In 2008, the Republicans nominated a ticket featuring a vice-presidential candidate that no sane voter would be willing to see a heartbeat away from the Oval Office.
In 2012, there is now talk of a Romney-Santorum ticket floating out there as the GOP Follies seem destined to go on forever.
I’d repeat the old saw about “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it,” but since these folks don’t believe in history, that would be wrong.
How about “Stupid is as Stupid does” instead?
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In reality a Romney/Gingrich ticket would be more electable. Thinking back on previous GOP administrations having a “pit bull” like Gingrich in the VP position has been a winning combination for them. I’m thinking Spiro Agnew as VP for Richard Nixon, specifically. Of course, Agnew and his boss both ended up resigning in disgrace, so it’s not 100% a winning combo…
Your theory only makes sense if you ignore the fact that Gingrich is, by every poll out there, the most unlikeable candidate on either side, not just unliked but actively despised even in the GOP aside from a few bastions in the South.
Agnew was essentially unknown by everybody (you think the GOP establishment ever dreamed he was capable of taking envelopes full of cash as bribes right inside the White House?)and in fact was not really a a classic “pit bull” for Nixon until after they had won the election when he did his “nattering nabobs of negativism” smear.
In those days, aside from their “bring in the vote I can’t get myself” potential (Lyndon for JFK), the veep candidates were incidental. You could, as they say, look it up.
Nobody on either side ever wants to see Gingrich in any position of power again and the populace at large winces at the sight of him.
Santorum is almost as bad in terms of electability, but at least the basest part of the GOP base loves him and believes that God does too.
Also, Newt’s ego would never allow him to the “second guy” and even if Mitt is as clueless as he seems, his advisors are probably. If the candidate were a buffoon like Dubya, Newt might be content run things the way Big Dick did, but he would never be content not to make it clear and evident who was in charge every moment of every day.