Caucusing like Crazy

On Tuesday of this week, we had the famous Iowa Caucus.  You know, that was the vote where Mitt Romney (a.k.a. the Mittster), beat Rick Santorum by 8 votes.  Despite rumors that the vote count was wrong, Santorum has taken the high road and said that it doesn't change the fact that the Iowa Caucus was essentially a tie.

The caucus is kind of a crazy process, and I can't really describe it for those who haven't gone.  Ours lasted about an hour and featured lots of commentary from the voters.  As Iowans, I think we did our duty...we weeded out the field.  Michelle Bachman, who I really like, is out, and I think Rick Perry will follow soon.  I really hope Bachman is the pick for VP by the eventual winner.  By finishing 3rd, I think we're assured that Ron Paul won't be the nominee.  Though I like Paul on a lot of issues, I just think he's too crazy in a few areas to support.

In general, I think the consensus at the caucus is that we had a good field of candidates.  Nobody was really against any one specific candidate, which I think bodes well for the general election.  We all have to keep in mind that defeating Obama in this the most important thing.  I believe any of our candidates would be able to do that, though I am not a Newt fan.

In my opinion, we are left with a 3 man race, with the Mittster as the clear favorite, Santorum as the underdog and Newt as the darkhorse.  Romney has the most money and the best infrastructure to win.  What remains to be seen is can he withstand the firestorm that Newt Gingrich is in the process of causing.  Newt was really upset with the way Mitt's groups went after him in Iowa, essentially costing him the state.  Newt is almost out of money, but he's staying in at this point to trash Romney, which may give Obama ammo to use against Romney if he wins the nomination.  Newt has to be careful here.

This leaves us with Rick Santorum, who I really like.  I think he's a true conservative, but also willing to be pragmatic when needed.  I love his tax plan, which would really simplify things by reducing it to 2 tax brackets (28% and 10%) among other things.  He also has a strong plan for deficit reduction and is a big proponent of "Made in America".  I supported Santorum in the caucus because I felt he best represented my total vision for the country, both fiscally and socially.  Ron Paul is stronger fiscally and it's possible Bachman is better socially, but no candidate brings the entire package like Santorum.

I normally advocate that we should select former governors as our Presidential candidates because Executive experience is important.  That is one reason it took me so long to come around to Santorum.  But in an election year where we only had 2 Governors to choose from, The Mittster and Perry, I had to go in another direction.  Don't get me wrong, I like both Perry and The Mittster and I would support both in the general election against Obama.  I just believe Mitt is a little too moderate on social issues to support when there are more socially conservative candidates, and Perry just didn't get me excited...hard to explain why.  In the end, I just felt Santorum more aligned with what I believe on all issues.

Check out Santorum's webpage if you are interested.  If you aren't, that's ok.  I do like Romney as well and I think he is a strong leader.  I will strongly support Romney if he wins the nomination as I expect he will.  But I want to do my part to give Santorum a chance. 

The media is now out in full force against Santorum, calling him a big government Republican and a racist, among other things.  They are taking quotes out of context and using them against him.  I just encourage you to do your own research and come to your own conclusions.  The media wants Romney to win this nomination, which I don't fully understand.  I believe Romney will easily beat Obama and may steal some conservative Dems away from Obama.  Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think so.