Republicans in the lurch

So, it seems the party is on the brink here.

We may be about to become as irrelevant as the Democrats were in '84.

Problem #1: I told you earlier this week. McCain, should he get the nod, CANNOT win in the general election.

Problem #2: We hate Hillary Clinton too much.

Huh? How is that a problem? Let me explain.

Sean Hannity has called his program the "Stop Hillary Express" for months now. Rush can't go a day without mentioning her. We all know that she's got huge "disapproval ratings." Problem is, the Dems know it too.

You see, the negative attention that Republicans are providing to Hillary, the missteps of her campaign (read: her husband) in recent weeks, and the defection of party leaders like Teddy to Obama's camp make a tri-fecta. All together, these things are about to make the Democratic nomination a lock for Barack.

Barack Obama is going to be damn hard to beat. Why? Same reason Hillary isn't beating him: race. Race trumps gender in the United States; it always has. How does that hurt us in the General Election, though?

Regardless of who the Republicans put up, we're going to be stuck. If we criticize Obama in any way, shape, or form, there will be accusations of racism. Don't believe me? Ask Bill Clinton. And nobody wants to vote for someone they think is racist, and no one wants to be seen as racist by not voting for "the black guy." Add to this the fact that McCain is throwing around racist terms and that the founder of Romney's religion (NOT Romney himself, however) was violently racist, and we're really screwed.

Make no mistake, Obama is dangerous.

But, Obama is dangerous in other ways. Need proof? A sample of his issue positions, from his web site:

"Obama will work to overturn the Supreme Court's recent ruling that curtails racial minorities' and women's ability to challenge pay discrimination. Obama will also pass the Fair Pay Act to ensure that women receive equal pay for equal work. "

"As president, Obama will reward work by increasing the number of working parents eligible for EITC benefits, increasing the benefit available to parents who support their children through child support payments, increasing the benefit for families with three or more children and reducing the EITC marriage penalty which hurts low-income families."

"Obama's K-12 plan will expand service scholarships to recruit and prepare teachers who commit to working in underserved districts."

"Obama will ensure that trade agreements include strong labor and environmental protections and that all Americans share the rewards of globalization."

"The lack of affordable, high-speed Internet access in rural, urban, and minority communities has created a digital divide between those who have access to the Internet and those who do not. This severely limits the growth potential of many urban and rural companies. Barack Obama believes we can get true broadband to every community in America through a combination of reform of the Universal Service Fund, better use of the nation's wireless spectrum, promotion of next-generation technologies, and new tax and loan incentives. "

Name one provision in any of his policies above that doesn't involve a radical expansion of Federal power and/or a radical expenditure of federal funds.

Barack Obama may well be the most dangerous man in America right now.

No way. Way!

This has got to be, by far, the most interesting primary season that I can recall. Looks like one of my predictions from yesterday was actually spot on. Of course, my Florida predictions were rather akin to a shotgun blast...

At any rate, McCain beat, not handily, but he did beat, Romney in Florida. Rudy's out, and probably going to endorse McCain. Will that hurt Romney? Probably. But, Mitt still has some things going for him, leading up to the convention:

• There are enough Western states, where Romney is likely to perform well, on Super Tuesday to catch up, or at least keep within striking distance, of McCain's delegate count.
• He has the support of a sizable majority of the "uncommitted" delegates (akin to the Democrats' SuperDelegates)
• If Huck makes it all the way to the convention, his delegates could, in theory, be sent to one column or the other, tipping the balance. My guess is that Huck is going to send them to Mitt, rather than John, because Mitt is closest to Huck on social issues.

As for the Dems, Hillary continues to shore up her delegate count, while Barack is wooing establishment Dems like Teddy into his camp. Hillary's ace in the hole has always been the SuperDelegates; Teddy's defection suggests that they may not be a lock for Hill. Still, Barack is going to have to pick up some delegates on Feb 5 if he wants to stay in this thing.

As for Super Tuesday? Hell if I know.

Three-Ways aren't always good

Just a quick update from South Carolina:

Looks like McCain will narrowly take it over a close second Huck. Looks like we forgot about the 25% of voters in South Carolina that are veterans, as it seemed they tracked extremely high for McCain.

While I'm here, let me say this: I thank John McCain for his service. America owes him a great debt that we can only repay by insuring future generations of Americans grasp the freedom for which he was imprisoned.

Having said that, the fact remains that, while a veteran may be emotionally connected to McCain, it doesn't mean he'd be a good president. It's not that much different than a woman who votes for Hillary, or an African American who votes for Obama. Being able to relate to a candidate does not qualify them, and voting on that basis is plain foolish.

Aw hell, at least Rudy's way down at the bottom. Still, I'd prefer him to McCain. And Mitt may actually be in trouble here if he can't make some deeper progress in the other southern states.

Goodnight, Fred, we hardly knew ye. If you'd have run 200 years ago, you'd have won in a landslide.