# Jeff Flake considers 2020 bid as (R) or (I) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 16, 2018, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678 "2018-03-16T17:39:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/1 "2018-03-16T17:39:55Z")
> [@AP](#): > > MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Jeff Flake has a direct message for the Republicans of New Hampshire: Someone needs to stop Donald Trump. And Flake, a Republican senator from Arizona, may stand up against the Republican president in 2020 — either as a Republican or an independent — if no one else does. > > “It has not been in my plans to run for president, but I have not ruled it out,” the 55-year-old Flake said Friday in his first solo political appearance in New Hampshire. > > \ > > Despite Flake’s fiery pronouncements, he would start out as an underwhelming presidential contender on paper. > > He is not well-known, he has little money of his own and a disdain for fundraising, and because he is retiring from the Senate at year’s end, he has no political organization to help fuel his ambitions. > > Flake has powerful friends who could help, however, including the outspoken anti-Trump billionaire Mark Cuban. > > “I’m a Jeff Flake fan,” Cuban told The Associated Press. > > The billionaire, who is considering a presidential bid of his own, acknowledged that he doesn’t know much about Flake’s political ambitions. > > \ > > [Regarding a possible run as an Independent, Flake said] “I’m not ruling that out, either… There are going to be a lot of other people in the party looking for something else.” [https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2018-03-16/desperate-to-stop-trump-flake-eyes-2020-primary-challenge](https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2018-03-16/desperate-to-stop-trump-flake-eyes-2020-primary-challenge) So, that doesn’t sound all that promising. No money, doesn’t like fundraising, low name recognition. And the times I’ve heard him interviewed, he sounds about as charismatic as John Kerry. A primary challenge would probably be a waste of time unless, as Flake notes, the Republicans get killed in the midterms and Trump is seen as dragging them down. If Trump is still in office, I think he’ll get the nomination pretty easily. An Independent bid sounds better to me, as it would hopefully pull enough votes away to benefit the Democrat. But, Flake has generally supported Trump’s policies, so will he run as an independent just to ensure Trump doesn’t get re-elected, or will just make a token show of resistance in a primary and then support the guy who promises more tax cuts and deregulation? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/2 "2018-03-16T17:43:38Z")
Probably means nothing right now, but an independent run would almost certainly put Arizona in play – and if he got any momentum going, could easily swing the election towards a landslide for the Dems, even putting states like Texas and even Utah into play. But right now that’s mostly wishful thinking. ---
**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 16, 2018, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/3 "2018-03-16T17:51:51Z")
Flake is at least at the not-crazy end of the Republican pool. I disagree with him on most of his policy positions but he seems like a normal person able to speak in coherent sentences and not stab himself in the eye with a fork while eating pizza. Yes, this is where the bar is now set for GOP candidates. Plus he does that weird desert island thing, which is at least novel. I’m also wondering if McMullin might go for it again. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/4 "2018-03-16T19:42:47Z")
Seeing how enamored the GOP is with Trump, would they side with Flake? Someone should run against Trump in 2020 but I don’t know who. Kasich would be a good person to run against him, but then if you start crowding the field then you have issues. ---
**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:** [March 16, 2018, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/5 "2018-03-16T19:57:56Z")
Perhaps the “Bull Moose” label is available. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/6 "2018-03-16T19:58:42Z")
Back to back flakes in the white house? ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/7 "2018-03-16T20:14:28Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Back to back flakes in the white house? That would be said a lot. It’s not fair that the name a person is born with can hurt (or help) them in life, but it does appear to be a fact. As with any topic in human psychology, many factors are at play; still, having a mockable name seems unlikely to help a candidate: > [@](#): > > If names do affect their bearers’ chance of success, it may not always be because of the reactions they cause in other people (the “looking-glass self”). Psychologists talk about “implicit egotism”, the positive feelings we each have about ourselves. Brett Pelham cites the concept in explaining his finding that individuals called Virginia, Mildred, Jack and Philip proliferate in Virginia, Milwaukee, Jacksonville and Philadelphia - he believes they are drawn to live there. > > Another intriguing 2007 paper, entitled Moniker Maladies, found that people’s fondness for the initials of their names could get in the way of success. Leif Nelson and Joseph Simmons analysed almost a century of baseball strikeouts and found that hitters with the initial K had a higher strike-out rate (“K” denotes a strike-out in baseball). They also found that graduate students with the initials C and D had a slightly lower grade point average than A and B students, and A and B applicants to law school were more likely to go to better colleges. > **[Does a baby's name affect its chances in life?](https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26634477)** > > Many parents spend hours poring over baby name books - is all that deliberation worthwhile? Humans are weird. But if the GOP could find a candidate named Macho Manly Toughguy, they’d probably be smart to run him. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/8 "2018-03-16T20:39:03Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > It’s not fair that the name a person is born with can hurt (or help) them in life, but it does appear to be a fact. I once met a guy at a meeting wearing a “My Name Is” badge with the name “Bob Faggot”. People kept assuming the “t” was silent (Hi, Mr Faygo) or the “gg” was pronounced like a “j” (Ahhh, Mr Fajot) or it was some weird foreign name (Good evening Mr um Fägôtę). He’d just chuckle and say, " I’m Bob Faggot, pronounced just as it’s spelled! Please call me Bob." ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/9 "2018-03-16T20:50:52Z")
