# A guy named Pataki? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 23, 2015, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351 "2015-09-23T23:17:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2015, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/1 "2015-09-23T23:17:02Z")
In another thread about an (alleged) candidate who just dropped out of the race for President of the United States of America, someone was saying Kasich was the most decent contender on the GOP side, and I said, > [@Scott Walker is in](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scott-walker-is-in/725052/174): > > Pataki seems less awful than the field from what I can tell. Still a fiscal bonehead, but not anti-environmentalist. Am I wrong? And then someone else said I was right: > [@Scott Walker is in](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scott-walker-is-in/725052/181): > > Speaking of George Pataki, he is pretty moderate and sane. His low standing on polls is due to him not really standing out in terms of personality. His resume is pretty sound as well, a three term Republican governor in a blue state like New York. A state that is the third largest economy after California and Texas. Ideally Pataki should be at or near the top. Conservative on the economy and moderate socially, he is the ideal type to go and possibly beat the Democrats in Nov 2016. Well, I can see that, in that I could consider voting for him. I most likely wouldn’t vote for a GOP candidate myself for fiscal reasons, but Pataki seems less offensive than most of the Fox News darlings (or whatever they are). If the Democratic nominee suddenly turned out to be an agent of feathered imperialists from an alien galaxy–or something–I’d like a tolerable alternative. At this point, if I were ordered to vote for a GOP candidate with a gun to my head, I’d, um, probably spoil the ballot, but yeah, just in case, I’d pick one of the guys from New York. There’s a lot to be said about Trump and his advantages as a celebrity who can scoff at the party machinery. Pataki doesn’t have those particular advantages. What he does have is a record: moderately pro-environment, for a Republican; willing to let same-sex marriage stand; and someone elected thrice as governor of New York. And he hasn’t been lighting up the “Stupid Republican Idea of the Day” thread. Gun to my head, that’s a Republican I could stand. I could complain about his tax policy while maybe not flipping out as much about everything else. And hey, first Magyar-American PotUS? Any Hungarians in the house? No? Oh, well. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/2 "2015-09-24T00:30:48Z")
I tend to proudly identify with the Tea Party, but I think Pataki would make a fantastic President. I prefer my ideologues in Congress where they belong. The President should be someone we can trust and who is competent and has a proven record. If Pataki somehow emerged as the nominee, I’d be delighted. ---
**Author:** ![Billdo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billdo/32/315_2.png) [@Billdo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billdo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/3 "2015-09-25T02:16:57Z")
Pataki’s problem is his utter colorlessness and lack of distinctive personality. He was a competent Governor of New York, which is a big achievement, but he largely operated behind the scenes. Think about it, he was Governor for the 9/11/2001 attacks. Do you remember? Does anyone? I think he would be a more competent President on the operational side than the rest of the field (though I don’t know much about Kasich), but will have a serious lack of being inspirational. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/4 "2015-09-25T02:45:11Z")
I think Pataki is the best chance the Republicans have for winning the Presidency in 2016. When it comes to the Presidency, mainstream centrist candidates win. The Democrats have been running mainstream centrists; the Republicans haven’t. And Pataki is the only centrist candidate in the Republican pack. Ironically, Republican voters appear to be ignoring Pataki and are once again fighting over which candidate can carry the conservative banner to an Election Day defeat. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/5 "2015-09-25T03:21:06Z")
Another forgettable neoliberal cuck whom the mediarati love gushing over because he supports legalized abortion and gay marriage nevermind that he considers crackpot economic Lysenkoist supply-sider Arthur Laffer as his “intellectual influence”. :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/6 "2015-09-25T03:23:35Z")
I wish the media would gush over him a little. He could use the publicity. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/7 "2015-09-25T03:25:06Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I think Pataki is the best chance the Republicans have for winning the Presidency in 2016. When it comes to the Presidency, mainstream centrist candidates win. The Democrats have been running mainstream centrists; the Republicans haven’t. And Pataki is the only centrist candidate in the Republican pack. > > Ironically, Republican voters appear to be ignoring Pataki and are once again fighting over which candidate can carry the conservative banner to an Election Day defeat. Elections are much more about maximizing turnout from the party’s base than in switching over swing voters nor does being a centrist if otherwise you are a completely forgettable candidate guarantee victory-Bob Dole was certainly guilty of less deviationism from GOP orthodoxy while still being seen as “centrist” yet he was easily trounced by Clinton. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2015, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/8 "2015-09-26T04:38:48Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Elections are much more about maximizing turnout from the party’s base than in switching over swing voters nor does being a centrist if otherwise you are a completely forgettable candidate guarantee victory-Bob Dole was certainly guilty of less deviationism from GOP orthodoxy while still being seen as “centrist” yet he was easily trounced by Clinton. I think appealing to the base works in congressional elections (where conservatives often do well) but people are more motivated to get out and vote for in a presidential election. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/9 "2015-09-26T18:25:42Z")
