John Fund reports,
A big threat to President Bush’s re-election could come if his conservative base chooses not to turn out and vote in large numbers this fall. That’s one reason he told a congressional Republican retreat on Saturday that he supports spending caps on the exploding federal budget. But the president could also still face a challenge from a social conservative running as a third-party candidate.
In the past such candidacies have fizzled. But Roy Moore, the ousted Alabama Supreme Court justice who made headlines last year by refusing to remove a Ten Commandments monument he placed on public property, could make a difference in a close race. And just last week, he refused to rule out a presidential candidacy.
A lot of people want him to run. Last Saturday, Mr. Moore was a featured speaker at the Christian Coalition’s “Family and Freedom” rally in Atlanta. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported he was “treated like a rock star, signing autographs and getting thunderous standing ovations.” The week before that, Mr. Moore was the speaker at a dinner in Lancaster, Pa., sponsored by the Constitution Party, which has the third-largest number of registered voters in the U.S. and whose presidential candidate, Howard Phillips, was on 41 state ballots in 2000.
During a question-and-answer period, Mr. Moore was asked if he would run for president. “Not right now,” he said, noting he is still appealing his dismissal from office for violating a federal court’s order to remove the monument from the Alabama Supreme Court building. “I have to wait till all these things are done to decide my future.” His friends say he is undecided about whether to run for president or to wait two years and seek Alabama’s governorship.
While I don’t think Moore will drain enough votes to seriously hurt President Bush in the Deep South if John Kerry is his opponent–Bush is still quite popular with the religious conservative part of the base–his impact could be significant in places like Florida where the vote will be tighter. And if John Edwards somehow gets the nomination, a Moore candidacy would be fatal unless he’s counterbalanced by a significant spoiler on the Left.
Hat tip: Dean Esmay
