some people have voted for Romney when they liked Huckabee better? A person does not throw his vote away just because the he vote cast appears unlikely to help tilt an election one way or the other. A person throws away his vote by voting for someone that is not his first choice, when the first choice is on the ballot and has not dropped out.
I encourage anyone in the remaining states to investigate Huckabee at mikehuckabee.com and vote for him if he best reflects your values. There are still many months to go before the convention and even more before the general election. This primary season is not over until one candidate gets 1191 delegates. If McCain thought it was impossible for Huckabee somehow to win at the convention, he would have already stopped campaigning.
Great posts, Storm, here and elsewhere.
Comment by marhlfld on 18 February 2008:
I will not vote for either McCain or Huckabee, I will write Ron Paul in if he is not the nominee. I’m not playing the elitist game. All my republican friends will not vote for McCain or Huckabee either and I have alot of friends. They know neither one of them represents the republican values, or what the republican values are SUPPOSED to be. Go Ron Paul!
Comment by Orwell checks in... on 18 February 2008:
Ron Paul represented the genuine Republicans, who are now obsolete, so he lost badly in a valiant, last gasp effort to keep it alive. Beyond him, Romney was the Business Guy, Huckabee was the Religious Guy and McCain was the War Guy. The War Guy won because that’s what they want most. Why is anyone surprised? McCain and his blood-and-iron, mad-bomber loons will lose in November and will let the Mole get into the White House. Idiots! We’re freakin’ doomed!
Comment by Liberty4Ever on 18 February 2008:
McCain runs as a war hero but the veterans hate him. He used power and influence to seal records that could have resolved many MIA cases, and it’s widely believed he did this to protect his image because his service wasn’t nearly as honorable as he claims. You think the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth campaign was effective, wait until you see what the Democrats have lined up for McCain. Elected? He’ll be lucky if Americans don’t rip him to pieces in a blind rage. He’s also the illegal immigrants’ best friend. 72% of Americans want the US out of Iraq and McCain is on record for staying 100, 1000, or 10,000 years, depending on whether he took his meds that morning, and he’s pushing to invade Iran. He’s on the wrong side of every single issue.
Huckabee talks a good game now, and he’s likable, but he has earned the name Tax Hike Mike from his term as governor. Many of his positions are the opposite of his previous actions. He also showed very bad judgment in pardoning a rapist because he claimed to be born again in prison, and the guy then went on to rape again and murder. I guess that’s being a compassionate conservative. He has compassion for rapists but not their past or future victims.
Clinton or Obama? Way too bad to even start listing their nearly infinite list of issues.
I’m sick of people who think democracy is voting for the person they think is likely to win. Try voting for a good candidate who represents your beliefs, which hopefully include a small constitutional government, peace and prosperity and a whole lot of liberty and justice for all.
Remember – If you vote for the lesser of two evils, you’re still voting for evil.
Ron Paul is really the ONLY choice, and the corrupt Big Money GOP and the corrupt Big Money media are aligned against him, because he represents our liberty and prosperity and not their profits.
PS: McCain’s insane. Seriously.
Comment by Brian on 18 February 2008:
Conservatives had a chance to get behind Ron Paul, but decided to opt for a mentally-unstable “maverick” who’s obviously in poor health. This nation needs Ron Paul – ALL OF YOU WHO VOTED FOR THE SAME OLD STATUS-QUO ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR HILLARY/OBAMA WHO’LL TURN AMERICA INTO A 3RD WORLD DUMPSTER
Comment by McCain2008, 2012 on 19 February 2008:
What is this, a freaking Ron Paul site? Paul’s a bumbling clown, whose one attribute is that he’s a hair smarter than the crackputs that support him.
BTW, when a person is born on an U.S. installation, they are born on U.S. property–get your facts straight. Only a Paul supporter would try to find a loophole to keep one of our fighting men and women’s children from becoming president.
Comment by TruthBeTold on 19 February 2008:
McCain can’t win the WhiteHouse..
That is the bottom line.. All he and the old guard are doing is destroying the republican party.
Comment by Tim on 19 February 2008:
Hey McCain2008, 2012. Only a Paul supporter would try to find a loophole to keep one of our fighting men and women’s children from becoming president. You’re wrong buddy, how about a whole slew of vietnam vets that are trying to keep that fake war hero from being president. Check out http://www.vietnamvetsagainstjohnmccain.com. Those will be the facts to back us Ron Paul supporters up. How about the fact that he has recieved more money in donations from the military currently serving overseas than all democrats and republicans running combined. That happens to be another fact for you. I have a little advice for you, why don’t you research your chosen candidate before you vote for them. I don’t mean watching those biased mainstream media newschannels while drinking Milwaukees Best Ice sitting on the couch either. It is only the future of our country we’re talking about. Oh you probably don’t know where the future of the country is heading because you watch too much t.v. By the way I am a Marine Corps veteran, I wore the uniform, and I did my research-I am voting for Ron Paul even if I have to write him in.
Comment by Sid Davis on 19 February 2008:
The Republican Party is just an echo of the Democratic Party, so no wonder they are in trouble. Why vote for liberal Republicans when you can get the real thing by voting for the Democratic Party candidate?
Of course the real problem is not the parties themselves, but the voters who seem to just want more and more government to protect and take care of them. It is either more government and less freedom, or less government and more freedom; you can’t have it both ways. Right now both parties are offering the former because that is what is in fashion, and pulls in the votes.
It will not be until the economic pie contracts dramatically from the debt collapse and the permanent depletion of oil that real change is possible, and that will come out of necessity, over the objection of the voting public. Democracy is really a fools game anyway, always doomed to failure, which is why the Founding Fathers tried to give us a Republic, obviously without lasting success. Maybe next go round we will be lucky enough to have a wise dictator who will only use enough power over us to prevent another terrible experiment in majority rule, otherwise allowing freedom in our daily lives.
