GOP Hopefuls Fix Sights On Florida

Washington Post: State's Jan. 29 Primary Might Christen Republican Front-Runner

(Washingtonpost.com)  This story was written by Dan Balz.

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Riding the momentum from his weekend victory in South Carolina, John McCain turned his attention Sunday to Florida and the high-stakes primary there that will test whether the Arizona senator can consolidate support among Republican voters and take control of the GOP nomination battle.

The Jan. 29 contest in Florida will be the first Republican primary closed to independent voters, who have provided McCain with his margins of victory in both New Hampshire and South Carolina. A victory, strategists agreed, would stamp McCain as the front-runner in what has been a muddied Republican race and give him a clear advantage heading toward Super Tuesday on Feb. 5.

Leaving South Carolina on Sunday, McCain at first seemed hesitant to adopt the mantle of Republican leader. "I don't know how to define a front-runner," he told reporters asking him if he believed he was now the candidate to beat in the GOP race.

Minutes later, he changed his mind. Asked about critical comments from former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, McCain shot back with a grin, "When someone hasn't run a primary, I can understand why they would attack the front-runner."

Florida has played a pivotal role in the past two general elections and now is poised to help determine who the Republicans will send into the main event this November. The primary looms as a potential showdown in the GOP nomination battle not only because of its size and importance but because it will be the first this year in which all the leading candidates are competing.

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, who has won Nevada's caucuses and the Michigan primary in the past week, sees Florida as a potential breakthrough for his once-battered candidacy and is pouring more of his personal fortune into the state in an effort to deny McCain a victory.

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, after a loss to McCain in South Carolina, looks to Florida as perhaps a last opportunity to show that his Iowa caucus victory at the start of the nominating season was not a fluke. A second consecutive Southern loss would be especially costly for the underfunded Huckabee.

But what makes Florida most different from the contests in Iowa, New Hampshire, Michigan and South Carolina is the presence of Giuliani as a full-fledged participant. The onetime national front-runner has finished far back in the Republican pack this year — behind Rep. Ron Paul of Texas in Iowa, Michigan, Nevada and South Carolina. But Giuliani has been parked in Florida for several weeks and has made the primary the critical test for his candidacy.

Whether former senator Fred D. Thompson of Tennessee will be competing at all remains a question mark after his third-place finish in South Carolina, the state he was hoping would give him his first breakthrough of the year.

There was considerable speculation that Thompson would quit the race if he did not do well in South Carolina, but aides said Sunday that no decision had been made. "We are in the process of assessing the state of the campaign, but as of this point no decisions or plans have been made one way or the other," spokesman Todd Harris said.

Florida offers a large and complex battleground for the Republican candidates. A full complement of television ads would run at least $3 million between now and the primary, perhaps more, according to strategists in the state. No candidate, not even the wealthy Romney, will be able to spend so freely.

Romney has ordered up about $1 million in TV commercials, and an adviser said more might be bought depending on the state of the race. McCain's campaign has promised to counter with a seven-figure buy of its own. The Giuliani team expects to be competitive with McCain on television but not with Romney. Huckabee's hand-to-mouth campaign will struggle to stay abreast of the others.

Geographically, Florida is a series of mini-nations. Giuliani hopes to capitalize on retirees from the Northeast who now live in South Florida. Huckabee will look to the Panhandle and its Southern complexion for the votes of religious and social conservatives, but McCain sees significant potential support there as well because of the concentration of military veterans.

The main battleground is likely to be the corridor between Tampa-St. Petersburg and Orlando, which all candidates will be plying over the next nine days.

Florida will award 57 delegates on a winner-take-all basis next week, the most of any state to date. The Republican National Committee penalized the state, cutting its delegate slate in half, because officials moved up the date of the primary. But by the time of the national convention this summer, it is possible that all 114 delegates will be awarded to the winner.

Recent polls have shown McCain with a slender lead over Giuliani, followed closely by Romney and Huckabee. But the campaigns expect to reassess the state of play over the next few days as the effects of South Carolina and, to a lesser extent, Nevada are felt in the Sunshine State.

McCain has yet to clearly win the Republican vote in any contest this year. In South Carolina, he and Huckabee evenly divided GOP voters. The senator's margin came from independents, who represented one-fifth of the vote. The same pattern occurred in New Hampshire, where McCain and Romney evenly split Republicans and McCain won by a big margin among independents. In Michigan, Romney decisively won Republicans on his way to victory there.

"We've proven that we can win among Republicans and appeal to conservatives," Romney spokesman Kevin Madden said. "Given that it is a closed primary, John McCain is not going to be able to find refuge in independent voters as he did in New Hampshire and South Carolina."

"We certainly did a lot better than Governor Romney did among Republicans in the first contest in the South," McCain strategist Steve Schmidt responded. "We feel good about how Senator McCain is performing across all bands of the Republican Party."

