# CPAC straw poll results **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 9, 2014, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284 "2014-03-09T19:02:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/41 "2014-03-10T16:50:32Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > And with the crisis in the Ukraine, we should be **very** glad McCain is not in charge right now. [Here’s an illustration why](http://thinkprogress.org/world/2014/03/07/3378371/mccain-military-option-ukraine/): > [@](#): > > Later in the interview, when host Andrea Mitchell asked if there is a military option for the U.S. in Ukraine, the Arizona Republican sounded despondent. “I’d love to tell you that there is, Andrea, but frankly I do not see it,” he said, adding, “I wish that there were. … I do not see a military option and it’s tragic.” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/42 "2014-03-10T16:57:53Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Italics mine. > > You know, you don’t do yourself any favors by tossing in nonsense like that, without any evidence that anyone from LBJ to Jehovah could have done any better. (OK, maybe Jehovah could have visited ten plagues on the GOP unless they relented and voted for his agenda, but short of that…:dubious:\*\*) Really? I thought even Democrats were accepting that perhaps Obama isn’t the greatest executive in the world. > [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Rand Paul is “quite popular with young people”, you say? Where the fuck do you get that from? I should have said “quite popular with young people compared to other Republican candidates.” I’m aware that the majority of youth vote Democratic - although their support of Obama is declining rapidly - 17% decline since the NSA scandal broke. I’m not sure why Rand’s youth appeal should be so surprising - he’s for reining in the NSA and the surveillance state in general, he supports state legalization of marijuana and gay marriage, and he’s preaching a much more tolerant message than other Republicans. On social issues, he’s pretty much aligned with where the youth are - and many Democrats. That makes him probably the most appealing Republican for the youth vote, even if that’s still a minority overall. > [@](#): > > As does his not mentioning how well a single term as Governor prepares one for the Presidency, either. Not that we should have expected that from him. Dude, I’m _right here_. No need to talk about me in the third person to other people, or for the ad-hominem snark. If you want my opinion about single-term governors, just ask. A governorship gives a person executive experience. The House and Senate gives you legislative experience. They are different things. The presidency is an executive position. Therefore, I would consider a successful one-term governor to be more qualified for the presidency than a one-term Senator, all else being equal. But much also depends on the person - a one-term Senator who also has 20 years of private sector management experience would be preferable to a one-term governor who has spent his entire life in politics. Then there is foreign policy experience, which has to be judged on an individual basis. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/43 "2014-03-10T17:04:06Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Really? I thought even Democrats were accepting that perhaps Obama isn’t the greatest executive in the world. All the Democrats I know believe that President Obama has been an incredibly strong POTUS, perhaps the best of our lifetime. (and we’re old) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/44 "2014-03-10T17:09:10Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > The media might as well go to Liberty University, do a straw poll, and pretend that it has some relevance. Even the Iowa caucuses are bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/45 "2014-03-10T17:15:55Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > I should have said “quite popular with young people compared to other Republican candidates.” Which doesn’t say much at all. Still, where the fuck do you get that from? Anywhere but your imagination? > [@](#): > > Dude, I’m _right here_. No need to talk about me in the third person to other people, or for the ad-hominem snark. If you want my opinion about single-term governors, just ask. If I were addressing you, I’d address you. Do please note, in passing, that the value of your opinions is related to your history of previous opinions, and so noting is not ad hominem. Do please accept responsibility for your statements. Thank you. > [@](#): > > I would consider a successful one-term governor to be more qualified for the presidency than a one-term Senator, all else being equal. How’s that working out for ya? 😉 > [@](#): > > But much also depends on the person That consideration had no bearing on your bit of, what do you call it, “ad hominem snark” that was in reply to, did it? