Herman Cain wins CPAC Florida straw poll-

[Tilted]

FTR-the comments included in those poll results were not mine but those of the Hot Air Pundit reporter.

And while I understand the validity of any straw poll can be debated-they are part of the political landscape & punditry... and the Florida straw poll is different from the one in Ames according to the info I posted yesterday.

Ahh, gotcha.

(S)he's much of a reporter if (s)he doesn't understand why that was the case then. Mrs. Bachman's doing well in the Ames poll didn't demonstrate much of anything about her likelihood to win the nomination or popularity across the GOP.

 

[Mongo53]

Ahh, gotcha.

(S)he's much of a reporter if (s)he doesn't understand why that was the case then. Mrs. Bachman's doing well in the Ames poll didn't demonstrate much of anything about her likelihood to win the nomination or popularity across the GOP.

I always got the feeling the only thing the Iowa Straw Polls were good for was to protect Iowa's Corn Industry and keep the subsidies coming.

You want to look like a winner coming out of the Gate and get to be President, well then, you better promise to keep those Corn Subsidies going!

 

[bulldog]

With all due respect, you’ve outlined superficial factors: polished speaker, one-liners, articulate and young… Does policy come into play here at all? This is what really worries me about voting; that people vote more on what’s attractive or what affects them emotionally rather than whether a candidate represents their ideals.

What, on a policy level, attracts you to Perry?

WADR and IMO, the one superficial factor that does matter is speaking ability and Cain does not have it. I have heard him on the radio many times and just two hours ago on the Dennis Miller show and while he may be full of great ideas, do you want a guy that pronounced the word "with" as "wiff" to be the guy that represents you on the world stage? There are many other ebonical (probably not a word) examples, but you get my driff, right?

 

[Bann]

WADR and IMO, the one superficial factor that does matter is speaking ability and Cain does not have it. I have heard him on the radio many times and just two hours ago on the Dennis Miller show and while he may be full of great ideas, do you want a guy that pronounced the word "with" as "wiff" to be the guy that represents you on the world stage? There are many other ebonical (probably not a word) examples, but you get my driff, right?

I am admittedly a fan of Mr. Cain, but since he's new on the scene and not many people know much about him, and I do know some things about him, I like to add information where I can.

He does have a very deep, thick southern accent/dialect, and I know where you're coming from when you say what you do. I have listened to him for years on the radio - and I wondered about his speaking ability as well.

He's not a stupid man by any means. He's got a dual degree in math & physics from Morehouse, and a masters degree in computer science from Purdue. His biography is quite impressive.

About Herman Cain | Herman Cain for President
Herman's Bio - Herman Cain T.H.E New Voice, Inc. (same bio)

 

[Gilligan]

The results from the latest Zogby poll are interesting...Cain won that going away too.

 

[Mongo53]

The results from the latest Zogby poll are interesting...Cain won that going away too.

Although I like Cain as well, I'm wary, NO experience as a politician and thus no record as a politician, means he doesn't has marks on his record where he has had to compromise in the past, and doesn't have to defend or reassure against that today like the other more seasoned politicians.

So, could we be passing up on a better politician with a few negatives, just for a politician with no record to show his negatives?

Just the simple wisdom of the problem being Congress passing 10 thousand page bills, wins a lot of favor from me, that is the symptom of the problems with out government today. The fact Jon Steward made fun of it and called it a NON-Problem only cements it in my mind as being on the right track.

 

[PrchJrkr]

Cain/Rubio 2012!

West - Secretary of Defense
Paul - Secretary of the Treasury
Huntsman - Secretary of State
Chuck Norris - Director of DHS
Larry - Music Czar
Baja - Beer Czar
Dye - Wine Czarette
BG - Food Czarette

This is just for starters.

 

[EmptyTimCup]

Interesting straw poll win...

Not so fast ..........

The Real Story Why Cain Won the FL Straw Poll, and What the Front runners Can Learn From It (Update: Romney Camp Responds)

This straw poll was light years away from generally accepted polling practices.

