Duncan Hunter Drops Out; Thompson Next?

The field of solidly Christian candidates for President continues to thin and could thin even more before the Florida primaries on January 29th.


Duncan Hunter dropped out of the race after posting a lackluster 2% in the Nevada caucuses yesterday. Percentage-wise, that was the best Hunter had done in any of the early states (Iowa, New Hampshire, Michigan, Nevada, South Carolina), save for Wyoming, where one delegate vote equaled 8%. But that best wasn't nearly good enough, especially considering how much time and effort Hunter concentrated into that state. Obviously, his strategy wasn't nearly as effective as Ron Paul's; Paul finished second in the Silver State.


Hunter faced an uphill battle from the start. Like every other so-called "second-tier" candidate, he suffered from a lack of name-recognition. A Rudy, Fred, or Mitt, he is not. However, unlike Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul, Hunter failed to climb the ladder of publicity and ignite significant excitement about his candidacy. Huckabee has energized conservative Christians and social conservatives in general. Paul has energized...well, somebody. I'm not quite sure what his demographic is, but he's inspired it nonetheless.


Found wanting in the area of popularity, Hunter could have benefited from a notch of executive experience in his belt. Although he has worked in the realms of defense and foreign policy, Hunter has only ever been a U.S. Representative. He can't tout "running a government," being a governor or mayor, like Giulani, Huckabee, and Romney can.


The longer the campaign season went, the less likely it appeared Hunter would have a shot. Television debates stopped inviting him and journalists rarely uttered his name. This lowered visibility perhaps made him lesser known today than he was two or three months ago. On top of that, all the voters which would have gravitated towards him began to coalesce around other candidates with better perceived chances of winning.

Potentially the most completely, consistently, and fervently conservative candidate in the race, Hunter would shore up weaknesses on just about any Republican ticket. By choosing not to endorse a candidate, Hunter has left the door open to be anyone's vice presidential candidate.


With Hunter out, this site is down to only one currently supportable candidate. Temporarily, I've decided to leave it this way. However, I am considering Fred Thompson as a back-up plan.

That, however, may be short-lived. Thompson put all his eggs in South Carolina's basket, and South Carolina only gave him a bronze medal. He could be pulling out soon, as well.

So, conservative Christians experienced a triple whammy yesterday: Duncan Hunter ending his campaign, Fred Thompson perhaps having his campaign ended for him (practically speaking), and Mike Huckabee being handed a painful defeat in South Carolina to John McCain.

But we must not stay down on ourselves. We must get up to fight another day.

**Click here to read Duncan Hunter's official statement.

***I'll have updated rankings in my next "Ranking Their Positions" post.