A name like that is definitely a character-builder! ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/10 "2018-03-16T21:22:19Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > It’s not fair that the name a person is born with can hurt (or help) them in life, but it does appear to be a fact. And then there’s Anthony Weiner… ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/11 "2018-03-16T21:48:45Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > And then there’s Anthony Weiner… Seriously, the research on the topic (some of which is discussed at the link I posted) does indicate that people’s names can influence their behavior. If Anthony Weiner had been named Anthony Loyal, maybe he wouldn’t have put so much energy into impressing women-not-his-wife with cell phone shenanigans. (Or if he’d been named Anthony Elbow, he would still have tried to impress other women through cell phone pics, but they’d have been of…something else.) ---
**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:** [March 16, 2018, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/12 "2018-03-16T21:54:28Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Seriously, the research on the topic (some of which is discussed at the link I posted) does indicate that people’s names can influence their behavior. > > If Anthony Weiner had been named Anthony Loyal, maybe he wouldn’t have put so much energy into impressing women-not-his-wife with cell phone shenanigans. > > (Or if he’d been named Anthony Elbow, he would still have tried to impress other women through cell phone pics, but they’d have been of…something else.) “It’s twue, it’s twue!” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/13 "2018-03-16T22:14:34Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > And then there’s Anthony Weiner… I suppose it’s useless to point out that that’s not the proper pronunciation of the name either… ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/14 "2018-03-16T22:15:07Z")
Talk about names influencing behavior: poor Lili von Shtupp never had a remote chance at chastity. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/15 "2018-03-16T22:53:06Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > But if the GOP could find a candidate named Macho Manly Toughguy, they’d probably be smart to run him. I wonder what Staff Sgt Max Fightmaster is registered as. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/16 "2018-03-16T22:55:45Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > I suppose it’s useless to point out that that’s not the proper pronunciation of the name either… How do you pronounce Anthony? ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2018, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/17 "2018-03-16T22:58:27Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Seeing how enamored the GOP is with Trump, would they side with Flake? > > Someone should run against Trump in 2020 but I don’t know who. Kasich would be a good person to run against him, but then if you start crowding the field then you have issues. I’m laughing my ass off at this comment…sorry…it’s nothing personal, you’re a good poster and a smart guy, but Kasich _already demonstrated_ very clearly that he was not capable of defeating Donald Trump. What exactly makes you think he could do it the second time around? Maybe you’re assuming that Trump is going to fuck up so badly in the next 4 years that his base will abandon him, but I’m sure as hell not going to make that assumption. Kasich was a pathetic candidate and continues to be a pathetic candidate. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2018, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/18 "2018-03-17T01:02:50Z")
He has moderate name recognition now, and if he actually ran would gain recognition as that Republican guy who is running against Trump. Unless Trump undergoes a major scandal that turns off his base, Flake has no chance in the primary as a Republican. As an independent he could act a spoiler for Trump except for the fact that \<\\> would probably win even without his help. ---
**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:** [March 17, 2018, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/19 "2018-03-17T02:13:57Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Flake is at least at the not-crazy end of the Republican pool. I disagree with him on most of his policy positions but he seems like a normal person able to speak in coherent sentences and not stab himself in the eye with a fork while eating pizza. Yes, this is where the bar is now set for GOP candidates. My impression of Flake is that he’s not as crazy as Tom Coburn and not as corrupt as Orrin Hatch, but would appeal to a lot of folks at the intersection of their appeal. He’s not on my team; his beliefs about government are very different from mine; I fear what he’d do to public lands, because I don’t think he has any environmentalist tendencies. But I think he has ethics. He has two huge problems that I can see: One, he’s LDS, so the Baptists won’t turn out for him. Two, he’s probably too principled for the pro-corruption elements of the party, however important those may be. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2018, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678/20 "2018-03-17T11:38:31Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Sherrerd** : > > Talk about names influencing behavior: poor Lili von Shtupp never had a remote chance at chastity. It could have been worse: She could have been named Chastity. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeff-flake-considers-2020-bid-as-r-or-i/810678.md?page=2)