That same lethargic response is most likely the same across America as voters are feeling they have to settle for a candidate because of all the shenanigans of this Republican Primary.  It started with the RNC deciding candidates should debate as the way to get them to meet voters which has turned into a disaster and forced good people Tim Pawlenty out of the race thanks to the continual sniping of Bachman which she continued against Governor Perry who also left the race.  Republican debates sometimes back to back with liberal moderators turned into a bad joke. Bachman forgot who she was or never was this big conservative because she carried the water for Romney as she went after other candidates with biting attacks.  It also has not gone unnoticed that Ron Paul has been carrying the water for Romney by going after the other candidates as well.

What were Paul and Bachmann promised.  We know Bachmann wants to run for Senate so was she promised help from Rove and Crossroads along with the Koch Brothers to help her win the Senate?  What has Paul been promised by the Romney camp to keep him going after others.  The establishment decided to play dirty to get their man Romney elected and it has infuriated voters who understand what is happening, but what are the choices who are left that you would want to walk over glass to vote?  Don't see any still standing who would make me want to even go out in a thunderstorm to vote this time.

This is the first race that big money thanks to that strange ruling by SCOTUS on Citizens United has allowed the big donors to run the races openly.  One billionaire can keep a candidate in the race which is flat out wrong.  This whole primary is one big mess -- we will lay the chaos and voter irregularities at the feet of Bush 41 and his cartel of establishment donors, Karl Rove his puppet, Koch Brothers and their political arm Americans for Prosperity, Fox News with Roger Ailes, Drudge, and Rasmussen whose polling is all over the place to prop up the flavor of the week.  The biggest joke on some sites over the years has been Rasmussen changing his results at the last minute to be nearer the results of the election.

Then we have the so-called conservative pundits who work for Clear Channel which is owned by Bain same as Fox News radio who claim they are conservative and support the biggest moderate to liberal in the race, Romney, saying he has changed.  In only five years removed from being Governor of Massachusetts, we are expected to swallow the koolaid that his core principles did a 180 to make him more conservative.  I have swampland for sale in the Arizona desert if you believe that one.

Something has to be done with the primaries.  So far we have voter fraud in the first two states and what can we expect from SC today?
In South Carolina, the primaries are open, meaning registered Democrats can vote in the Republican primary on Saturday and still vote for their own party in the presidential election. Some more conservative Democrats and independents will be doing just that.
The order of primaries needs changed so we don't have blue states giving our candidate momentum or those with open primaries.  We might as well go back to the days of the brokered conventions and back room deals which turn out to be more honest then what we see today.

When you reach the bottom line, you realize that the three candidates with the experience to be a conservative President have all left the race -- Pawlenty, Huntsman, and Perry.  What does that say about our selection process -- it is has broken down completely.  We cannot trust the voting process to give us one man one vote so how we can trust the results of the Republican Primary?

Count this life long Republican as one person who thinks the way the RNC/DNC run the primaries as the reason we don't get better candidates.  Honesty and integrity are two words which are missing at the RNC and DNC which has voters on both sides up in arms.  The passion for the candidates in the Republican Party has not been there from Day One.  Then we realized what was happening with Rove and other consultants pulling the strings for the establishment.   If they had followed through with no candidates from 2008 running, we would have seen a much fairer race but when Romney got in the race, ethics and integrity went south as the establishment had their candidate.  Then we had the Fox pundits jump in with Dick Morris making the comment the media was going to choose the Republican candidate.  I hate to admit he was right.

Looks like the Republicans of South Carolina for the most part share that apathy toward the candidates.  Voters are mad at both national parties, the President, and at members of Congress who want to spend our tax dollars foolishly on boondoggles of their choosing.

Botton line is that we need a better way to choose our nominees by allowing the American voters to decide, not the wealthy donors, not the media including the pundits, and not the pollsters.  Anyone with good ideas on how this can be done better needs to start speaking out as the primary selection process has reached an all time low in 2012 surpassing 2008 which we didn't think possible but we were wrong.

