Buttigieg woos 'future former Republicans' in wide-open N.H. primary

[brooklynite]

Politico

ROCHESTER, N.H. — As Pete Buttigieg boarded his campaign bus Monday afternoon, a New Hampshire voter stopped him to ask if campaign staffers were hawking “Republicans for Pete” stickers yet.

They aren’t. But Buttigieg, who’s staking out center-left ground in the Democratic presidential primary, is trying to build a coalition of unaffiliated voters to go along with Democrats and make a surprise splash in the open-primary state featuring two senators-next-door, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, campaigning on the left.

At town halls during his latest swing across New Hampshire, Buttigieg name-checked “future former Republicans” in the same breath as “progressives and moderates ... ready for some kind of change.” His organizers are targeting independent voters from the new field offices Buttigieg opened this fall. And while Buttigieg is polling well in both Iowa and New Hampshire right now, jockeying for first place in the caucus state and breaking into double-digits in several recent polls of each state, the presence of non-Democrats in the New Hampshire Democratic primary — unlike Iowa’s closed caucus system — could prove decisive in a tight Democratic nominating race that has divided sharply along ideological lines in recent months.
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“We’re running in the Democratic primary and I’m running on the values that make me a Democrat, but there is room for a lot of people,” Buttigieg said. “We’re definitely going to make sure we’re reaching out and cultivating folks who are ready to cross sides.”

[Buckeyeblue]

1. Pete has a great ground game

I'm just not convinced swing voters would swing to him in a general election. Trump will stick him with some homophobic nickname. And sadly a good bit of the country is homophobic still.

I'm not saying we should not vote for him if we think he is the best candidate. I'm just expressing my concern.

[democrank]

4. It's my guess that more voters will care about his intelligence and service to his country

than his sexual orientation. Whenever he speaks, I listen.

[Buckeyeblue]

5. I would hope so.

[Cosmocat]

6. Likely, however whoever the nominee is going to be negatively cast cause that is what Rs do

and the media EAGERLY channels.

Bush II a dumbass was cast at "a guy you would like to have a beer with!'
Gore, a decent and highly capable man was cast as "a lying elitist!"

Bush II let the second worst attack against this country happen on his watch and avoided actual service in Vietnam was cast as "resolute and kept us safe!"
John Kerry, a decorated vet who was wounded in service was cast as a weakling.

A complete moraless sociopath was cast as wtf he he was cast as ...
A decent and highly capable Hillary was cast as the devil incarnate.

Bernie will be a socialist, EW will be hate framed as a woman and socialist, Biden will be dirtied up ...

No matter how often they do and how mind numbingly stupid it always is, this country ALWAYS buys whatever shit they sell. I mean we spent months as a country debating how horrible it was that BHO did not wear a flag lapel pin ...

[patricia92243]

9. Yes! And I believe Pete can handle it the best. When Trump said Pete looked

like Alfred E. Newman, Pete came back with something like: Well, I at least contributed to him reading (or something like that.) It was funny when Pete said it.

[Happyhippychick]

7. I heard "they'll never elect a black man" and "they'll never elect Trump"

Guess what?

[patricia92243]

2. "Future Former Republicans." Love his way of putting things in such a cleaver

and catchy way.

[TidalWave46]

8. Very unique way to say Republicans.

I like Buttigieg a lot.

[Renew Deal]

3. This is what makes NH unpredictable

You never know for sure who will vote.