Is Palin and Romney just Hillary and Obama 2?

So before I went to work with a client this morning, I came along this article in the Cincinnati Enquirer. Which reminded me of what happened in the 2008 primary between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

" Former and probably future GOP presidential contender Mitt Romney didn't draw even half as many people for his book-signing at Joseph-Beth Booksellers here Thursday as potential rival Sarah Palin did last fall." via Cincinnati Enquirer.

Its really not hard to the see the parallels between the two sets of candidates, so I am surprised that more people haven't brought it up. Romney is the less exciting, less personable policy wonk with loads of experience ie Hillary. Palin is the exciting, fresh face, with less experience and less policy ie Obama. Everyone thinks that Romney is the best suited for the job but Palin brings in the large crowds and energizes people to come out and donate money. Romney has paid his dues, and continues to by giving money to candidates and Palin pretty much just appeared and riding the wave of conservative populism and anti-Washington feeling.

This is probably not unique in terms of political history, there is always an older more established candidate and that young gun who rides on feeling. It is also way to early to know if thats going to be the two main primary candidates, since Palin is more of a political celebrity at this point. I have no doubt Romney is running, I just doubt whether Palin is going to give up her bank-ability to run a very uphill campaign.

"One of the first people in line to get an autographed book was 30-year-old Jodi Reaves of Beattyville, Ky., who wore a T-shirt that said "Proud Conservative" and "Romney-Palin 2012."

"That would be my dream ticket," Reaves said. "As long as Mitt is on the top of the ticket.""

Yea, heard that before...

Florida: The two...three...or four man race?

Well Florida will certainly be a fun election this fall, if by fun it might mean an all out crazy election and clash of egos. Formerly the presumptive Republican nominee for senate, Governor Charlie Crist had to jump that ship and board the S.S. Save My Political Career. He announced yesterday he was going to run as an independent, which set up a three way race with tea party bolstered Mark Rubio and the Democrat Kendrick Meek.

And just when you thought that was going to be it, a billionaire decides to run because what else is there to do in Florida these days. Jeff Greene will now challenge Meeks in the Democratic Primary. Greene might not have the endorsements that Meek has lined up but he will already have a money advantage and seems like he has a lot of personality...with his colorful associates, like Mike Tyson and Heidi Fleiss. I think if anything it will help bolster the Democrat going into the fall since it requires Meeks to now start running adds and getting his name out there. Meeks doesn't do all that well in the race so far, coming in usually in last place in a three way contest.

It's very odd, Crist was considered to be a future star of the GOP. He would have been a good candidate for 2012 considering he actually gets good support from groups traditionally favored to the Democrat; like the Jewish community and African Americans. He is also allegedly gay, so sure he could easily get a higher percentage of the gay vote. But here we are, Crist striking out on his own to make sure his career doesn't crash and burn in a Republican primary.

It will be hard for him to win; no organization, no infrastructure, and will be cash strapped compared to Rubio and whoever the Democrat is. This isn't going to be like Lieberman's 06 run, which was in a much smaller state and he barely lost his primary. It will definitely be fascinating to watch, especially if Meek somehow wins the seat. Crist will be forever cut off from the GOP, cause if he wins the seat the party will definitely make a move to get him to caucus with them.

As Tebow would say, "The juice level is high"

Beginnings and Endings

So part of why I got sidetracked over the weekend and earlier week, my life got a lot more complicated. I had tried to end a relationship in order to start a new one and that didn't happen. It turned into trying to save the old relationship, which right now seems good, and ending the new one before it got serious, which I kind of regret. I'm giving this one more chance, since I realize a lot of the problems were my own doing and I want to change that. I made the decision and I will fulfill it.

My cousin was killed in an accident on Monday, so thats a blow. Not that it hits me on a personal level, its just a tragedy. He had been a loser and drug addict for a long time and finally was getting himself together again. I guess its good he was able to redeem himself before he passed, even if it was short.

No such thing as wasting time, or shouldn't be.

Josh McDaniels and Tim Tebow: Juicy Love

I need to get some Broncos Tebow pictures soon, but its not bad to remember those Gator Glory Days...considering it might be all we have.

"I was jacked leaving that room. I didn't even want to visit another room. It was not enough time," Tebow said. "We were excited, we were enthusiastic. There was passion. It was just intense, and it was ball, and it was juice. The juice level in that room was high, and it was awesome." Via Denver Post.

