Sabbath Gasbags

I was watching the Sunday morning "news" shows today, just to see how many of those good ole boy pundits would call for Hillary to drop out "for the good of the party". Snrk.

The arrogance of these pundits! Sometimes, it just about takes my breath away. I especially dislike Tim Russert, with his smarmy little sneer. Chris Matthews and Keith Olberman are not much better at hiding their gender bias. There's a reason, you know, why people call Matthews "Caveman Chris." And, Keith Olberman, though he hides it a little better, is another one, even though I wouldn't miss his show if you paid me.

Just because Tim Russert thinks Hillary should quit doesn't make it right. I agree that things are not looking good for our gal. However there are still several primaries to be held and she is correct when she says that her supporters in those states have a right to be able to go to the polls and vote for her. She would be disenfranchising a bunch of voters if she just packed up her doll rags and went home right now. I know how it feels to have MY candidate pull up stakes and get out of the race before I ever had a chance to vote for him (take THAT, Bill Richardson). This became a two-person race much too early in the game for my taste.

The pundits keep saying that the Democratic Party is being damaged by the increasingly divisive rhetoric, and to this I say, "Horse hockey!" As James Carville has said, if they think this is bad, just wait until the Republicans get started. Barack Obama is being pummeled by powder puffs compared to what he's going to have to battle after the conventions are over, and the race heats up between the two parties. Believe me, there will be no lie too big to tell about Obama and no trick too dirty to keep John McCain from using them.

So, let's just keep having fun with the Democratic primaries and let things play out as they will. Nobody seriously believes that Hillary's supporters will flock to the polls to vote for McCain. Her supporters are the long-time, die hard Democratic establishment. They are not going to abandon the party, so we can lay to rest that little theory. In fact, it is more likely that some of Obama's supporters would just stay home if he lost, because they make up the young people and first-time voters who don't have the long history with the party.

On the other hand, if, after the primaries are over, and all the delegates counted, Hillary is still obviously losing, but pushes on for a confrontation in the convention, I'll be calling for her to concede and endorse Barack Obama, just as I would expect him to do the same if their positions were reversed. By then, it will just be sour grapes driving her.

Live Free Or Die

So, how about it? Did a bunch of women change their minds and vote for Hillary out of sympathy? It hasn't been my experience that women are particularly sympathetic toward other women.

I think we can call the New Hampshire primary a tie, actually. Someone said that all those students that Obama expected to flock to the polls were still on break, and hadn't come back to school, yet.

Edwards didn't get as many votes this time as he did last time in New Hampshire. I don't know how much longer he'll hang on, but anything could happen at this point.

I don't want to see Richardson get out of the race just yet. They should all stay in until after Super Tuesday, at least. Getting out after only a couple or three primaries is premature, it seems to me.

On the other hand, after Super Tuesday, there could still be a six or eight way tie among Republicans. For once, they are going to be kind of fun to watch. Of course, if Bloomberg jumps into the fray as an Independent, the Republicans will probably implode. Won't that be fun?

Oh, I just love politics!

Does Iowa Really Matter?

Why do we place so much importance on the Iowa Caucuses? I've been reading up on it, and it seems overly complicated to me. I couldn't find any hard and fast rules, except for the date. Everything else can change in mid-caucus, and frequently does.

Nevertheless, I watched all the media types bloviate all evening about what a win in Iowa would mean. The only real surprise, to me, was that Hillary! ended up in third place. I thought that slot would belong to John Edwards. I was pretty well satisfied with that outcome, strangely enough.

I was not surprised that Mike Huckabee came out ahead of the rest of the field. Over time, the more pious Mike Huckabee seemed, the most insincere Mitt Romney looked. And, perception is everything. Just remember, there's a reason why most of the people in Arkansas called Mike Huckabee "the Huckster". And, it's the same reason they called Bill Clinton "slick Willie". And, it had nothing to do with bimbo eruptions, and everything to do with the dictionary description of "Flim-Flam man".

But, I digress.

Just what does the Iowa outcome mean for the coming primary in New Hampshire? Not a whole lot, I'd bet. Even the talking heads can't seem to agree. The main thing it means is that it is going to be a long, long campaign. But, New Hampshire is very different from Iowa. The state motto, "Live Free or Die" says a lot about it. It will be interesting to watch Huckabee morph into "more of a governor than a pastor", which he is already saying in interviews. He'll be whatever you want him to be, as will most politicians.

I fully expect John McCain to come into his own in New Hampshire. And, strangely enough, I expect Obama to stay on top. If Hillary ends up in second place, I hope Bill doesn't put on that goofy grin of his and crow about her being "another comeback kid". Shiver.

But, by the time the New Hampshire primary is over, Iowa will be forgotten. So, to answer my own question, Iowa doesn't matter a whole lot, except for being first. Which is about all you can expect from a loosey-goosey musical chairs kind of meeting.