Looked An Awful Lot Like "Gin" To Me Last Night

Some observations first, then a little fun. I write for no one but myself but I found this attribution of Clinton's win to her "tears" in response to a question at a town meeting to be one of the most sexist things the MSM has come up with yet. That it was repeated over and over again at first was infuriating, then just became laughable. First of all, without knowing it, I was privvy ahead of time to the Mark Penn poll that the Clinton camp viewed as the most valid. Her win had lots to do with the concentration of voters in Manchester and Nashua, and her own normal quality campaign than it did with any "re-tooled" message or "exhibitionism". You'll hear every explanantion for NH 2008 but those. Most of those will be sexist and foolish. My advice: just laugh.

My cable carrier down here doesn't have MSNBC so I had a choice of CNN, Fox or the networks and I chose the former. Their coverage was laughable, so I laughed. Every member of the "best political team on television" except Jack Cafferty were rooting for Obama as if their gonads depended on it. My favorite pre-results remark was from Gloria Borger who said "I can't accept that a candidate for the Presidency can win a primary by crying." She never said that about old waterworks himself, Mitt Romney, before. And she certainly never said it about the single biggest crybaby in the race, Barack Obama.

Having heard that Penn had put it on 4%, once Manchester and Nashua were in and she was up 7%, I knew it was over, but, manomaneschewitzwine, I enjoyed watching them all explain how close it was and how it was very likely Obama would pass her once the "college" towns reported (aren't the students still on vacation?). It was a treat once AP called it for Clinton to hear Wolf Blitzer explain that their methodology was all wrong and the key to the election was Franklin Pearce College. Wowee-zowee, that's a new one! John King weighed in, saying Hanover (Dartmouth College) would be the key to Obama's win. I loved how they "disappeared" Jack Cafferty after the AP called it. That was downright cute.

The winner as usual was the old AIPAC man himself, Wolf Blitzer, who said that despite Clinton having a 6000 vote margin with fewer than 6000 register voters left, Obama was still "very much in this race." Excuse me?

And Blitzer looked absolutely sick when CNN had to call it for Clinton. Awesome.

Dessert, of course, was Bob Woodward on Larry King Live who either lied or made shit up for an hour straight. I refuse to believe that Bob Woodward was one of the Washington Post reporters who changed the world 36 years ago. I have no love for Lou Dobbs but he acted more professionally throughout the telecast than any other CNN personality besides Cafferty.

I believe that NH was Ron Paul's shot given that it's a good state for his unique brand of politics and he had a lot of money. That's it for him, I reckon. For the sake of the discourse, I hope he stays in until the end. Likewise, I am assuming that Dennis Kucinich is in all the way. Despite his pro-Obama caucusing in Iowa (what the fuck was that about?), I like him very much and just wish his ideas (and Paul's and those of Edwards if they're real) could get some more air-time. I cannot abide Mike Huckabee's ideology but his political gifts and formidable intelligence were on display in spades again. I think I was flat-out wrong about Romney, but at 9/1 to win the Republican nomination, price makes right. There's your value bet. Fred Thompson's not really a terrible guy. What was the point of all this? He made such a half-assed effort I doubt strongly that this will even promote any of his lobbying business.

Fun time. Clinton VP-choice book as of 4;40pm EST 1/9/08.

BILL RICHARDSON 9/5

WESLEY CLARK 5/2

TIM KAINE 4/1

TOM VILSACK 8/1

PHIL BRESEDEN 15/1

CHRIS DODD 25/1

BOB GRAHAM 40/1

JOHN MURTHA 100/1

FIELD 5/1

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