Category: The Dish

Debate Round-Up

Fred calls it for Huckabee:

He’s genial, funny, extremely likable, and not very substantive.

Poifect. Malkin:

Romney looked strong and energetic, with one stumble on the Bible question. Huckabee didn’t harm himself, so he “wins” by not losing. McCain and Thompson were lethargic, with a few lucid moments each.

David Kuo:

Mike Huckabee is on a huge roll, Rudy Giuliani is sucking wind, and Mitt Romney sounds like an automaton. And one more thing – the Republican party should listen to John McCain on torture … Simply put, Mike Huckabee can turn out the base that has been sitting home for the last year.

Kleiman:

It would be a mistake for Democrats to underestimate Huckabee…he’s not a hater or a lunatic or a fool. He’s personable, funny, and apparently for the most part a decent human being. I still think Obama would eat his lunch, but Huckabee v. HRC could be much too close for comfort.

I agree with all but Malkin. I think you have to be a GOP tool to think Romney did well. He creeped me out more thoroughly than ever before, and I kinda want to like him.

In His Dreams

"The next 45 days are about whether Rudy or Mitt runs against Hillary," – Hugh Hewitt.

This strikes me as more plausible:

On February 7, presumptive nominee Mike Huckabee pledges a campaign of "compassion, comparison, and civility" against presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama. New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg announces the formation of an exploratory committee for an independent presidential campaign. Rumored budget: $1.5 billion. The cover of TIME magazine screams: "Tsunami 2008: The Year of the Upset."

An Annapolis Joke

Blake Hounshell wonks out:

An Israeli and a Palestinian are watching a Western. In the movie, a cowboy is riding bareback on a particularly wild horse. The Israeli, being aggressive, says to the Palestinian, "I’ll bet you 10 shekels he falls." The Palestinian, being impulsive, replies immediately, "I’ll bet you he doesn’t."

The cowboy falls, and the Palestinian forks over 10 shekels. The Israeli, feeling that famous Israeli guilt, refuses them. Then he admits, "I’ve seen this movie before."

The Palestinian replies, "So have I. But I thought he would learn from his mistake."

Hey, it kills them at Brookings. Still: not quite as good as my favorite Middle Eastern joke:

Q: Why do you never want to date an Israeli?

A: Because they always say they’re going to pull out and they never do.

After Lebanon, maybe we should change that to "Republican".

PC HRC

I mean the Human Rights Campaign, not She Who Is Inevitable. Their latest commissioned poll of "LGB"s, i.e. lesbians, gay men and bisexuals, has the following demographics: 51 percent gay/lesbian/homosexual and 49 percent bisexual. On what planet is that a representative sample of any actual population? Ditto: 51 percent female. I don’t know any demographer who thinks that lesbians and gay men have equal numbers in a fictional lesbian-gay community. So the poll is designed to reflect a pre-ordained political "community", rigged for PC purposes to inflate the numbers of bisexuals and lesbians. No big surprise which Democratic candidate won in a landslide: the candidate HRC has been supporting from the start.

Hence Huckabee’s Appeal, I Guess

"Honestly, this is getting ridiculous. Giuliani won’t fire a pedophile priest from his payroll no matter how it might look for his campaign. He pushed his incompetent, mobbed-up henchman for Homeland Security Secretary and, terrifyingly, almost got his wish. He blew 9/11 when he ignored advice and based his emergency command center in the WTC. Why? Apparently so that he could use the lavishly furnished site as an adulterous love nest. The guy has a messianic infallibility complex that would make the President blush.

I can sort of get the 9/11 aura that convinced the GOP to let Giuliani throw his hat in the ring, but at some point the party needs to think about staging an intervention. With Tom DeLay and Jack Abramoff and Duke Cunningham and Mark Foley (and, soon, practically the entire Alaskan Congressional delegation) so fresh in the nation’s memory is this guy really the best face that the GOP can put forward?" – Tim F at Balloon Juice.

The Hillary “Plant”

Funny how a trivial subplot becomes the main story, innit? I don’t see any evidence of underhand manipulation from Clinton here, just incompetent vetting by CNN. Still: it shouldn’t have happened. And the fact that it did was probably just enthusiasm on CNN’s part to have such a vivid questioner. And, of course, yes, I suppose CNN’s producers are more likely to support lifting the ban. Most non-fundies are. My take on the actual, you know, issue here is below.