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OK, Melinda, I'll fess up. On the one hand, I am definitely ready for this to be over. (And it looks as if Tom Hanks agrees with us.) But, from a partisan standpoint, it is kind of fun to watch Barack and Hillary do John McCain's dirty work for him. (Saves him some money, too.) It's funny to me how, not that long ago, the talk was that the Republican Party was in "disarray" because three different candidates had won primaries. I didn't think that at all. We had three candidates who appealed to different, even conflicting segments of the party, and we had to decide what direction we were going in. It was a healthy debate (or, maybe we just all picked the guy we thought could win in November, and we'll resume the infighting in four or eight years when the hard-core righties take off their noseplugs). Which makes it amusing to watch the Democrats expend so much energy trying to choose between two candidates who are so similar on policy that it really does come down to personality and character.
But, as I mentioned yesterday, I think eight months is an eternity. And until we get to the general election, we won't know whether John McCain is going to come across as the man who can unite us, while at the same time scaring the baddies, or as another Bob Dole—an aging American hero who got his chance too late. And we don't know whether Obama can keep up the hope meme or—a possibility that others have raised—whether he'll be the next George McGovern. I won't even speculate as to what drama a Clinton nomination would bring, except to say we know there will be some. So while I'm enjoying the sparring that's exposing the flaws of the Democratic candidates, I'm not getting fitted for my dress to the inaugural ball. (Red of course!)
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Well, as Chris Matthews rather too harshly pointed out to Hillaryland's Lisa Caputo last night, it can't really be buyer's remorse, given that each state is a new group of buyers. (Still, ungallant to have someone on and then tell her that her metaphor is dumb.) This morning, there seemed to be some question about whether it's really the Democrats who are dithering; after Rush Limbaugh spent all week telling Texas Republicans to turn out for Hillary in their state's open primary, on the premise that she would be the weaker candidate in the fall, 9 percent of the Democratic vote did come from self-identified Republicans. Only as it turned out, they broke for Obama! I can't remember another primary in which it was so hard to tell the true crossovers from the aspiring process manipulators. Or when so many people in both parties were claiming they'd vote with the other party in the fall if their candidate did not prevail. So, this is still a happy day for El Rushbo—with Hillary pledging to go down shooting—and one mixed-up election. And given the—how do I say this?—previous lack of close personal friendship between Al Gore and Hillary Clinton, the very idea of him getting to broker this thing must make everything that's happened since 2000 seem almost worth it. (Unless, like those guys yelling, "Iron my shirts," he was joking at her expense.)
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