A preposterous 'what if' to toss around ......

One of DU's - and the Democratic Party's - new heros is Jim Webb. We all know he's not only a fomer Republican, but a former Republicn official in a Republican administration. He didn't just 'vote for Reagan', he worked for him, in his adminsitration.

I cite this as preamble to the preposterous 'what if' .... and also hasten to add that I really like Jim Webb and am thrilled he's part of our party.

So .... the 'what if' ........

We all know the Republics are in the middle of a civial war of sorts. The Neocons, the Religious Right, the Paleocons, and the old time Rockefeller Republicans are the four most prominent factions fighting for control.

Lincoln Chaffee was the victim of the times and of the Republics not wanting to heavily support those from certain factions of the party.

Rudy Guilliani leads most polls on Republican White House hopefuls for 2008, but is predicted, justifiably, to fail to gain the nomination of the party's base. On matters social, Rudy's much closer to our widely held positions than he is to the Republican Party's.

What if people like these two were to switch parties?

Would you support them? Would you vote for them if they ran for office?

In my own personal view, I could support a guy like Chaffee, but would never, ever, in my wildest dreams, support a guy like Guilliani.

I'd love to see what others think about this.

And while I called this 'what if' preposterous ....... maybe it isn't. I can honestly see Chaffee switching, particularly if he were a younger man. I can see other moderate to outright liberal Republicans (they must still exist somewhere ..... ) doing the same.

As an independent, I vote for the person, not the party. Somewhere along the last few years, we stopped being parties and started being teams. It became a win or lose scenario for each party, with members refusing to vote for the good of the country, but voting for what would project their respective party to a "win." This philosophy has resulted in the America you see today. No one running for the presidency really cares about the country; only what the country can do for them. It has become one for all and all for me.

If Lincoln Chafee switched parties I agree with you that he's worthy of our respect, attention, and support.

Not so Giulinani, who, no matter what masks he hides behind, nevertheless gives off a powerful stench. I consider him a mobster-like, narrow-minded and thuggish.

Good points also on Jim Webb. The Reagan/GOP past made me a little nervous, but I'm so ecstatic that Cement-Head Allen is no longer in the U.S. Senate that I can hardly see straight. Webb seems also to have evolved from earlier political scenarios under Reagan. He certainly tanned Dubya's hide in that SOTU response.

2003-2004 - General Wes Clark who voted for Reagan.

"He's war monger! He's neocon! He's a Republican plant to derail Howard Dean!"

2006 - Jim Webb, former Republican who WORKED for Ronald Reagan

"He's dreamy! We need more Dems like him! He's a "real Democrat."

In the words of Casey Kasum "It's ponderous! It's fuckin' ponderous!"

appeal to anybody. He's almost as bad a bootlicker as McCain, toadying up to Bush by deflecting blame from him to suggest the troops were to blame for the missing explosives in Iraq in 2004. The further out we get from his shining moment after 9/11, and that one excellent thing he said, the more irrelevant he gets, and he's got nothing else. No natural base.

I think Jim Webb is a populist through and through; I think he identifies with the common people and not with their monied overlords. I would be stunned if he switched parties. He's a future star, too, and he can do more to help—and be more of a standout at the same time—by being on our team.

I remember reading an extended piece about Chaffee in the NYT Magazine, I think, about 5 years ago. He is a strange man, as they described him. Not particularly ideological...he follows his own muse, is the most generous way to put it. I suppose he might get his old job back eventually, his state seemed to like him, but by that time his day might be done & his state will have moved on.

Things are sure in flux, as you say. It will be interesting to see how things shake out (if excruciating to live through).

either had a change of heart, or at least have good intentions. Like the first poster, I don't have a problem with Republicans per se, just the 99.9% of them that seem to enjoy ruining our country, just like I do not support Democratic politicians who break the law or otherwise act like typical Repubs.

Webb has ethics and principles, Rudy doesn't. Honestly, I really don't see Rudy crossing over to the light side. I don't know much about Chaffee, but I'd be willing to give anybody a listen who wants to run on a Democratic Party platform.

in the Republican party. If they switched to the Democrat party I would vote for them if they were running against a Republican. Likewise there are some real assholes in the Democrat party and I would not vote for them. Zell Miller comes to mind.

Really?