So the race across the country is wide open. Except, of course, for people like Duncan Hunter who got .51% of the vote in New Hampshire. Hunter hasn't received that much needed bump from the press - and so his voice is completely lost. Not only has he not received a bump, he's been dissed. He was not invited to participate in the debates in New Hampshire, which may seem like a crying shame -- but at the same time, even when he's there he is not afforded the opportunity to answer many questions so one has to question what the point is in inviting him in the first place.
(Full disclosure: Hillary Rodham Clinton cannot possibly do anything at this point that I would consider sincere.) Hillary's crying moment appeared to pay off. Good for her. I suppose it's nice for her Democrat following to know that her eyes do, in fact, leak fluid. It's also good to know that she can go on a public crying jag and then pull that gender card out of her pocket when somebody calls her on her theatrics. Maureen Dowd (with whom I have extreme disagreement on almost every other subject) wrote a beautiful opinion piece that was published in the New York Times. She, too, is very cynical about Hillary's sincerity. And who wouldn't be? I have half a belief that even those who follow her faithfully know that she's insincere... they just happen to admire it about her because they view it as a good way to get things done.
The Clintons both are interesting people to watch when they think they're losing. They seriously start to lose it -- and it's kind of entertaining. Bill Clinton, in particular, went on a rant against Obama and against the press when Hillary was down in the polls. He actually flipped his lid at a questioner during a "support Hillary" rally in NH.
I'm interested in knowing if Richardson is going to go on after this. He managed to achieve a whopping 4% of the vote in NH -- I'm wondering if he has aspirations to be the Vice President. I have to laugh even at that after watching him speak. I can't imagine any of the current front runners choosing him or his style.
I know that I've not really mentioned Edwards in all this. The reason for that is twofold, really. One, I have difficulty in thinking about him without feeling like I need a hot shower with LOTS of soap. And two, I really think he's pretty inconsequential (except maybe in terms of being chosen for Vice President in the case of an Obama win).
The Democrat race seems to be closing up more than the Republican one... I'm grateful that the Republican field is still so wide open. I think that it's a good and healthy thing for more of the country to have a voice in the primary election process. It's wonderful that the candidates are given more time to say things and contradict themselves. It's imperative that people get to see their true colors before they are up against a Democrat and it all comes crashing down.
It's difficult for me, too, to deal with the fact that Ron Paul has a consistent 10%. The fact that 10% of the people who care enough to vote in the primaries would support his ideas on foreign policy frightens me not a little, but a lot. Are the people supporting him all eighteen years old? I just don't get it.
And these are my political thoughts for today. I'm all out.
No comments:
Post a Comment