March 5, 2008, Mavericky Straight Talk and Stuff
George W. Bush seems satisfied that his party's standard-bearer won't be changing courses or anything... as he lauded John McCain for his likelihood in following the super-successful Bush foreign policy of as many unwarranted, irrational and insanely counter-productive wars as we can borrow money to pay for (complete with flushing our moral standing down the toilet).
And so, with a President hovering at 19% approval ratings to whom the once-sainted John McCain (who will be 72 come election time) must now wed himself in the interest of holding together the "base" (without whom he has no chance at all, as McCain's credentials as a racist are extraordinarily suspect), it's nice to see Hillary Clinton out there reciting some of McCain's best talking points.
Because, hey, if it's not her, it may as well be John McCaon, right? [Also... while there is no doubt whatsoever that Senator McCain's courageous refusal to be returned home from the Hanoi Hilton out of turn because it would be dishonorable showed extraordinary virtue, maybe we would still prefer a President who managed not to get shot down and captured in the first place... say, one who managed not even to go to Vietnam at all, like, say, Bill Clinton, or George W. Bush? Never mind, I suppose.]
Anyway, I have said it before, and I'll say it now. Barack Hussein Obama can, and if he secures the Democratic nomination, will, be elected President of the United States. John McCain is not merely old (and arguably bat-s*** nuts), but he is constrained to sell out the supporters he needs most-- independents and cross-over Democrats-- to secure a rabidly right wing base (and he may even need to bring Huckabee into his fold in order to hold on to all of it). Hillary Clinton is the only Democrat with a chance of losing to him (and I include Mike Gravel, John Edwards, Chris Dodd, Al Sharpton, and myself in that category). Oh... let's not sell Hillary short: it's an excellent chance.
Let's just say that last night was great for McCain as much for his own securing the GOP nomination as for the fact that Obama did not put a stake through the heart of the Clinton campaign. Well... onward we go on the Mavericky Straight Talk Express.