# This cycle's crop of Republican candidates **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 20, 2011, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869 "2011-12-20T17:32:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![sqweels](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@sqweels](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sqweels)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/41 "2011-12-21T19:14:31Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > So what? When one of these “whackos” gets the nomination, you will have a point. Otherwise, it’s just inventing a category (leading in the polls) for convenient sniping. That category is meaningless, since the only poll that matters is the summation of the primary votes that pick the final candidate. The Whacko Index is how big a whacko a candidate is multiplied by how much support he or she garnered during their campaign arc. An array if high Whacko Index scores–especially recent ones–obviously reflect poorly on a political party or its base. Sarah Palin’s arc of political support tailed out before the start of the nomination campaign, but the high Whacko Index score she racked up still counts against her party. ---
**Author:** ![sqweels](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@sqweels](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sqweels)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/42 "2011-12-21T19:32:45Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Their sole attribute that makes them better for you is the “R” after their name. That you’d be comfortable with a President Bachmann running the country with her pathetic knowledge about world politics and her finger on the nuclear button… well it tells me volumes about your powers of discernment. But…but you’re not a crackpot if you have Jesus standing over your shoulder, telling you what to do. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/43 "2011-12-21T19:46:56Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > So what? When one of these “whackos” gets the nomination, you will have a point. Otherwise, it’s just inventing a category (leading in the polls) for convenient sniping. I mostly agree with you. For me, the important difference is that this time around, the crazies outnumber the non-crazies by 6-2 (I added Santorum myself. [Now I have to go wash my hands.]). And Hunstman doesn’t have a chance. Everyone has clowns. Sometimes they race to the top for 5 minutes when they announce. That’s not new. I don’t remember the last time (for the party not occupying the white house) there was only 1 _non_-clown who was viable. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/44 "2011-12-21T19:57:07Z")
> [@bup](#): > > I don’t remember the last time (for the party not occupying the white house) there was only 1 _non_-clown who was viable. 1996 maybe? It was basically Bob Dole (sane), Pat Buchanon (not), and Steve Forbes (not). I guess you could call Lamar Alexander and Dick Lugar sane, but they didn’t really compete. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/45 "2011-12-21T20:10:51Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > 1996 maybe? It was basically Bob Dole (sane), Pat Buchanon (not), and Steve Forbes (not). I guess you could call Lamar Alexander and Dick Lugar sane, but they didn’t really compete. And nobody ever called Dole a clown. Nobody ever found him amusing. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/46 "2011-12-21T21:33:49Z")
[On the contrary](http://www.amazon.com/Great-Political-Wit-Robert-Dole/dp/0385493479). Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/47 "2011-12-22T02:26:33Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > AndBTW, I even voted for George McGovern for President. Interesting. Did yougo as far as tearing “Wallace” stickers off the bumpers of cars? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2011, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/48 "2011-12-22T02:52:03Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > [On the contrary](http://www.amazon.com/Great-Political-Wit-Robert-Dole/dp/0385493479). > > Regards, > Shodan I agree. Dole had some excellent jokes, and quite a good wit. I think it might have been a bit subtle for some people. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2011, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/49 "2011-12-22T02:54:09Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Quite the opposite, actually. Palin and Trump are not candidates, Paul is a little too over-the-edge as an isolationist for my liking. But any of the others stand head and shoulders above the clown currently in the White House. I suppose if you go to clown college\* you think those who go to Harvard and Yale are clowns. Palin, by the way, is making noises, and her supporters are talking about the benefits of a brokered convention. - Metaphorical clown college. One of my daughter’s theater teachers went to the real clown college, and they teach interesting stuff. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2011, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/50 "2011-12-22T14:54:32Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I suppose if you go to clown college\* . . . CECIL TERWILLIGER: I’ll thank you not to refer to Princeton that way. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2011, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/51 "2011-12-22T15:01:02Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I suppose if you go to clown college\* you think those who go to Harvard and Yale are clowns. Palin, by the way, is making noises, and her supporters are talking about the benefits of a brokered convention. > > - Metaphorical clown college. One of my daughter’s theater teachers went to the real clown college, and they teach interesting stuff. Hey, Ricky Perry went to [Texas A&M](http://www.burntorangecounty.com/AggieJokes.