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/46 "2014-03-10T19:07:55Z")
The appeal of Rand Paul and llibertarianism to the young presages exciting changes. People who identify themselves as libertarian will, before the end of this decade, soar all the way from the low single digits to the higher single digits. Watch it grow! ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2014, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/47 "2014-03-10T19:51:05Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > No one on that list has a chance at becoming POTUS. No one. > > ETA: If the Democratic nominee was Satan himself, none of those GOP candidates would have a chance of becoming POTUS. Just thought maybe that needed clarification. Oh please! You’re being arrogant as hell! It can’t be that bad! _pauses to review list_ Uh…actually, never mind, yeah you’re right. ---
**Author:** ![Fool\_in\_the\_Rain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fool\_in\_the\_Rain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fool_in_the_Rain)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/48 "2014-03-11T16:54:34Z")
“Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States, Hillary Clinton” ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/49 "2014-03-11T17:03:27Z")
“… and the First Gentleman, President Bill Clinton”. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/50 "2014-03-11T17:08:17Z")
I could have sworn I once heard him say he’d be ‘First Dude’, but the noise in the google signal is overwhelming me. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/51 "2014-03-11T17:21:05Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Oh please! > > You’re being arrogant as hell! > > It can’t be that bad! > > _pauses to review list_ > > Uh…actually, never mind, yeah you’re right. And it’s a fucking pity that this is so. I would rather see a close race between two seasoned and thinking candidates then the Gumby Olympics going on right now. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/52 "2014-03-11T17:41:37Z")
Well, it’s early yet. The only ones really making noise are going to be the marginal ones. We’ll know in late 2015 if anyone serious is going to get involved in the race. If it’s these guys still as the pick of the litter we can start printing the “President Clinton” stationery again. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/53 "2014-03-11T17:46:33Z")
Said [Michelle Bachmann at CPAC](http://blog.al.com/wire/2014/03/tea_party_is_an_intellectual_m.html): “You see our movement at its core is an intellectual movement. We are based on the greatest ideas ever conceived in the mind of man. And I would put those magnificent ideas up against any other idea for freedom in the world.” [As evidence:](http://townhall.com/tipsheet/cortneyobrien/2014/03/08/palin-i-do-not-like-this-uncle-sam-i-do-not-like-his-health-care-scam-n1806115) Gov. Palin on health care: “I do not like this kind of ‘hope,’ and we won’t take it nope, nope, nope.” She didn’t learn from Ted Cruz what the true meaning of _Green Eggs and Ham_ was, obviously. Maybe neither one ever read it to the end. And on foreign policy vis-à-vis Russia: “It’s like a liberal on gun control. Mr. President, the only thing that stops a bad guy with a nuke, is a good guy with a nuke.” ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/54 "2014-03-11T17:58:06Z")
> [@](#): > > “… and the First Gentleman, President Bill Clinton”. “Why, yes, dear, I did hire George Clooney as an intern. Problem?” ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Duality](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.duality/32/4098_2.png) [@Mr.Duality](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Duality)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/55 "2014-03-11T22:14:17Z")
I believe Colbert pointed out that the _second place finisher_ in this straw poll for the past 3 election cycles eventually became the GOP candidate. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/56 "2014-03-11T23:16:36Z")
I’m not sure anyone on that list is electable as POTUS, but that doesn’t mean they are idiots. Or not all of them, anyway. Say what you want about Ted Cruz, but he’s a very smart guy. So is Paul Ryan, and so is Rand Paul. Ben Carson doesn’t seem to be a slouch, either. Condoleeza Rice is amazingly accomplished and probably one of the smartest people in Washington. Let’s look at a few of them in more detail: Rand Paul graduated in the honors program at Baylor, finished in the 90th percentile on his MCATS, and got an MD from Duke. He’s a board-certified Ophthalmologist who has been practicing for more than a decade. Ted Cruz graduated cum laude from Princeton, was the U.S. and North American debate champion in 1992. