What if?

As we know, the phrase, “What if?” opens doors in our minds to think through things that might happen. I have a great what if question.

Last night it rained all night. I would have had trouble sleeping any way had I been alone in the bed. Of course, I wasn’t. The rain bothered both my wife and our two cats– all of whom share my bed. So around 4:30 this morning, I woke up and couldn’t fall back asleep.  I just lay there. My subconscious mind took over and planted an interesting question in my mind.

Last night Mitt Romney won the Republican primary in Michigan. This means that Gov. Huckabee, Sen. McCain and Gov. Romney each have one victory to boast about. (Actually, Romney won the Wyoming Caucus, but that didn’t get any media attention, so to all intents and purposes, this was Romney’s first win.)

Next up is Saturday’s South Carolina primary. The polls show that Sen. Fred Thompson has been gaining considerable ground, ever since New Hampshire.   http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/south_carolina/election_2008_south_carolina_republican_primary

What if Sen. Thompson wins in South Carolina? And then what if Mayor Giuliani wins in Florida? http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/florida/election_2008_florida_republican_primary

If this scenario comes to be, there would be five Republican contenders with a legitimate claim to being the front runner. If this were to happen, could  the primary campaign will continue all the way through to Super Tuesday with no one candidate emerging as the clear leader?

If this were to happen, and the results from Super Tuesday were to be mixed, could the Republican Convention in September in the Twin Cities http://www.gopconvention2008.com/ be an open convention where no one candidate arrives with a clear majority?

If that were to happen the convention probably would  be a multi-ballot affair. Can you imagine the great joy that such a situation would bring to the 24/7 cable news networks? We could have non-stop presidential politics going on all the way through November! They would love it!

The thought is  fascinating. Delegates could become celebrities overnight!

Procedural skirmishes would be treated as major battles!

 The world would get to see people in funny hats rising to declare that all x number of delegates from the Great State of y, the ___ state, the state where [insert slogan] proudly cast their votes for the next President of the United States, z.

Whoever the Democratic presidential nominee is, he or she would have to fight for air time. A major policy address by the Democratic nominee would be ignored, while the talking heads and reporters on the convention floor chased down rumors that there was a split in the Kentucky delegation. Pundits could spew forth instant wisdom concerning the likelihood that of the latest rumor. Political trivia would become well known in the attempt to fill up air time.

Personally, my fondest hope is that someone will do a replay an event from a convention from long ago where the delegation from Puerto Rico requested a poll of the delegation on a vote to adjourn for lunch. If memory serves me right that happened at the GOP Convention in 1956, but since I was seven years old when that happened, I might be off on the year.

 The decision to hold the convention in September could prove to the most important decision made by either party in the course of the entire election cycle.