This year's Republican primary race is a trip. If we could combine all four of the remaining contenders, we would have a strong and invincible candidate to face President Obama in November. Unfortunately, that's not going to happen.
Romney has very successfully demonized "insiders" and painted both Santorum and Gingrich with the broad-brush "insider" label. Even Paul is "tainted" by this image. How wrong can we be? In today's nasty political environment, an "insider" has a much better chance of getting his or her way with Congress. After all, the promises political candidates make are only as good as their ability to convince (or cajole?) Congress to pass the necessary legislation. Even then, we'll need a favorable Supreme Court to make the legislation stick.
Sound complicated? It is. Our form of government has become extremely complicated and interdependent on all three branches. No single branch can "make it happen" alone. If a presidential candidate makes a bunch of wild and wonderful promises, the reality is that they will only see the light of day if Congress so desires. Are you beginning to see how an "insider" may have a better chance of getting things done? Gingrich may not be the most favored candidate, but he is probably the more knowledgeable about how to get legislation passed. In fact, I bet he knows enough about the many secrets in Congress to get just about any legislation passed that he wants. Did you ever wonder why so many Republicans cringe at the thought of Gingrich as President?
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