Dobbs 2012: A Nightmare for Republicans

Lou Dobbs has dropped big hints that he plans a career in politics, and the GOP should be worried, warns Joe Conason. A presidential run by Dobbs seems like a strong possibility, but he won't be running as a Republican, Conason writes for Salon. Instead, the newly departed CNN anchor looks likely to run as an independent, drawing on the same "resentful remnant" the GOP is counting on in 2012.

There's more to Dobbs than just rants about illegal immigration and birth certificates, Conason writes. He has long attacked the GOP for "free-market idolatry," and blasted corporate greed in a way that won't fit in with today's Republican Party. Given the history of third-party candidacies, Dobb's departure from CNN "may mark the beginning of a political nightmare for conservatives," Conason warns.
(More Lou Dobbs stories.)