Fort Pierce, FL. McCain country? (GG photo)
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My what a difference several months make! For quite a long time, I thought that my second choice for the Republican nomination, Rudy Giuliani, was going to take Florida, hands down. Why? I have nothing concrete other than I thought he would be a good fit for them. And while I have ended up wholeheartedly throwing my support to John McCain, believing him to be the right man for the moment, I had trepidations about how he would fare following the NH primary. After all, the Granite State first in the Nation voting, and the many months leading up to it are ready made for a politician like John McCain.
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It’s starting to look like the bounce and limelight that accompany a New Hampshire victory has gotten John McCain just the desired results he must have been hoping for. It appears that the reasons that Republicans like me decided McCain is the man for the job of President have gained purchase elsewhere as well. Based on the results from a January 9th & 10th SurveyUSA Poll it was reported that the
NH Win Slingshots McCain Past Giuliani in Florida Republican Primary: Rudolph Giuliani, who had led in a Florida Republican Primary by as many as 14 points in previous SurveyUSA tracking polls, today trails John McCain by 8 points, fighting with Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney to hold onto 2nd place, 3 days after McCain won the New Hampshire Primary. At this hour, in polling completed exclusively for WFLA-TV and WKRG-TV, conducted after New Hampshire, but before the Myrtle Beach GOP Debate, Florida stands: McCain in 1st at 27%, Giuliani at 19%, Huckabee at 17%, and Romney at 17%, all tied for 2nd place, with Fred Thompson and Ron Paul further back.
Wow! And how do I know that there is a degree of accuracy in this? My parents, New England transplants, now live in the Sunshine State. While they are lifelong Republicans, they are not as into this stuff as their son, yours truly. And both have been grumbling for years about what they view as George W. Bush’s lackluster performance. While reasonably well informed, like many members of their genration, they are quite tied to the traditional mainstream media, as they get much of their information from newspapers and the evening news. During a phone conversation today, I asked my Mother who she was voting for, and then my Dad. The last time I discussed this with them, at the beginning of December when they were up here in NH for a visit, they, like me, were leaning towards Rudy.
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Today, they both informed me that they’re going with McCain. This is rather interesting as they, like me, have never been wild about the Senator. Could it be that the longer he’s around, the more he grows on people? This strikes me as being EXACTLY what the Republicans are going to need for a candidate as we move closer and closer to Election Day. After all, we’re choosing the president– someone we will see and hear about more often than practically anyone else on the planet– he (or she) ought to be someone that we at least like. Can you imagine listening to Hillary Clinton or John Edwards for FOUR STRAIGHT YEARS?!
Said Mom:
"Who else is there? He seems like the right guy…"