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law and got his J.D. While there he was the primary editor of the Harvard Law Review. Alan Dershowitz, one of his professors, said that he was “off-the-charts brilliant.” Cruz went on to clerk for the Chief Justice Rehnquist on the Supreme Court, and then became the youngest solicitor general in the U.S. He has a better record with cases in front of the Supreme Court than anyone else in Washington. Ben Carson has a degree in philosophy from Yale, an M.D. and was until 2013 the Pediatric Director of Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins - the youngest director in its history. He was the first doctor to successfully separate conjoined twins. Condoleeza Rice’s qualifications and intelligence are obvious. Chris Christie is no slouch either. You may not like their politics, but these are some of the most accomplished people in Washington and you underestimate them at your peril. Sure there are some lemons on the list - Santorum, Palin, Huckabee. But have you seen the early lists of Democratic challengers in previous years? There’s always some real flakes on both sides in these early battles - especially in the early battles because the only people paying attention are the ideologues. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/57 "2014-03-11T23:26:17Z")
I think that poll just shows that there will be a very lively 2016 GOP primary season, and all sorts of rapey, racist-y, and stupid comments will be thrown about with wild abandon. You could fill up a bingo card of Republican gaffes in one debate. Will it be Rand Paul with the “civil rights act was bad for blacks” or a Santorum with a “abortion is a holocaust on black people, I mean blah people”. And for our conservative friends watching, I know they will appreciate each moment as their chances again slip through the fingers of these educated elite, and appreciate that a self-made man who grew up in a single parent household could become editor of the Harvard Law Review, become a Constitutional professor, and then president and wish one of their own could just take the transvaginal probe out of their mouth long enough to not say something about rape ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2014, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/58 "2014-03-11T23:54:36Z")
> [@Mr.Duality](#): > > I believe Colbert pointed out that the _second place finisher_ in this straw poll for the past 3 election cycles eventually became the GOP candidate. Then that would be Shutdown Cruz. Now which Democratic prospect can he beat? **Sam** , you need to be aware of the distinction between intelligence and sense. You know by now what a Yale degree, fighter pilot training, and Harvard MBA means as a Presidential qualification, hmm? You also need to quit saying that something \*is \*so just because \*you \*think it \*should \*be, e.g. your claim about Paul’s appeal to young people. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/59 "2014-03-12T10:11:29Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Rand Paul graduated in the honors program at Baylor, finished in the 90th percentile on his MCATS, and got an MD from Duke. He’s a board-certified Ophthalmologist who has been practicing for more than a decade. Yeah, [about that board certification](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2013/11/08/rand-paul-has-another-problem/)… > [@](#): > > In the spring of 2010 stories first swirled around Sen. Rand Paul’s certification as an ophthalmologist by an outfit called the “National Ophthalmology Board,” an entity he founded [with several others]. This week I discovered that while he continues to present himself as “board certified” the NOB has been out of business since 2011, and in any event, does not under Kentucky law permit him to advertise as “board certified.” [bracketed text added by me as this is clarified later in the article.] ---
**Author:** ![WillFarnaby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/willfarnaby/32/514_2.png) [@WillFarnaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WillFarnaby)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2014, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284/60 "2014-03-13T22:09:31Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > I think that poll just shows that there will be a very lively 2016 GOP primary season, and all sorts of rapey, racist-y, and stupid comments will be thrown about with wild abandon. You could fill up a bingo card of Republican gaffes in one debate. Will it be Rand Paul with the “civil rights act was bad for blacks” or a Santorum with a “abortion is a holocaust on black people, I mean blah people”. > > And for our conservative friends watching, I know they will appreciate each moment as their chances again slip through the fingers of these educated elite, and appreciate that a self-made man who grew up in a single parent household could become editor of the Harvard Law Review, become a Constitutional professor, and then president and wish one of their own could just take the transvaginal probe out of their mouth long enough to not say something about rape “Rape, physical intimidation, sexual harassment, and even so-called ‘virginity tests’ have taken place in countries throughout the region,” Hillary Clinton lying to get her war. Most destructive “rape” claim in several years. Disgusting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cpac-straw-poll-results/683284.md?page=4)