Delegates eligible to vote, selected back in June, were state-wide local Republican club activists. Consider the high costs of voting: delegate registration was $175 paid to the Republican Party of Florida, coupled with a “special” attendee hotel rate. The total with taxes was $357 for two nights.

So do the math.

Delegates shelled out a minimum of $532 to attend and that is before the $120 average registration cost of CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference), which also held its first Florida event in conjunction with Presidency 5. A majority of delegates attended CPAC, which featured all the presidential candidates speaking on Friday, fresh off the Fox/Google debate the night before.

The high cost of attendance was important because delegates who eventually selected Herman Cain as the surprise winner were overwhelmingly a well- heeled, middle-aged crowd who had the time and money to attend both CPAC and Presidency 5. In other words, not necessarily your average Florida Republican voter.

From my personal experiences over the three-day event, I believe Herman Cain’s triumphal victory with 37% of the vote from 2,657 delegates was not a fluke. However, it is also not a national game changer with Cain as the new frontrunner to challenge Perry and Romney. Rather, it was a positive emotional response to Herman Cain, the man, with some “teachable moments” for the frontrunners.

 

[Larry Gude]

Cain/Rubio 2012!

West - Secretary of Defense
Paul - Secretary of the Treasury
Huntsman - Secretary of State
Chuck Norris - Director of DHS
Larry - Music Czar
Baja - Beer Czar
Dye - Wine Czarette
BG - Food Czarette

This is just for starters.

Why Rubio????

 

[Bann]

Not so fast ..........

Did you read this?

http://forums.somd.com/politics/233734-herman-cain-wins-cpac-florida-straw-poll.html#post4669593

First off, the Florida Republican party’s Presidency series is no Ames. It is trickier in Florida to dominate the poll with one candidate’s fans: All the 3,500 delegates who vote in the Florida straw poll pay their own conference fees — whereas in Ames, campaigns are allowed to offer free tickets and transportation to lure delegates.

Also, in Iowa, it is up to individuals to decide whether to attend, whereas in Florida each county is allotted a certain number of delegates, based on that county’s Republican population, and three-quarters of each county’s delegates are chosen by lottery (the other quarter are chosen by a county GOP committee).

In Florida, for a candidate to participate, all he or she has to do is give a speech to the delegates the day of the straw poll. There is no participation fee or anything equivalent to the Ames tent and entertainment demands. And regardless of whether a candidate officially participates or not, all major candidates will be listed on the ballot.

And then there's this -

Is there a lot of money involved? Not really. Unlike the Ames Straw Poll in Iowa last month, delegates pay their own registration fees and book their own hotels. In past cycles, candidates have courted the delegates with expensive events, but this time around there’s been little high-profile campaigning. That said, the Florida GOP says at least one (unnamed) campaign has paid thousands of dollars for a list of delegates.

Why does it matter? Florida is a critical state in both the Republican primary and the general election. While most of the 2012 focus so far has been on Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, none of those early contests is expected to be decisive. Even with the state’s primary date up in the air, no candidate can afford to ignore Florida, and some of the most influential and active Republicans will be at this event.

Does the poll mean anything? Straw polls generally have little predictive value, as evidenced by the fact that longshot candidates keep winning them. Paul just won one in California; Santorum just won another in Pennsylvania. Even the higher-profile straw polls should be taken with a big grain of salt. Bachmann’s Ames Straw Poll win might have been her high point in the race.

But the P5 Straw Poll has a good track record — every Florida straw poll winner has gone on to win the Republican nomination, although last cycle the straw vote was scrapped. The Florida P5 weekend (and straw poll) explained - The Washington Post

Of course, they're pretty meaningless overall. But fun for the parlor game aspect of it all. :shrug:

 

[RPMDAD]

Regretfully i predict if Romney or Perry are the best the Republicans have OBamma wins. The Repubs are so spplintered now they have no focus whatsoever. The only thing they have going for them is the currents Pres. disapproval rating. Ps i am looking for a repub but i don't see any. Hopefully they can put up somebody better than i think i am voting of the lesser of the two evils. They need somebody to come forward and capture America's attention and the voters say i want to vote for them.