McCain advisers see a two-person race against Romney developing in Florida. They believe Giuliani will begin to fade, as he has in other states and nationally. But they know the stronger Giuliani's support, the more difficult it will be for McCain to win the state because the two candidates draw from similar pools of voters.

Mike DuHaime, Giuliani's campaign manager, acknowledged the significance of Florida for his candidate. "We've made no secret about the importance of this state," he said. "We've always known this would be the most critical stretch."

But he said he expects the race to remain wide open through Feb. 5, when 21 states hold Republican contests.

DuHaime also tweaked McCain over his dependence on independent voters, saying, "John McCain hasn't won a primary yet without the help of independent voters, so coming into a closed primary is a complicating factor."

He said differences between McCain and Giuliani on President Bush's tax cuts, immigration and campaign finance reform will shape the debate between the two.

Speaking on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday, Giuliani sounded one of those themes in challenging McCain's credentials as an economic conservative. "I am the strongest fiscal conservative in the race, and I have a record of supporting tax cuts," he said. "John voted against the Bush tax cuts, I think on both occasions, and sided with the Democrats."

McCain responded later that he was supporting Republican tax cuts when the mayor was backing a Democrat for governor of New York -- a reference to Giuliani's endorsement of Mario Cuomo over Republican George Pataki in 1994.

Romney, who plans to focus on economic issues, also took aim at McCain on "Fox News Sunday," saying his own experience and business background can fix both the ailing economy and a politically paralyzed Washington.

"If people want somebody who has been in Washington all their life and understands Washington's ways and has been part of the Washington scene for a quarter of a century, then John McCain will be their person," he said.

McCain, in an interview with CNN, dismissed questions about the breadth and depth of his support. "I got more votes than anybody else, and it says that I got it from across the spectrum from all over the state," he said.

Staff writer Juliet Eilperin contributed to this report.

[pensacola88]

Mitt Rommey''s Problem is this:

In 1958, from the writings of the Mormon church:

We know the circumstances under which the posterity of Cain (and later of Ham) were cursed with what we call Negroid racial characteristics.1


Where are Mitt Rommey''s exhibitions of racial fairness? His religion has history for racial discrimination against blacks.

Put him on the spot and get the truth out!! We will see what direction his 10-foot pole is aimed when racial equality is a concern.

I don''t see any Mormons knocking on any doors to visit when they learn that Blacks are in a household.

[fettkonserv]

Meet the Republican hopefuls this weekend at Bo''s Jacksonville Beach Florida
http://www.bosclub.com/

[ov442]

Romney is such a fraud.
Everything the man has said touting himself was proven to either be an outright lie, or a huge exaggeration by all factchecking sites.
Im sorry, but being a businessman is the worst experience to run a country or be in politics at all.
This country currently is not making a profit. Its not a business, and its running on credit.
The federal government is in place to Protect its citizens from Harm whether it be fiscal or physical, or whether it comes from within or without.
A CEO has experience trying to make a profit for himself and the owners or other top officials, while paying the lower end people in that company as little as possible, and easily and quickly firing or laying off any number of workers whenever theres trouble.
The upper level never takes a pay cut, is always overpaid and makes all the profit.
they attempt at every turn to cut benefits and costs at all levels below them and work fuzzy accounting to make themselves look good while the company goes belly up.

THAT is what Romney is good at.
The USA is not a corporation it is a Non-profit, service organization that is setup to make all ''employees'' equal under the law, and help those that need it.
Two completely diametrically opposed philosophies, and if you try to run one like the other, its a disaster.

[sparks224]

May the best hair win.

[mcv57]

www.wexlerwantshearings.com

VOTE IMPEACHMENT OF CHENEY AND BUSH, RAH!
VOTE AGAINST THE RUNAWAY WHITE HOUSE REGIME!!

[mcvet]

I think we''''ve had enough generalizations in the past eight years to last us a lifetime, don''''t you?


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Posted by cs4466 at 05:04 PM : Jan 21, 2008
+ report abuse

You got that right!!

[cs4466]

This is a little saying to help straight men remember which ear they can get pierced. The left ear is ok, the right ear means you''re a limp-wristed pansy. Posted by watcher269 at 04:45 PM

Or, if you''re a guy getting his ear pierced, regardless of which one, you''re a prima donna that thinks earrings are manly. Now, I don''t actually believe this. But if I were into generalizations like you are, then I might say something like that.

I think we''ve had enough generalizations in the past eight years to last us a lifetime, don''t you?

[micma-2009]

It doesn''t matter which Republican wins his party''s nomination. All any of them have to offer is a third Bu$h term.

[watcher269-2009]

Ya know when you sit back and think about things like - well like this

This is a little saying to help straight men remember which ear they can get pierced. The left ear is ok, the right ear means you''re a limp-wristed pansy.

Well that goes for Politics too - just look at our Republicans leadership - just how many LWP Republicans have quit office these last 7 years because their - well - their HOMOs? How many are fighting the Label too? I don''t have anything against Gaays - I have a problems with the Hypocrite Republican Closet - well you can guess the rest.

