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Richard Viguere's Conservative HQ had this article:
h xxp://www.conservativehq.com/article/4937-values-voter-summit-final-%E2%80%93-ron-paul-reluctant-%E2%80%98king%E2%80%99
h xxp://www.conservativehq.com/article/4937-values-voter-summit-final-%E2%80%93-ron-paul-reluctant-%E2%80%98king%E2%80%99
Values Voter Summit Final – Ron Paul, the Reluctant ‘King’
By Jeffrey A. Rendall | 10/9/11
Judging by the amount of enthusiasm exhibited by supporters, the results of the 2011 Values Voter Summit Straw Poll falls right in line with volume of cheers exhibited for the candidates during their speeches. Rep. Ron Paul earned yet another straw poll victory, tallying an impressive 37% of the total vote. Herman Cain came in a distant second at 23%, with Rick Santorum picking up a somewhat surprising third-place finish at 16%.
Santorum’s high finish could possibly be explained by his speaking position on the first day, coming immediately before the first intermission on Friday. As noted in my report, Santorum offered quite an emotional speech to these socially conservative voters – quite a lot of motivation for those who might’ve wanted to do some “early voting.” (Note: Straw poll voting was available throughout the Summit, so you could vote before hearing all the speeches.)
Herman Cain’s second place finish also was somewhat predictable, as his rousing address on Friday afternoon certainly got a lot of people excited. Based on past experience, Paul always does well in these types of polls (testimony to the depth of his supporters’ enthusiasm and some excellent campaign organizational skills), but it was a little surprising to see Cain “only” get about a quarter of the vote.
The result has to be somewhat disheartening for Michele Bachmann, a candidate who is clearly looking for some sort of a boost in the 2011 campaign. Bachmann came in 5th at 8%, closely behind Gov. Rick Perry, also at 8% (Perry had ten more total votes). Bachmann said she wanted to ‘send a message’ to President Obama by winning the straw poll, but the only implication from the results is that her campaign continues to flounder.
Mitt Romney ended up sixth – and the good news for him is he didn’t come in last… Newt Gingrich earned that dubious honor, finishing one percentage point behind Romney at 3% (Jon Huntsman got only two votes, so technically he came in last – but those two votes must have either been a mistake or cast by good friends. Gary Johnson wasn’t on the ballot – but with his libertarian views…).
Paul also was the preferred choice of Summit attendees for Vice President, garnering over 14% of the total vote (there were 21 choices, so earning that share of the vote is actually pretty impressive). Bachmann came in second at 12%, with Cain taking the third spot at 11%. Sen. Marco Rubio was fourth at 10%, the highest finish of any non-speaker at the event.
(Full results of both polls below)
What does it mean?
Paul’s strength in straw polls is well documented – the question is whether he can grow his appeal outside of the somewhat controlled environment of conferences such as this. He did finish a close second at the Iowa straw poll (which was virtually ignored by the media and the Republican pundit class), but his national polling numbers just don’t seem to go higher than 10%.
For someone who said we don’t need a “king” in his speech on Saturday morning, he’s certainly become the “king” of straw polls.
There’s no doubt that Paul’s ideas (at least on domestic policy) have now become part of the Republican mainstream, but his sincere non-interventionist foreign policy views likely won’t allow for a much broader appeal. The congressman’s discussion of the merits of “peace” at the Summit was a different take on his overall philosophy, but who knows how such an argument would be received by the public at large.
The news is probably much better for Herman Cain, though his second place finish on Saturday isn’t going to win him much attention like his win in the recent Florida straw poll accomplished. Simply put, not many people really care who finished second, and it’s not like Cain was in competition for the victory with the Values Voters. He finished 14% behind Paul – not even close enough for government’s work.
The same could be true for Rick Santorum, though his third place finish here was quite a bit better than he’s done anywhere else. At the very least, it might give his supporters enough hope for him to stay on the campaign trail a little longer. Beyond that? Time will tell, though he doesn’t even seem to be an attractive VP candidate. Maybe he’s just having fun running for president.
Losers?
Bachmann, Perry, Romney and Gingrich.
Bachmann because she should have done better here. Ditto for Rick Perry, who managed to once again under-inspire conservative voters and leave even more people wondering if he has the charisma to win the top job. Romney because no one is excited about his candidacy – and if his campaign doesn’t dump tons of money into getting people to vote for him in these straw polls, he simply cannot win them.