Comment by Texan on 19 February 2008:
McCain is crazy. End the war. Just come home. A vote for McCain is a vote for the democrats.
Comment by Another Texan on 20 February 2008:
Had the pleasure of listening to Dr. Paul speak at the University of North Texas. I arrived late and the auditorium was at capacity but a trickle of students were helping people get in by passing along their ‘credentials’ (colored wristbands) when they had to leave for classes. A large gathering waited outside for an hour for the opportunity to see Dr. Paul on his way. If these people are the ‘lunatic fringe’ as the media and bloggers so wish to portray, then so are the denizens of every student campus across the country.
Anybody who believes that self-determination should trump state-determination knows that on this, the twilight of the age of credit addiction, eve of nationalization of and state intervention in whole industries, Paul is the only candidate who would resoundingly say “No” and let the moral hazards fall squarely on the shoulders of the participants and not the taxpayers of this once and future great nation, the United States of America.
Is it really any surprise that the baby boomer controllers of our modern-day mass media have chosen to attempt to make Ron Paul disappear from the public eye? Those who have CDO’s to bail out, money market funds to protect, bank stocks without adequate capitalization? THEY KNOW that Ron Paul would never indenture the youth of this country to pay for the greedy missteps of the baby boom generation. Shame is not an emotion most baby boomers know, and that fact speaks volumes about their political motivations.
They want the youth of this country to pay for every political misdeed that this country has taken since the end of the second World War, choices the youth had no say in, choices though which the baby boomers, through their active or apathetic assent, witlessly created the colossal fiscal nightmare that has come true a couple years earlier than these nouveau retirees desired. Now, they are willing to bankrupt this country *forever* in order to secure their own comfortable retirements via political means. Generation Y is waking up, and the baby boomers will have no solace to polish away the tarnish upon their golden years.
Comment by Andy on 21 February 2008:
Don’t say Christians didn’t line up behind Romney because of his religion. We didn’t line up behind him because of his pro-abortion anti/gun rhetoric while he was governor of Mass. If he would have said at the beginning of his campaign, “I’m really a conservative. I had to lie to win in Mass.,” he would probably be the nominee right now. After his flip-flops, it took people a while to believe he really held conservative views.
Comment by Randall on 21 February 2008:
Look at this ridiculous post—-
“Storm Says:
February 18th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
Beep beep beep beep beep…We interupt this program for a very important message…
McKing has WON!!!! ‘Stop the Vote’!
To the remaining 16 states…you are being asked to stand down by GOP Washington insiders, the Media, Talking heads (whose guy is no longer running)…, disgruntled Romney supporters, pundints, and those that have ALREADY voted.
You are asked to stop any further action towards a free vote. The decision has already been made for you.
LONG LIVE THE MCKING! LONG LIVE THE MCKING!
(NOT)
Go Huckabee!”
—
Why does everybody think that Romney supporters are disgruntled if they go with the second best choice (McCain) as opposed to the 4th (Huckabee). I’d vote Ron Paul first, he is crazy, but much less embarassing than Huckabee. I was a thompson supporter, I spilled into romney, and then to mccain. I am not disgruntled. I just want a president with a brain even if he doesn’t share my same religion. Lets face it evangelicals, we are smart enough to know that Mike (afghanistan is #2 illegal immigrant provider) Huckabee is a total fool. He knows the bible and he knows everything goods, but he sucks at economics, politics, leadership, and downright smarts.
Comment by Julie O. on 21 February 2008:
Guys. We all screwed up. Romney Supporters, Thompson Supporters, Huckabee Supporters, and Paul Supporters. If we had only Paul, Thompson, or Romney (sorry but Huckabee would get us all killed) we would have slapped angry mccain aside and voted any one of the others. We all did it to ourselves by being to proud to jump ship at the right time.
I wish that it wasn’t too late for Paul, but it is. I won’t even mention Huckabee, because I’d rather see old angry mccain get slaughtered.
Goodbye cruel, angry, republican party. It will be another 4 years (and another terrorist attack) until the party is even relevant again.
Comment by Garry on 22 February 2008:
screw the good senator I’m writing in RON PAUL in November then dumping the phony neocon republican party.
Comment by blakmira on 28 February 2008:
Does ANYBODY even like McCain? I thought Bush was the most disliked President in recent history, yet this guy is Bush’s clone AND supported by the Bushmeister himself!
If we can just get around the rigged voting machines, I say Ron Paul will be the People’s choice. He’s gaining even more fervent supporters daily, as evidenced by his recent 4,000 to 7,000 supporters who came to the Texas rally and other U.S. campuses.
The World has chosen Ron Paul as the one they would elect President (yes, 3 times as many want him rather than CFR-member Obama) — but then again, they don’t have our sorry excuse for media; they do all their research on the Internet (smart!)
Ron Paul is the only man for me!
Comment by barbie on 28 February 2008:
I could never vote for a morman, if you can believe that by having enough children you may get your own planet and become a God than you are more scewed up than the dems.
McCain sucks, he is a dem. What about Keys???, i have heard good things about him. We need to all ban together and decied on who to vote for other than McCain, then possibly we have a chance in November.
Comment by Richard on 4 March 2008:
Wow, I love how the person most offended by someone’s claims against McCain has themselves already conceded his loss, judging by their screenname’s support of him in 2012, presumably after losing 2008.
I guess if you have to lose, at least you can hate on the guy most responsible for helping you look like the idiot you are. Oops, hate on his supporters I mean, since Paul hasn’t made any such claims against McCain’s eligibility, and is thus still practically impossible to hate on for any good reason.
In a YouTube world, no one wants to get caught hating on the guy that told him the truth.