Donald Trump waves after addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)WASHINGTON — Conservatives are fired up to defeat President Barack Obama. Now the hard part: finding their candidate.
A year until the Iowa caucuses, this important part of the GOP base hasn’t rallied around any one person and it doesn’t seem all that enthusiastic about its options — even though more than a dozen Republicans, and counting, are considering candidacies.
The polite — but hardly overwhelming — receptions for auditioning Republican hopefuls and the wary voices in the audience at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend underscored the challenge facing those weighing bids and the predicament facing a GOP searching for a nominee strong enough to overtake an incumbent president.
Such restiveness among conservatives also portends a volatile and unpredictable nomination race as Republicans with similar policy positions try to convince skeptics they alone can unite a cultural, economic and security-focused right — and win.
Looking for Reagan