And Gingrich because finishing ahead of only Jon Huntsman (who wasn’t even there) is flat out embarrassing. He did have a respectable 8% showing in the Vice Presidential vote – and this seems to be where he’d fit in the best at this point.
One note: After the 2007 Values Voter Summit, Sen. Sam Brownback dropped out. If these candidates are truly serious about finding the best alternative to Barack Obama – as they all professed to be during their speeches – some of them should consider dropping out and letting the top four or five candidates battle it out for the remaining votes.
It may sound cruel, but several of them are just taking up space on stage at this point – there’s only so much voter oxygen for the Republican Party’s lungs.
The afternoon’s final speakers
Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (of Ohio) was the first speaker after lunch, a good choice for the conference organizers, because Jordan’s like a ball of energy. The former wrestling champion spoke without notes and delivered a tight fifteen minute presentation on the principles we need to defend as a country.
“Faith, family and freedom – that’s really what it’s all about,” Jordan said
Jordan proceeded to provide examples of all three principles, injecting personal anecdotes to emphasize his points. “Parenting is the most intimidating task I’ve ever undertaken, but it’s also the most rewarding.”
His RSC work is certainly vital and interesting, but the people wanted to hear about his wrestling career – and Jordan didn’t disappoint. Talking about the lessons he learned while growing up with a loving father and strict wrestling coach, Jordan said it all comes down to discipline.
“Discipline is doing what you don’t want to do when you don’t want to do it,” Jordan offered.
It’s funny how simple personal principles can have such meaning in all other endeavors – particularly politics.
Beck brings down the house
Talk show host/New Media entrepreneur Glenn Beck was the final speaker at the Values Voter Summit, and in his typical fashion, delivered an emotionally charged speech that held everyone’s attention for more than a half hour.
Beck used Lincoln’s second inaugural address (With malice towards none…) as the foundation of his talk to emphasize the need for Americans to stop relying on government to provide the handouts -- and not only take personal responsibility for your own actions, but get involved serving others.
Beck said he didn’t want to talk about politics, and for the most part, stayed away from the fray. He did mention the only presidential candidate he’d favor is one who’d say, “If you live in Northern Virginia, Maryland or DC, your property values are going to plummet. They don’t create anything in this town except paperwork and chaos.”
Like several others over the course of two days, Beck focused on cultural issues. When talking about the Left, he offered a bit of a history lesson: “It is the Robin Hood mentality, but Robin Hood didn’t steal from the rich – he was returning the wealth to the people that had it stolen from them by the tax collectors. Let’s at least get the story of Robin Hood right.”
“If God is going to judge us, we should serve him. And the best way to serve him is to serve our fellow human beings. That’s what makes America great.”
“ I sense a hunger in America to just be good. We may get it wrong from time to time, but we are good. And we’re waiting for the opportunity to be good.”
Beck literally trembled with emotion as he spoke – quite the showman. Sincerity is not a problem for Beck, but at times he seemed to go over the top.
But maybe that’s what America needs in its time of crisis – a little urgency. For sure, Beck was the right one to provide it.
“Can man rule himself? I suggest the answer is yes. Find your role. Accept the challenge.”
With that, the 2011 Values Voter Summit concluded.
Poll Results:
Presidential Candidate Total Votes Percentage:
Michele Bachmann 157 8%
Herman Cain 447 23%
Newt Gingrich 54 3%
Jon Huntsman 2 0%
Ron Paul 732 37%
Rick Perry 167 8%
Mitt Romney 88 4%
Rick Santorum 323 16%
Undecided 13 1%
Vice Presidential Candidate Responses:
Michele Bachmann 240 12%
Herman Cain 226 11%
Chris Christie 33 2%
Mitch Daniels 17 1%
Jim DeMint 63 3%
Newt Gingrich 159 8%
Niki Haley 15 1%
Mike Huckabee 54 3%
Jon Huntsman 24 1%
Bobby Jindal 52 3%
Thad McCotter 8 0%
Bob McDonnell 41 2%
Sarah Palin 21 1%
Ron Paul 285 14%
Tim Pawlenty 9 0%
Rick Perry 37 2%
Marco Rubio 198 10%
Mitt Romney 28 1%
Paul Ryan 61 3%
Rick Santorum 181 9%
Undecided 231 12%
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