The 2012 Republican nomination process went on longer than most pundits predicted early on. While Mitt Romney began the season as the prohibitive favorite, he was tested repeatedly by what was seemingly the Republican flavor of the week (including Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich, and Rick Santorum). The sheer number of candidates who were viewed as legitimate contenders demonstrate the fundamental concern facing Republicans moving forward: a fractured party. The pro-business, Tea Party, and evangelical Christian wings disagreed in 2010 on who would provide the best alternative to Democratic President Barack Obama and as a result created a crippling nomination period. By the time Romney was able to claim victory, he was severely wounded after countless attacks from his fellow Republicans. To this internal discontent, we can also add the changing national demographics that could lead to electoral problems for Republicans in their own right. Consider that Mitt Romney did better with older, white male voters than John McCain had. Unfortunately, the share of the national vote for this demographic decreased from 2008 to 2012. As Rand Paul stated recently, the time has come for Republicans to reach out to individuals who do not fit the stereotyped Republican image if they have any hope of being successful. In this volume, we assess how the 2012 GOP nomination cycle is indicative of just how the Republican Party has become, in the words of pundit Cuck Warren, a "Mad Men Party in a Modern Family World."
Chapter One: The 2012 Republican Nomination Season: A Clown Car or Feuding Conservatives?, William J. Miller
Chapter Two: The Impact of Rules Changes on the 2012 Republican Presidential Primary Process, Joshua T. Putnam
Chapter Three: White Knights to the Rescue! The Non-Candidates of 2012, William Cunion
Chapter Four: The Curious Candidacy of Jon Huntsman, David F. Damore andKenneth J. Retzl
Chapter Five: Early to Rise, Early to Fall: The Short Lived Hope of Michele Bachmann, Jason Rich and Brandy A. Kennedy
Chapter Six: The Hermanator: Anti-Elitism and the Rise of Herman Cain, Andrew L. Pieper
Chapter Seven: Rick Perry: The Quickly Fading Star of Texas, Brian Arbour
Chapter Eight: Newt Gingrich: It Takes More than Ideas to Win a Nomination, Joshua P. Stockley
Chapter Nine: Ron Paul: Establishment Outsider or Radical Insider?, Jeremy D. Walling
Chapter Ten: Of Sweater Vests and Broken Dreams: Santorum's Almost Win, Daniel J. Coffey and Terrence M. O'Sullivan
Chapter Eleven: Mitt Romneyn++The Republican Choice, Sean D. Foreman
Chapter Twelve: The Victor's Reward and the Future of the GOP, William J. Miller
Chapter One: The 2012 Republican Nomination Season: A Clown Car or Feuding Conservatives?, William J. Miller Chapter Two: The Impact of Rules Changes on the 2012 Republican Presidential Primary Process, Joshua T. Putnam Chapter Three: White Knights to the Rescue! The Non-Candidates of 2012, William Cunion Chapter Four: The Curious Candidacy of Jon Huntsman, David F. Damore and Kenneth J. Retzl Chapter Five: Early to Rise, Early to Fall: The Short Lived Hope of Michele Bachmann, Jason Rich and Brandy A. Kennedy Chapter Six: The Hermanator: Anti-Elitism and the Rise of Herman Cain, Andrew L. Pieper Chapter Seven: Rick Perry: The Quickly Fading Star of Texas, Brian Arbour Chapter Eight: Newt Gingrich: It Takes More than Ideas to Win a Nomination, Joshua P. Stockley Chapter Nine: Ron Paul: Establishment Outsider or Radical Insider?, Jeremy D. Walling Chapter Ten: Of Sweater Vests and Broken Dreams: Santorum's Almost Win, Daniel J. Coffey and Terrence M. O'Sullivan Chapter Eleven: Mitt Romney-The Republican Choice, Sean D. Foreman Chapter Twelve: The Victor's Reward and the Future of the GOP, William J. Miller