The Clinton-Dole race isn’t a good one to use as an example because both candidates were viewed as centrist. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2015, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/10 "2015-09-26T21:48:18Z")
The man is pro stop-and-frisk. He thinks it’s a good idea and doesn’t see anything wrong with that or other racial profiling practices. That pushes him out of moderate territory. It’s probably a very popular for a certain faction of the GOP, but for people who care about civil rights, he’s not centrist. Having him set national policy is scary. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/11 "2015-09-27T00:40:11Z")
Good to know. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/12 "2015-09-27T01:08:36Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > I tend to proudly identify with the Tea Party, but I think Pataki would make a fantastic President. Care to explain what the Tea Party has to be proud of? Being against deficits when there’s a black Democrat in the White House? Being against providing health care to the citizens? Pataki is probably the least insane of the lot. Sort of like being the prettiest goat on the farm. He won’t get the nomination but it doesn’t appear that he’s wasting a lot of money in the effort, either. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/13 "2015-09-27T03:28:09Z")
Being against the political bullshit for starters. The Tea Party candidates tend to come from more diverse walks of life and are as much a reaction to the GWB era Republican Party as to the Obama administration. As with any group of amateurs, some of them will go on to be successful and many of them will never be effective. Many of the worst, like Allen West, are already gone. A few more are likely to fall in the 2016 Senate elections, like Ron Johnson. I’m not worried about the Tea Party. In 20 years the better ones will be the only ones left and hopefully those who follow in their footsteps will know by then what works and what doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/14 "2015-09-27T03:36:22Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Being against the political bullshit for starters. You mean political bullshit of others. The TP has an ample supply of its own. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/15 "2015-09-27T03:37:35Z")
No, they have an ample supply of stupidity that would never get said if they had real professionals telling them what to say. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/16 "2015-09-27T03:41:11Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > No, they have an ample supply of stupidity that would never get said if **they had real professionals telling them what to say.** Good thing they don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Nema98](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d2c977/32.png) [@Nema98](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nema98)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/17 "2015-09-27T23:35:37Z")
I wish he would get the nomination, heck as a moderate Democrat I would vote for George Pataki over Hilary Clinton. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2015, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/18 "2015-12-30T04:07:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Former New York governor George Pataki suspended his bid for the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday, after a campaign that appeared doomed almost from the start by both his long stretch out of the national spotlight and the mismatch between his … [https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/pataki-suspends-presidential-bid/2015/12/29/961ba1c6-a27f-11e5-b53d-972e2751f433\_story.html](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/pataki-suspends-presidential-bid/2015/12/29/961ba1c6-a27f-11e5-b53d-972e2751f433_story.html) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2015, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/19 "2015-12-30T04:22:11Z")
Don’t know why he’s dropping out. He’s been holding steady in the polls the whole time, and he’s got nowhere to go but up. There’s only 10 or 12 more guys to drop out and then he’ll be the at the top of the list. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2015, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351/20 "2015-12-30T04:27:05Z")
> [@](#): > > Former New York governor George Pataki suspended his bid for the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday, after a campaign that appeared doomed almost from the start by both his long stretch out of the national spotlight and the mismatch between his … …shirt and tie? Seriously, had he run eight years ago, maybe he would have gotten better traction. Almost no one outside the New York area even knows who he is, and he was so unremarkable as governor, I suspect many New Yorkers don’t remember him. Pleasant enough guy, but he’s too smart for the numbskullery required to be a Republican candidate for president these days. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-guy-named-pataki/732351.md?page=2)