 

[Vale]

Don't know if he can win, but I like him better than anyone else in the lineup right now.

Cain's supporters have consistantly polled the highest positive "intensity" rating of all the candidates. I think the straw poll reflects some of that.

While straw poll voters may not reflect the state polling, these are activists. They are the people who put their time and energy, and some money, into campaigns as grassroots volunteers, and should not be glossed over too lightly.

Is Herman Cain the perfect candidate? No, but there is no such creature. "Generic Republican" will not run in this race to oppose Obama. Each candidate brings positives and negatives. To my way of thinking, Cain has more pro than con and I am leaning his way.

 

[Larry Gude]

Regretfully i predict if Romney or Perry are the best the Republicans have OBamma wins. The Repubs are so spplintered now they have no focus whatsoever. The only thing they have going for them is the currents Pres. disapproval rating. Ps i am looking for a repub but i don't see any. Hopefully they can put up somebody better than i think i am voting of the lesser of the two evils. They need somebody to come forward and capture America's attention and the voters say i want to vote for them.

Not so. The GOP is actually have a robust argument over who the nominee will be. For once. Whomever wins will become the next President of the United States so, it is CRITICAL to nominate someone who will lead the nation in the right direction and not be just more of the same. Perry is gone, Bachmann has shot her wad, Santorum is auditioning for veep so, we are, in fact, becoming focused in a very healthy, deliberate fashion. It is laughable when people like Stewart, a supporter of the party that anointed Obama, pokes fun at a rough and tumble primary.

Isn't that what it is supposed to be??

 

[Bann]

Since a lot of people haven't heard a lot about Herman Cain, and he has been making some headlines - here is an opinion piece about his winning the Florida Straw Poll by Dorothy Rabinowitz, of the WSJ.

The pundits busy divining the reasons Herman Cain won that Florida straw poll so handily can't be blamed -- it was a compelling spectacle and a distinctly satisfying one as straw poll results go. To have listened to the candidate's prescriptions in his speech to the delegates Saturday was to see why. Everything he told the audience had been said, in one way or another, by most of the leading Republican candidates. The difference here was -- is -- Mr. Cain's unfailing capacity to speak as though from a core of fire deep inside him. An irresistible strength -- as is the mordant humor he brings to the battle.

So it happens that he can deliver a steely jibe about defense cuts ("You don't put a bulls-eye on the backs of our men and women in uniform") or the way America's wars must be fought ("the mission is victory . . . If we are not in it to win it, we will not be in it") and make audiences feel they'd never heard anything so bracing.

This is no small achievement. And it's why the conventional explanation of the straw poll results -- that it was all about the Republicans' dissatisfaction with the current crop of candidates -- seems inadequate. It would be far closer to the truth to say that those straw poll delegates were responding to a voice whose fire had touched them, warmed them, spoken for them.

Continued here

 

[Railroad]

Libertarians for Cain

 

[2ndAmendment]

Although I like Cain as well, I'm wary, NO experience as a politician and thus no record as a politician, means he doesn't has marks on his record where he has had to compromise in the past, and doesn't have to defend or reassure against that today like the other more seasoned politicians.

So, could we be passing up on a better politician with a few negatives, just for a politician with no record to show his negatives?

Just the simple wisdom of the problem being Congress passing 10 thousand page bills, wins a lot of favor from me, that is the symptom of the problems with out government today. The fact Jon Steward made fun of it and called it a NON-Problem only cements it in my mind as being on the right track.

One of the things that appeals to me about Cain is he is not a politician. I think we should get rid of ALL politicians.

Crazy is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

We keep electing career politicians and expect them to have integrity and be less than sleazy, behind the scenes, power brokers.