If McCain winds up going down over the lobbyist thing (or the FEC thing)...

[WilliamPitt]

...we might just see Bloomberg get into this thing and declare his candidacy. Maybe McCain and Bloomberg, in such a circumstance, can finagle a way to transfer McCain's delegates to Bloomberg...recalling the '68 election, when Humphrey got the nomination without running in a single primary.

Hm. Interesting.

I don't think the lobbyist thing will damage McCain too much; it seems like the Times rushed this thing to avoid getting smacked by TNR's story. The FEC thing is far more interesting.

But yeah, if McCain does wind up sinking, watch for the Bloomberg Express to leave the station. Seems plausible to me.

On edit: I forgot that Bloomberg went Independent recently. How much do you all think that'd affect his potential nomintion?

[John Q. Citizen]

1. I'm hoping he's damaged but not out. I think McCain is our dream opposition for a lot of reasons.

[gateley]

3. And that's just another weird twist in this whole race -- remember when

we thought he would be the TOUGHEST for our nom to go up against? Hoo boy.

[blondeatlast]

10. That's my thinking. And if he stays in the lead, he's apt to let loose his temper.

As an Arizonan, after 25 years of him I've expected a spectacular fall for a while.

It's happening...

[TwilightGardener]

2. I don't think so--the Repubs would never stand for Bloomberg--he's a

liberal fetus-killing, gay-loving nannystater. I don't think he turned Indie on a whim. And I don't think he'll run against McCain OR Obama.

[WilliamPitt]

6. Hm. Why, if your opinion is accurate, were we hearing all the speculation

regarding his potential candidacy? He and his people were tickling the possibility not even two weeks ago?

Has the possibility of an Obama/McCain race changed the geometry of Bloomberg's deliberations regarding a run, in your opinion?

[TwilightGardener]

12. Well, the whole premise for his run was based (by Bloomberg's aides) on

both parties running two divisive, partisan nominees that would leave Indies with nowhere to go (that would be Hillary and someone like Romney or Huckabee, in conventional wisdom). It's been speculated that a McCain/Obama matchup would be the least likely to leave Bloomberg an opening to run and pull Indies/centrists in significant numbers. Also, he's met with Obama publicly, and he's been friends with McCain for a long time. Chuck Hagel confirmed that he and Bloomberg had discussed Hagel being Bloomberg's VP, and Hagel said Bloomberg probably wouldn't run against McCain. So, I think it's a lot less likely now than a month ago.

[endarkenment]

19. Bloomberg might have made sense as a centrist a la Perot.

Drawing votes from both sides. No sense at all as the reknucklian standard bearer.

[SquireJons]

25. You forgot to mention his hatred for the 2nd Amendment

I know a few red meat republicans who told me they'd never vote for Blomberg because he's for gun control. I live in Virginia, and he can forget about this state because of a sting he set up whereby undercover agents came down and purchased a butt load of illegal guns from dealers. Then busted them.

No way, no how republicans will vote for him, and independents are breaking hard for Obama.

[CANDO]

4. Would it be too much of a stretch for them to insert Jeb?

Or has his brother completely screwed up that possibility?

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

9. OH! I would luv to see that!!!

:rofl: The Bush dynasty would likely see its final blow if that happened!!!

[LynneSin]

5. You kidding me? Huckabee is the conservative wet dream

:eyes:

And personally I think the GOP would rather put out Huckabee and sacrifice the 2008 election then bring the big guns in for 2012.

[WilliamPitt]

11. He's the perfect candidate for 35-45% of the GOP

The base, in other words. But most of the party, especially the real power-brokers, aren't happy to have him in the race. The GOP heavies want Huckabee and his supporters in the base to stay down in the mushroom cellar, in the dark eating shit and voting Fetus First every two years. They know Bloomberg will keep the money-train running their way policy-wise, and that's their main concern.

But you're right; they may concede '08 rather than blow upthe whole show.

[LynneSin]

29. But take a look at how Bush won over the masses in 2000

Yeah, I know the election was stolen but Bush had to get close enough to Gore to steal it.

Bush had an appeal to the religious conservatives but that is never enough to win an election. They made Gore out to be a smarty pants that turned off many of the undecided. I remember working with what I perceived to be very intelligent people who said they were considering Bush cause they just didn't like what a 'know-it-all' that Gore came across as.

Anyhow, last I checked, Bloomberg is no longer a republican and technically has always been a democrat up until he switched parties right before the NYC mayor election to pull himself away from the crowded democratic field. And wouldn't Bloomberg alienated the fundamentals? Bloomberg may have been 'republican' but he still had man of the democratic tendencies. Here's Blooomberg on the issues:

http://www.ontheissues.org/Mike_Bloomberg.htm
Reproductive choice is a fundamental human right. (May 2006)
Backs same-sex marriage. (Mar 2007)
Lock them up and throw away key, but no death penalty. (Dec 2005)
Sued New York City gun dealers to control guns. (Mar 2007)

I don't know about you but reading his stance on the issue - this guy is a democrat. So should the republican party alienate their religious voters AND risk the Supreme Court just get Bloomberg in office? Better they take a risk with someone like Huckabee, swiftboat the shit out of whomever gets the dem nomination and hope for an upset in 2012. Worst case Huckabee could win and they could continue the Reaganization of this country like they have with Bush these past 8 years.

