Now that John Edwards and Rudy Giuliani are officially powdered toast and off the presidential buffet, the races are reduced to two Democrats and two Republicans. Mike Huckabee is a spoiler now for the fractured GOP, costing Mitt Romney enough votes to make him appear more like a silver medalist to John McCain's gold. Huckabee will gladly settle for bronze if it means a looksee as veep. McCain would be insane to even consider the notion, and because he is, he will.
Rush-ribbed conservatives hate McCain with a man-crush purity that's both touching and disturbing. They want all of him, but on their terms. His independence on campaign-finance reform, judicial nominees and immigration means he must be destroyed because if he loved them, he'd do what they say.
The others who've come wooing are so-so suitors. Ron Paul? A non-starter. Romney? Feh. And don't get them started on Huckabee. They want to draft someone -- anyone -- who might save them from the ash heap.
Maybe Newt Gingrich, they consider. Maybe Fred Thompson, again. The most warped souls want Dick Cheney to announce a bid to succeed President Bush. Anything to create a brokered convention. But a bandage atop a sucking chest wound will not save Republicans from November.
Could Ralph Nader? The former consumer advocate is "exploring" a 2008 presidential bid, a prospect that shrivels the scrotums of some Democratic strategists who remember Nader not for his Corvair criticism but for the banderillas he put into Al Gore's flanks in 2000.
This time out he'll draw the kook vote -- no help to the GOP. Only the Democrats can save Republicans, and they have a bizarre habit of doing just that. Twenty years ago this July, Mike Dukakis had a 17-point lead over then-Vice President George H.W. Bush. Dukakis proceeded to tank -- literally -- and he slunk into the tall grass in the backyard, where the ghost of Adlai Stevenson hangs out. John Kerry can sometimes he found here with a machete, cutting an aimless path while mumbling about Swift Boats and pajamas.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama left standing, either one strong going into November, neither one looking like a candidate for the tall grass. But stranger things have happened in American politics, and the 20-year cycle for weirdness is due. Everything is too predictable right now in the race for president. The outcome seems too pat. Something must come to spoil the fun.
12 comments:
"Rush-ribbed conservatives hate McCain with a man-crush purity that's both touching and disturbing."
What's that? That there, my good man, is the sound of … you guess it: My ass cracking up!
"Everything is too predictable right now in the race for president."
What? True balls. What exactly has been predicted and by whom?
I heard that, Mr. Davis. I heard that.
If anyone can screw this up, it's the democrats.
I love politics!
I'm no ditto-head, or whatever the Limbaugh fans call themselves; but I am a citizen of Arizona.
McCain is no "maverick" - he's just a pompous, "I know better than you" globalist.
The real situation with illegal immigration here in Arizona is barely covered in the MSM - and when it is, a bleeding-heart spin is put on it. It's hard to find a story about what it's doing to those who live here legally, whether they are black, white, brown, or red.
Legal immigration is fine - but what's happening here is a horrific mess.
From the environment to the intrastructure, everything is under terrific stress.
McCain, Huckabee, Clinton, Obama, they will ALL make the situation worse with their winks and nods at border security and outright support for amnesty.
ANYONE who has actually taken the time to READ THE DETAILS of the McCain/Kennedy bill knows it was horrific for the American economy and security.
Gawd, I hope the people of Missouri show some sense. I lived in central MO for a while - at that time the people had brains; I hope they still do.
Amen, brother. John McCain is nothing but a Democrat in a Republican suit.
But I take exception to the use of the words "ash heap." In my opinion, Socialism, as represented by the Democrat party is what will end up on an ash heap.
Legislation, higher taxes, bigger government and more social entitlement programs won't do the trick. If you think they will, look at the ones in place and honestly evaluate the grade card.
Hell, we've spent 5 Trillion dollars on "The War on Poverty" and we still have poverty. The Department of Health and Human Services will spend over 700 BILLION on social ills in 2009. It spent over 600 BILLION last year. Guess what. We still have social problems, we still have AIDS...You cannot buy happiness.
