One more thing...

I know you "read my post twice"... but you missed something in both readings.

McCain failed because he couldn't reconcile himself as a mediocre conservative with his promise to do "something" to fix America's woes... in other words, he failed to appeal to moderates with his conservative promises because he didn't have anything substantially different to say than Obama was saying. Palin presented a more conservative model of a candidate as running-mate than McCain did as the Presidential hopeful... and that is never a good thing. Were this NOT the case, them McCain would have been smeared just as much in the months since the election as Palin was (and is), but instead he is fighting for his very position in the Senate like a rabid Democratic candidate would... lots of money and lots of angry, mud-slinging ads. There are an awful lot of Democrats that were rooting for McCain in this primary cycle in Arizona, I can tell you... the alternative was an even tougher road for the Democrats in the Senate than they already have.

Running a conservative candidate that has a chance to win doesn't mean we have to compromise on principles and ideals... only that we need to find someone that can TALK, and can talk in a manner that will get voters to LISTEN. McCain was NOT that man... more's the pity. Limbaugh, Hannity and Beck won't run... that's a given... but they won't present their cases for who should run without all the hyperbole and invectives that make great and entertaining radio time, but make lousy forensic cases for the average moderate American.

I did think Romney was probably the better man for the job... but he couldn't win, and I'm not sure that isn't what will doom him again this time around. Granted, Reagan did pull off a second-time win (and so did Bush, Sr... in a round-about way)... but Romney is no Reagan, not by a long shot. Too much "flip-flop" baggage with Mitt, I'm afraid... and that kind of news never goes out of style.

I think Barbour is the strongest "conservative" candidate... who else can have the functional understanding of what a "bigger, stronger, slower" Federal government can mean to a State in a crisis? Who else can better make the case that depending on the Fed is the surest way to slow down any assistance or aid that might be needed at a local level? Who else has the success story behind their time in the Governor's Mansion that he has? My question is: can he win? Can a man like Barbour overcome the stereotype of an "Old Guard" Southern Republican with his age and accent as such hallmarks of just that? Can you pit a gray-haired Southern governor against America's first black President and NOT hit the "race" roadblock, even if the Dems don't play it up intentionally? Maybe... but I'm not sure.

There's been talk of Ridge running (yep... Tom Ridge isn't gone yet), but I can't stand the thought of his winning the ticket. He was a do-nothing Governor, and a do-nothing Secretary of the largest Cabinet-level department in American history... how does that make him a good candidate for President?

I think Jindal has all the requirements... and I think he wants to run. Honestly... he's doing great in LA, but I think he knows he can do even more in the White House. I think he is a good candidate (one of many reasons) because the ONLY thing I ever hear Liberals bitch about when it comes to him is his rather lack-luster response to Obama's address to Congress in 2009. Oh, they try and find "ethics" violations in his refusal to take stimulus money from the Fed, but that doesn't stand up very long. All they have to point at is one bad speech... and even Reagan gave a couple of those in his day. Add to this the simple (yet undeniable) fact that he is also a member of an ethnic minority (hell, he's more "black" than Obama is!), he's young, and he gives a damn fine off-the-cuff speech (WAY better than Bush Jr ever could... comparable to Reagan, I think), he's "Southern" (which is great if you want to carry the South, which the GOP needs), he's a practicing Catholic (which has far broader appeal in the Christian world than even I thought, recently... given Beck's propensity to quote the Pope), and he has a happy, healthy family that is every bit as photogenic as Obama's... I think he's the ONLY real choice right now.

Anyone think I'm wrong? Is there still any misunderstanding about what I was trying to say?