The American Spectator

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Barr Sounding Like Less of a Threat To McCain

By Philip Klein on 6.12.08 @ 1:40PM

I didn't get a chance to comment on Robert Stacy McCain's column from yesterday, but I would say that if Bob Barr continues to make a play for Ron Pual votes by allying himself with liberal foreign policy types on Iran, his chances of hurting John McCain in the general election will be greatly diminished.

The important thing to keep in mind about the potential Barr threat is that it isn't so much a matter of what percentage of the vote he is able to garner, but the type of voters he wins. If Barr stresses spending, gun rights, and hammers McCain on campaign finance reform, he could cause problems for McCain by stealing disgruntled conservatives. But if instead he focuses on foreign policy and his support is comprised mainly of the anti-war Paul coalition, while he may win a lot of votes, the votes won't be coming from those who would potentially support McCain, and thus he won't present a real threat.

topics:
Foreign Policy, John McCain, Iran