But, perhaps another reason that they might want to give away 2008. Perhaps it wouldn't be 4 years until they can turn the tides back in their favor. Look at what happened in 1994. A rookie Democratic president came into office in 1992 and the republicans used that to their advantage for one of the biggest sweeps in mid-term elections. Republicans can clearly get more done in office if they control the White House and Congress. 2008 is not looking good for republicans in Congress so why not for-go the 2008 elections in hopes of setting up for another 'Contract on America' sweep in 2010? Get congress back and then put your top guns out there in 2012 for president (although Dole was hardly a 'top gun' in 1996).

That's my 2 cents

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

7. Bloomberg as President? Oh, I seriously doubt that.

Republicans HATE Independents almost as much as they HATE Democrats and I sincerely can't imagine Democrats lining up behind Bloomberg.

Nope. I don't see the plausibility.

[BlueManDude]

8. This story will be gone by Monday.

[liberal N proud]

13. Just keep wounding him until after the convention

Then we can take him and the republicon party out with a death blow in November

[blondeatlast]

17. So many"little" corruptions that have exposed his temper, his pathetically bad ethical judgment

(which is really what the NYT story is about, not sex), and now he's being seen as a useful idiot for his ambitious wife and an extension of GWB.

We don't have to do any more than raise the specter of all these little, PROVABLE allegations. He will destroy himself in how he reacts to them.

[LiberalEsto]

14. He may already have gone down

on the lobbyist

[hendo]

20. Way to smear and go negative.

I had always thought that was a Republican's job..

[blondeatlast]

21. Self delete. nt

[TahitiNut]

22. Q: What's a "hendo"?

A: Lays eggs.

Auspicious beginnings, hendo! :hi: Welcome!

[endarkenment]

23. Yes of course we should not point out the GLARING HYPOCRISY

of the GOP clucking moralists who demanded Clinton's head over a blowjob while at the same time they were boffing lobbyists who had business before them. For sure we should never sink so low as to demand that these vile turdwipes live up to their own bullshit standards or suffer the same fate they have so gleefully dealt to others.

Oh and welcome to DU. Politics is dirty business. If you can't play the game, don't get involved.

[WilliamPitt]

24. *snarf*

[blondeatlast]

27. It gets better:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2904187

:rofl:

[WilliamPitt]

28. I just peed.

[Virginia Dare]

32. Way to be a sniveling little ninny.....n/t

[fascisthunter]

15. The GOP is a Circus of Corruption

You have to be completey fucking stupid to vote for one today, that or live under a bridge.

[onenote]

16. the humphrey situation was a bit different

Humphrey expected to have the number two spot on an LBJ/HHH reelection bid. But after McCarthy helped hold LBJ to under 50 percent in the NH primary, LBJ dropped out. HHH didn't announce his bid for the presidency until late April 1968 -- too late to actually get on the ballot in some of the primaries. As it was, there were very few primaries in those days -- less than 15, as I recall. Most delegates were allotted through state conventions etc. HHH emphasized those and also had "favorite son" candidates running as surrogates in a few primaries -- he actually won (through those surrogates) the Ohio and FLorida primaries. Even though RFK might well have taken the nomination, the fact is that HHH was leading in delegates, without formally entering a primary, when RFK was assassinated.

The idea that McCain is dropping out or going to be forced out is, imo, fanciful. I've spoken to reporters here in DC that have covered McCain for years and the view is that Iseman was a bimbo-lobbyist (there are all kinds of lobbyists -- some substantive, some not so much; you can be attractive and substantive or unattractive and substantive, but the non-substantive "door openers" tend to be attractive with good "social" skills (and that doesn't mean that they sleep around).

Anyway, the word I've been getting is that Iseman made folks around McCain nervous because she was a bit overbearing and a self promoter who didn't mind letting people think she had a "special" relationship with McCain. If she really did, I would imagine we'd find out soon enough since she wasn't the "keep my mouth shut" type and undoubtedly would've confided in someone.

But to the extent that this takes McCain "off message" for a while, I have no complaints. In the end, however, I will be surprised if this story has "legs."

[endarkenment]

18. Which fundaloon is going to vote for the New York Jew?

While the centrist independent Bloomberg might draw votes from a small group of hopelessly disaffected Clinton supporters, he doesn't get any support at all from the theocrat faction of the Reknucklian Party and the batshit crazy neocon/freeper faction will stay home too. Bloomberg might not carry any of the southern or midwestern states that constitute the hardcore base. He goes down in flames.

[LiberalEsto]

26. fundaloon

:spray: :rofl:

[King Coal]

30. You are losing it Pitt. Geezo. Start wearing a helmet.

[deacon]

31. He could have had sex with 1.000 people. He's still a warmonger.

And if you want you kids to die in bush's war. He's your man.