Juice Level is high? Maybe its a Florida thing, I've never really heard someone use Juice as a gauge of excitement. I guess when you come from a state that depends mightly on Orange Juice for the economy, the word Juice comes to mean many things. I want to say its stupid but honestly, I want to start using Juice in more conversations like this. I do love the way Tim Tebow talks, his press conferences are enjoyable. He deifnitely has a Miss America way of speaking, not stupid but sorta too nice and too on script.

Pundits and Fans might not be happy with McDaniels with picking Tebow with a 1st round pick, and we won't really know Tebow's potential for some time. However he is paying off in terms of business, he has the fastest selling jersey of this year's draft class and already more than Sanchez's jersey from last year.

I want one.

We have a Quarterback

So after teasing Browns Fans through several rounds of the draft, the team finally selected Colt McCoy with the 85th pick overall. I was beginning to lose hope they were going to draft him since Holmgren did make a statement earlier Friday about how they had other picks to make. Of course, football is a lot like politics...no one ever really means what they say. So with building suspense and then adding a flourish of drama with Mac Brown, Texas Coach, making the announcement; the Browns got their franchise quarterback.

I'm overall pretty happy with the Browns draft, it was definitely better than the ones they have had the past couple of years. I doubt there will be a play off run this year but maybe we can at least get to 500. An interesting note, Jordan Shipley was drafted by the Bengals; so now the fantastic Texas scoring duo are on rival teams. Well you know what they say....Ohio is made for Lovers.

Draft Day! Sequel

Some the first round is done and done, and the big news coming out is that Tim Tebow was taken by the Broncos. The Broncos traded back in the first round for a second time to pick up Tebow with the 25th pick overall. I am most surprised it was the Broncos that took him, considering they have both Orton and took Brady Quinn in an off season trade. Apparently McDaniels, Bronco's coach, had some very strong feelings for Tebow. I can relate to that, I also have strong feelings for Tebow. The Bills were going to make a play for him in the second round but looks like they were taken him for granted. I'm somewhat torn about this, I really wanted Quinn to become the starter for the Broncos but now...ah...damn it.

Other points of interests.

Big 12, especially Oklahoma, had the most round pics with the SEC following after that. It definitely gives you an idea of where the power or high end talent is going and coming from in the NCAA football.

Jimmy Clausen is still in the draft, even though he was rated to be a top 10 talent and thought to have been gone in the first ten picks. He should go in the second round, if not in the beginning of it unless McCoy is grabbed first. I feel bad for the guy, you get all that hype and then it comes crashing down.

Should be a lot of fun trade deals going on today, like to see how the Browns continue to rebuild their team.

Draft Day!

So between the dry spell of the Super Bowl and the Pre Season, football fans get a brief respite with Draft Day....or Weekend really. I know some people bitch about the length of the Draft, no over 3 days, but I'm happy about it. I have something to watch again, and its allows for endless amounts of pointless sports punditry.

Major Story lines

Well to me anyway, I wanted to break down some story lines I care about coming into this Draft selection.

Browns: Another rebuilding season for the Browns, or well maybe not as badly as before. Mangini is in his second year, and Holmgren isn't new to running a team but few think they are on the path to success. They've made some major changes to the QB position, and there is definite speculation will draft another QB to be their future. The rest of the team is definitely in need for upgrading and it will be interesting to see how Holmgren begins to put his fingerprint on the team's direction.

I know its presumptuous to think that the Browns will be a play off team this year but the AFC North is influx. Steelers are looking at climbing out of hole with Big Ben out for at least 4 games. The Ravens look like the team to beat coming in, I have real doubts the Bengals will be able to repeat their last season sweep of the division. The Browns are on a four game win streak, maybe it will continue on.

AFC EAST: The Patriots look like they are in serious trouble of repeating their champion run of that division. The Jets have continued to gain talent and develop even further, Miami has also been making steady improvements since their one win season. The Bills seem to be the only team thats worse off than they were last year, but the draft could change that. The Patriots haven't made a lot of off season moves so far so the draft will be telling.

The Patriots are a dynasty for a reason: staying power and consistently good performance. They still have Brady and Belichick, so I still believe in them. They will just have to perform better than they did last year, which seems like it will be a guarantee. Brady will be healthier and better synced since being off a year, just hope Rex gets back as quickly as possible.

Tim Tebow: Whether you like him or not, Tim Tebow is the talk of the draft for various reasons. Everyone wants to know when he will go and who he will be drafted by. Most people think he won't go till the 2nd or 3rd round, though one expert said there was an 80% change he would go in the first. I hope the Patriots pick him up, Belichick would do great things with him. Apparently Urban Meyer, Tebow's college coach, is friends and talks with Belichick...so it seems like a definite possibility. Tebow on the Pats, two good things going together...one can dream.