On April 28, 2012 the website Red Mass Group, “founded to revitalize the right-wing community in Massachusetts”, proclaimed in Craig Ferguson style:
“A Great Day for the Massachusetts Republican Party”
Why? Because Libertarian activists won the majority of Massachusetts delegates to the Republican National Convention during the first round of voting:
“As it stands now… [the libertarians] won 17 of the 27 delegates selected at the nine [Massachusetts Republican] caucuses today. By party rules 11 more delegates will be selected by the Republican State Committee. Many of these delegates are long standing liberty minded activists, some are new to this process.”
Not mainstream Republicans… not “Tea Partiers”… not even conservative-leaning Independents… LIBERTARIANS!
Man, I can see this train wreck coming plainer than a Red Line derailment on the Boston subway:
- Paul supporters field candidates touting the “Tea Party” line
- Candidates get on the state party’s delegates ballot
- Paul supporters (who suddenly pop out of the woodwork like ants) turn out in droves to vote for delegates
- Paul-supporting delegates get elected (as they have in Mass), and claim they will support Romney during the first round of voting at the Republican National Convention
- Repeat Steps 1 thru 4 forty-nine times
- Behind closed doors, and prior to the Republican National Convention, these delegates will threaten a brokered convention unless promise Romney their votes if Romney publicly promises to select Rand Paul, the Junior Senator from Kentucky and Ron Paul’s son, as his VP.
- Romney selects Rand Paul as his Vice President
- During the election, press paints the duo as a ruthless Capitalist (Romney) paired with a government-slashing Libertarian (Paul) – the worst of all possible worlds for the young, poor, unions, government workers, single mothers, disadvantaged, non-Christians, etc. In short, everyone but the military-industrial complex and large corporations.
- Obama wins reelection.
- Libertarians start preparing for the 2016 Presidential Election by working to expand their base from within the Republican party – but, after four more years of Obama, their efforts will be moot: Neither the Libertarians nor Republican parties will be strong enough to unseat the Democrats, and they’ll watch as the Democrats gut the Constitution, stack the Supreme Court, and expand the Welfare State.
Conservatives are worried, and rightly so, that President Obama’s disastrous first term represents the second coming of Jimmy Carter. I’m terrified that Ron Paul acting with his small but relentless group of supporters to spoil the election, could be the second coming of H. Ross Perot.
Savvy Massachusetts Republicans remember how wealthy businessman Christy Mihos, running as an independent, probably spoiled Republican Kerry Healey’s chances to become Governor, paving the way for Democrat Deval Patrick‘s victory in 2006. Others may be feeling “buyer’s remorse” by supporting Scott Brown for Senate in 2010.
I hope Massachusetts Republicans don’t face another regret after the RNC in August. And, I hope I’m completely wrong about this post.
Update: Looks like Ed Morrissey over at Hot Air is also concerned.
Thanks for reading!