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 22, 2011, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/52 "2011-12-22T15:06:10Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I agree. Dole had some excellent jokes, and quite a good wit. I think it might have been a bit subtle for some people. Dole had a sense of humor, but couldn’t tell a joke to save is life. Terrible timing, botched punchlines, sometimes he didn’t even get the joke he was telling. I don’t fault him for that, because it’s the appreciation of humor that counts, not the ability to produce it. One thing people aren’t always aware of, Dole spent a lot of time visiting wounded soldiers. He served as a model for those injured in war, and he was a major supporter of veterans benefits even when both parties were willing to forget their promises. Another thing people aren’t always aware of, his injury came in WWII. He was an incompetent Lt. who led his men into an ambush. Several were killed, and at least one more man died and others injured trying to get him out. I don’t fault him for this either, it was a common story in WWII. But it didn’t make him a war hero. His dedication to other wounded soldiers and determination to overcome his disability was the heroic part of his life. Back to the OP, this is the biggest set of absolute clown candidates in any presidential elections. I don’t think there are that many of them in reality. They just have a little car, and when one gets knocked off in the polls he goes around to the trunk to get back in and emerge again later. ---
**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:** [December 26, 2011, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/53 "2011-12-26T06:04:34Z")
> [@bup](#): > > I don’t remember the last time (for the party not occupying the white house) there was only 1 _non_-clown who was viable. I suspect that’s partly a plan to make sure Romney wins this time. There are more credible candidates than Herman Cain that aren’t getting the press, so something’s going on. It’s the TV network’s fault, I suppose. It’s a bit like _American Idol._ They like to show a few really good candidates and some hopeless clowns, and ignore the solid boring types. Maybe it’s picking ridiculous candidates as a sort of casting exercise for ratings; maybe it’s to punish the candidates who don’t buy as much ad time; maybe it’s to get Mitt in the White House (he has some avid fans apparently)–probably all three. > [@BrainGlutton](#): > > CECIL TERWILLIGER: I’ll thank you not to refer to Princeton that way. I think the “clown college” in question is Oral Roberts University. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/54 "2011-12-26T18:24:45Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > I don’t normally have a problem with you, so please read this as me attacking the sentiment and not you as such. > > I get it that not everyone is thrilled with The Obamalama, it would be a dull planet indeed if we were that homogenous. But what I don’t get is how BO can be called a “clown” when his competetor demonstrated his own senility/irresponsibility with his choice of running-mate. Of the four people involved in that race for Pres/VP, she was the only one with executive experience in government. And I know Palin terrifies liberals and they have to spout the talking points and diss her every chance they get, but I voted for McCain for two basic reasons: 1) McCain was a better choice than Obama in that he was far, far less progressive and 2) there was always the hope that he’d drop dead in the middle of the night and Palin would take over. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/55 "2011-12-26T18:26:14Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > And I know Palin terrifies liberals and they have to spout the talking points and diss her every chance they get This sums up the thread quite elegantly, actually. The reason we have such clown candidates is that 50 million people think like **Clothahump** here. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/56 "2011-12-26T18:27:24Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > The fact that you can say that Cain and Bachmann stand “head and shoulders” above Obama helps me to understand the exact level of your powers of reasoning. > > Their sole attribute that makes them better for you is the “R” after their name. That you’d be comfortable with a President Bachmann running the country with her pathetic knowledge about world politics and her finger on the nuclear button… well it tells me volumes about your powers of discernment. And that fact that you are comfortable with Obama and his pathetic knowledge about world politics, economics, the U. S. Constitution, and with his finger on the nuclear button tells me volumes about _your_ powers of discernment. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/57 "2011-12-26T18:32:06Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I suppose if you go to clown college\* you think those who go to Harvard and Yale are clowns. Well, there is precedent. After all, George W. Bush has an MBA from Harvard and look how the libs dissed the hell out of him for being smart enough to get it. But I’m not referring to Obama’s education. I’m referring to his performance in office, and I’m probably insulting clowns everywhere by calling him one. (five bucks says some bozo will post that Bush’s daddy bought the MBA for him. Liberal talking point #467) ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/58 "2011-12-26T20:37:03Z")
**Clothahump** let’s try something different for The Pit: Pick a Republican POTUS candidate, and tell us what you think are his or her positive aspects. In other words, tell us why he or she is not a clown. Then we’ll discuss. I suspect we can all do that without bringing in ancient history (GWB, Bill Clinton), or what you want to be ancient history (President Barack Obama). Let’s see if your candidate can stand on his or her merits. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/59 "2011-12-26T21:49:21Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > And that fact that you are comfortable with Obama and his pathetic knowledge about world politics, economics, the U. S. Constitution, and with his finger on the nuclear button tells me volumes about _your_ powers of discernment. You’re not smart enough to make that assessment. You’re an angry child in a man’s body. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2011, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869/60 "2011-12-27T04:37:19Z")
> [@Typo\_Knig](#): > > Let’s see if your candidate can stand on his or her merits. Not going to happen. **Clothy’s** standard operating procedure when Republicans are under fire is to thread shit with attacks on Democrats. He is unable to rebut criticism of conservatives on their own merits. When it tu quoques like a duck… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-cycles-crop-of-republican-candidates/606869.md?page=4)