Remember - Left is "Right" and Right is "Wrong"

[tylenol6]

CBS, where is any mention of RON PAUL????? He is still in the race. RON PAUL is having a BIG MONEY BOMB today. RON PAUL put''s all the other candidates to SHAME. It is sad american''s are so dumbed down in to parroting the media propaganda. Since when have politician''s with american CONSTITUTIONAL view''s been considered laughable odd ball''s in our media?????? ALL THE OTHER CANDIDATE''S ARE NOT CHANGE!!!!!!!!!!!! Think for yourself and listen to RON PAUL''s message.

[tylenol6]

CBS, where is any mention of RON PAUL????? He is still in the race. RON PAUL is having a BIG MONEY BOMB today. RON PAUL put''s all the other candidates to SHAME. It is sad american''s are so dumbed down in to parroting the media propaganda. Since when have politician''s with american CONSTITUTIONAL view''s been considered laughable odd ball''s in our media?????? ALL THE OTHER CANDIDATE''S ARE NOT CHANGE!!!!!!!!!!!! Think for yourself and listen to RON PAUL''s message.

[tylenol6]

CBS, where is any mention of RON PAUL????? He is still in the race. RON PAUL is having a BIG MONEY BOMB today. RON PAUL put''s all the other candidates to SHAME. It is sad american''s are so dumbed down in to parroting the media propaganda. Since when have politician''s with american CONSTITUTIONAL view''s been considered laughable odd ball''s in our media?????? ALL THE OTHER CANDIDATE''S ARE NOT CHANGE!!!!!!!!!!!! Think for yourself and listen to RON PAUL''s message.

[mcvet]

I guess we''''ll soon find out if Rudy has any chance to get the nomination. Personally, I think his decision to wait until Florida, and to skip Iowa and New Hampshire was a mistake, but we''''ll see. If he doesn''''t win Florida, he''''s done. Florida is a winner take all primary, so whoever wins will get all 57 Republican delegates. I also think it''''s a only matter of time before Huckabee drops out. I think Iowa may be the only win he gets.


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Posted by nolalou at 01:08 PM : Jan 21, 2008
+ report abuse

Rudy, who was a REAL Republican as Mayor, has sold his soul to the Devil and has no chance. The Party has been taken over by Southern Fascist and is in complete shambles. My guess? They will be out of power for at least two maybe 3 decades this time. That''s about how long it will take for a generation to come along that does not remember the complete Incompetence shown by these folks in governing. That''s how history has been with these things anyway.

[skyk-2009]

Three Florida newspapers all backed McCain, but were split 3 ways on the Democrats. It''''s looking like the lack of unity that once plagued the GOP is now hitting the Democrats. Yes, there''''s still a problem on the GOP side, but it appears to have become more pronounced on the DNC side, ever since their idol, Bill Clinton, began opening his mouth. Keep it up, Bill, you buffoon.


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Posted by mike71067 at 01:34 PM : Jan 21, 2008
+ report abuse

LOL Right! LOL You really need to look at some of the Polls and the turn out in the previous votes to see the tide the Democrats are riding. Their canidates are MUCH better an thus will recieve more varied support. The Republican''t''s? Well they all sing the same tired old song...

[prinzowhales]

Cancel your newspaper subscriptions!! Stop your mainstream media subscriptions...statellite services and the rest! Let them endorse any of the Oligarchy''s pets that they want...There is no reason for you to support them!

[prinzowhales]

Of course, CBS keeps featuring ''America''s Mayor'', the dung-eating Mafiosi dog, Giuliani, though he has won nothing and only the addled detritus of the ''Elephant''s Boneyard'' State are likely to support this liar and betrayer of the NYFD and the people of New York.

If you want war...vote for Giuliani, McCain, Romney or any of the other mainstream candidates...if you want open borders, vote for Giuliani...if you want to reward the criminal oligarchs who gave us Bush...vote for these animals...YOU DESERVE THEM!! Enjoy the Recession!

[mike71067]

Three Florida newspapers all backed McCain, but were split 3 ways on the Democrats. It''s looking like the lack of unity that once plagued the GOP is now hitting the Democrats. Yes, there''s still a problem on the GOP side, but it appears to have become more pronounced on the DNC side, ever since their idol, Bill Clinton, began opening his mouth. Keep it up, Bill, you buffoon.

[nolalou]

I guess we''ll soon find out if Rudy has any chance to get the nomination. Personally, I think his decision to wait until Florida, and to skip Iowa and New Hampshire was a mistake, but we''ll see. If he doesn''t win Florida, he''s done. Florida is a winner take all primary, so whoever wins will get all 57 Republican delegates. I also think it''s a only matter of time before Huckabee drops out. I think Iowa may be the only win he gets.

[Ruidu]

McCain will split the GOP party vote in the final election, whereby the democrats will win? GOP voters had better get off McCain%u2019s snake oil show and come back to true GOP conservatives candidates or hello President %u201CBillery%u201D!