General Primary Discussion Thread

Originally posted by Omega Vision
Well, as originally drafted the Constitution did uphold the right for white people to own slaves and didn't even consider the reasonable possibility of women's suffrage (even Universal white male suffrage above a certain age was tricky).

I'm not saying it was as bad as Quranic values (the Enlightenment did after all inspire the Constitution), but it did share some weaknesses that were only corrected much, much later. Much as many modern Muslims turn away from the harsher rules and values of the Quran, particularly in America.

Again, I don't like Islamic values, and I know from experience that even "liberal" Muslim families can be pretty backward, but I see no reason why being Muslim *on its own* should disqualify someone from being president.

Why can't we come to an agreement here that Obama does does favor Islam and his actions represent Islamic ideology.

Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
Why can't we come to an agreement here that Obama does does favor Islam and his actions represent Islamic ideology.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
Why can't we come to an agreement that unicorns are easier to train than gryphons?

Because that's a goddamn lie, that's why.

Originally posted by psmith81992
Because that's a goddamn lie, that's why.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
Why can't we come to an agreement that unicorns are easier to train than gryphons?

That is not what I asked.

You asked me a question that presumes a fiction. I responded in kind.

Scott Walker is out of the race. Didn't see it happening this soon; thought he'd be more stubborn

His supporters will probably divide between Trump, Rubio, and Fiorina

Wow that's crazy. He was considered one of the front runners back when the race first started, people thought it would be him and Bush battling it out. Always fascinating to see how early predictions can be so wrong.

I hope more people drop out, the debates are just too crowded right now.

Paul, Cruz and and Christie need to drop out as well.

To put it into perspective, even after Walker and Perry dropped out there are still 15 candidates in the Republican stable.

Cruz is an interesting case, as he's positioning himself to be in place to mop up most of Trump's support in the not inconceivable event that Trump suddenly burns out. If that happened, Cruz would be a serious contender.

I guess Scott Walker dropping out makes sense- Sure, there's stubbornness, but he was at two points in *multiple* polls, and 0 in the latest (before drop-out!), his support has left and he realized it.

And unlike some, he has a political career to go back to.

“The Bible is full of stories about people called to be leaders,” Walker said. “I believe I am being called to lead to help clear the field in this race.”

Not a bad parting line 🙂

Politico has an interesting article on how a lot of his problems stemmed from him acting as his own campaign manager. No wonder he didn't get much coaching on how to turn things around after the first debate.

"Liz Mair, a former Walker aide who was fired earlier this year, took to Twitter on Monday to enumerate the mistakes her one-time boss had made — and said he often seemed overmatched by the velocity and information overload inherent in a modern presidential campaign."

Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
Paul, Cruz and and Christie need to drop out as well.

Paul, probably, his attempts to please everyone, has pleased no-one, and he lost his libertarian support. Others please everyone better. Still, he's not a no-hoper either, if a few more dropouts happen he can hope to snag from them.

Cruz is in the middle of the pack- I don't see him dropping right now.

Christie... probably should, but he's gained a *little* ground recently (maybe off Walker?), he's got enough funding to stay in, plus he has more political endorsements than most in the pack.

He needs to run on a treadmill not a presidential race.

Fiorina apparently climbed to #2. Trump's still #1, but slid down a considerable number of points. Carson's #3, Rubio #4, Bush #5.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/20/politics/carly-fiorina-donald-trump-republican-2016-poll/index.html

Get it Trump!

Here's a tool for showing various results that can happen by adjusting the racial turnsout and percentages

Of course there's other factors involved in the real thing, but simply playing around with those should be illuminating.

Originally posted by Robtard
Fiorina apparently climbed to #2. Trump's still #1, but slid down a considerable number of points. Carson's #3, Rubio #4, Bush #5.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/20/politics/carly-fiorina-donald-trump-republican-2016-poll/index.html

Likely because unlike other number 2s, she's got a similar 'business republican' slot, and she showed she can stand up to Donald in the debates.

Rubio's the establishment candidate I'm worried about. Sure, he's only slightly above Bush, but he doesn't have Jeb's.... Jeb-ness and flubs.

Carson likely doesn't have the legs to last to the end.

Weaker candidates often last shorter than strong candidates, an interesting analysis that notes the next-to-last person standing is often a candidate with nothing to lose, while candidates who are overall stronger but have more of a career to worry about- like Walker- often drop out much sooner.

Walker is young enough to try again and is a sitting politician, so he's not going to stay in til the very end. Now, some of the others have very little to lose, so they may as well ride things out.

https://mises.org/blog/your-ideology-depends-if-your-guy-power

Originally posted by psmith81992
https://mises.org/blog/your-ideology-depends-if-your-guy-power

Not a bad article, but "Interestingly, there's something to be said here in favor of a permanent, unelected executive. " raised an eyebrow!

Biden as higher poll numbers then Sanders..but not in the race.

http://www.newsweek.com/joe-biden-tops-bernie-sanders-latest-poll-about-democratic-presidential-375589

Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
Biden as higher poll numbers then Sanders..but not in the race.

http://www.newsweek.com/joe-biden-tops-bernie-sanders-latest-poll-about-democratic-presidential-375589

Interesting.

I think that, if it were possible, Biden would just declare himself running for 'official alternate'.

He wants to be there in case Hillary does have a major problem, but doesn't want to get in a drag-out fight with her if she doesn't.