Where do conservatives go next?  My recommendation is to volunteer for House and Senate races because we need to Take the Senate and Keep the House.  We elected some really good people to the House in the last election like Cong Allen West of Florida, Cong James Lankford of Oklahoma, and Marco Rubio also of Florida for starters who are not only standing up for conservative principles but listen to their constituents as evidenced by Marco Rubio pulling his support for the internet privacy bill.  We need more in both houses so don't let the Presidential race get you down, get energized by helping elect good conservatives to the House and Senate -- they need your help and your donations.
With Hours to Decide, Few Are Willing to Commit
 By Published: January 20, 2012 
BELTON, S.C. — Heidi Trull does not usually allow customers to talk politics or religion at Grits and Groceries, her restaurant here in the farmland that defines the northwest corner of the state. 
People’s opinions are usually too strong. And a heated argument can ruin a good dish of Carolina shrimp and grits.

But Friday afternoon, less than 24 hours before the state’s Republican presidential primary, her ban on political talk did not matter one bit.

No one had found a candidate they liked enough to argue for.

From country restaurants like this one to suburban shopping malls in Spartanburg and espresso bars in Greenville, voters facing four options in the Republican primary seemed to shrug and say, “I haven’t decided.”

As South Carolina residents began voting today, polls were showing Newt Gingrich gaining ground on Mitt Romney while Ron Paul and Rick Santorum battled for third place. But those polls do not always reflect what is happening on the ground, particularly in a region that has emerged as a coveted electoral battleground.

Thursday’s debate swung some undecided voters from one camp to another and back again. A relentless barrage of political ads only added to the confusion.

Thus, in a state known for its fickle, independent political nature, people appear to be waiting until they step into a voting both to decide.

“I said I was going to vote for Newt, but now I don’t know,” said Kathy Matasavage, 53, who moved here nine years ago and waits tables at Grits and Groceries. “All of these ads and debates are just so negative. You think you have your mind made up, and then there is craziness and more craziness.”

Thursday’s debate, which pivoted partly around demands that Mr. Romney release his tax returns and accusations by one of Mr. Gingrich’s former wives that he had asked for an open marriage, had an effect.

Kim Raines, 35, who was shearing a schnauzer named Dickens at a pet grooming shop in Spartanburg, was all set to vote for Mr. Gingrich until she heard part of an interview with his second wife, Marianne Gingrich, that was shown Thursday after the debate.

“I’m a cheated-on woman, so Newt getting in that scandal was a big thing to me,” she said. So now Ms. Raines, who has two children, is leaning toward Mr. Romney because he seems more of a leader.

Conversely, the interview and Mr. Gingrich’s combative response to questions about his marital past pushed C. W. Harris, a life insurance salesman in Greenville, into the Gingrich camp. “The more they attack Newt, the more I want to support him,” he said.

The issue of Mr. Romney’s wealth, how he got it and whether he should release his tax returns seemed to have less resonance with some voters.

At a small debate viewing party in Greer on Thursday night filled with people supporting different candidates, no one said that seeing Mr. Romney’s tax returns would make a difference. Nor did they care that he made millions as head of the private equity firm Bain Capital, which his opponents claim ruined lives by closing companies.

“It doesn’t bother me that he is wealthy,” said Linda Tapp, 65, a retired medical office worker. “That tells me he knows how to handle finances.”

To be sure, some voters know exactly what they want.

Patricia Seiber, a school secretary, will vote for Mr. Santorum. “I have 5 sons and 17 grandchildren, and we are all for him,” she said.

Sandra Sperry, who was buying toys for her grandchildren, is a Gingrich supporter all the way.

“He is a smart politician, and I want someone who can beat Obama,” she said. “It is going to take one to beat one.”

In South Carolina, the primaries are open, meaning registered Democrats can vote in the Republican primary on Saturday and still vote for their own party in the presidential election. Some more conservative Democrats and independents will be doing just that.

Janie Dillard, 63, is one of them. She calls herself a yellow-dog Democrat, but will vote for Mr. Romney on Saturday. “He’s as close as you can get to Obama on the Republican side,” she said.

Excerpt: Read More at The New York Times