Wise up before you put the USA on the ash heap.
Quit voting with the "What's In It For ME" mentality.
Ron! Help! It's not lookin' good!!!
Er'thing is toooo close to call!!!
I hope Nader runs again. Wonder if he still gets nasty mail or threats for "stealing" the election from Gore?
I enjoy when people call McCain nothing more than a democrat in republicans clothing. Perhaps the writer of that should take a long hard look at the republicans and realize what they SAY they stand for vs what they actually do is quite telling. Since Abe Lincoln the republicans have stood for large federal government, limited freedoms, limited states rights, personal choices being dictated by the federal government. In other words the republicans and democrats have both participated in making our republic a fascist state. When are you people going to wake up to reality instead of trying to spin your information to suit your political party.
If the people truly wanted freedoms and liberties, those that were bestowed upon us by our creator and supposed to be DEFENDED by our government, they would simply vote for every third party candidate on the ticket which would transfer power to lessor known people which in turn would give the citizens a say in how government operates.
"if your NOT voting for change you haven't the right to complain"
change occurs when democrats and republicans alike are cast aside to individuals which want to see a betterment of our society for the greater good of mankind, not a political party.
Isn't "states' rights" code for "Gosh, wasn't it wonderful when we made women stay home and we didn't allow nigras to eat at the lunch counters"?
NO !!! it would be quite typical of someone to say as much however. Your comment goes even further to prove that our government education system is doing the job it was designed to do.
Take a skull full of mush and see to it that it stays that way either through ignorance or stupidity, I'm not sure which in any case.
You'll notice there have been NO such laws passed that required women to stay home, as for 'blacks' not be allowed to eat in an establishment, that depends on the private ownership of the establishment or at least it should. If I open a restaurant and post a sign out front that "whites not served in here" then I have posted my preference for clientèle. Government however should never have discriminated because of the Constitution as how it was worded. You'll notice much discrimination went on in the heavily populated democrat south and the same party today holds a large percentage of 'blacks' in slavery.
Tom, let's look at the Cabinet post creations since the 1960's. The following were created by Democrats.
The Department of Housing & Urban Development
The Department of Education
The Department of Health and Human Services
The first by LBJ and the last two by Carter.
Nixon formed the EPA and Bush, thanks to 9/11 added the Department of Homeland Security.
Another expansion of government came in 1967 when LBJ created the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Which, by the way, is budgeted in FY2009 to receive over $400 BILLION dollars. That's our money going to TV and Radio stations that are EXPECTED to lose money.
The Republicans, at least in my lifetime, have been against BIG government. I'll grant you, Bush is about as fiscally conservative as was FDR and Johnson. They never met a buck they couldn't spend.
If I were in charge your Entitlement Programs would be gone. Period. Goodbye PBS. Give the educational role in this country back to the states and so on. BUT, the problem in doing that always comes from the DEMS because they're like the heroin addict always looking for that next subsidized free fix from Washington.
Once a program is put in place...it's there forever.
Let's not leave out the "conservative icon" Ronald Reagan. It was he who used tax dollars to bail out Harley Davidson, and the Chrysler Corp. He campaigned on getting rid of the Dept. of Education then used it and appointed Bill Bennett as the Education Czar(proper name by the way). Nixon used government to force price controls on meat, Bush used the force of government to create a "pill welfare" bill. I could list thousands of ways the republicans have also increased the size of government.
I don't know how old you are, but in my mid 40's I'm still waiting to see a republican "shrink" the bloated government or do something that doesn't remotely resemble what the democrats do. So sorry but we have become a fascist nation and those that point this out are demeaned in some manner so their words aren't relevant.
Both parties consume power and until the sleeping sheeple actually wake up to see themselves being led down a path of government endorsed everything our nation will never experience our creator given rights as spelled out in the Constitution and the federalist papers.
I would bet a minuscule minority of people on this forum or have looked at this forum have even read either of the two mentioned founding ideas of this nation.
We have failed as a people to maintain the freedoms fought for in 1776.
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