Political Rundown (And Runover)

A 21st Century McCarthy

By now everyone's heard about Congresswoman Michele Bachmann's adept insertion of foot into mouth during her appearance on MSNBC's Hardball.

The Sixth District Republican, prompted by host Chris Matthews, was "concerned" that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama might hold anti-American views, and that there needs to be a media expose of Congress to determine which one's a patriot and which one isn't.

Bachmann isn't the first to suggest that the Senator from Illinois is anything but the Typical American she claims to represent (and, unfortunately, she won't be the last). As for that expose, would Fox News be interested?

Bachmann has a history of making idiotic statements, but this one might end up costing her a second term in Washington. Elwyn Tinklenberg, her Deomocratic opponent, just saw his long shot candidacy get a major boost from contributors to the tune of a million dollars. And a national Republican organization has pulled its money and ad support from Bachmann.

Since her MSNBC appearance, Bachmann has been distancing herself from the things she said on Hardball. But the damage has been done. In this election year, being a big fan of President Bush (she voted with him nearly 90% of the time) and raising the ugly specter of Joseph McCarthy isn't going to win you any friends.

I don't live in Bachmann's district, but the things she says and does should be an embarrassment to all Minnesotans.

Palin Dresses For Success

There are reports that the Republican National Committee shelled out $150,000 so vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin could dress better than Tina Fey. The Alaska Governor has been supposedly getting her clothes from such stores as Neiman-Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. Wonder how that will go over with folks who, if they shop at all these days, do so at Wal-Mart and Target?

Will It Be "Dewey Defeats Truman" All Over Again?

In spite of the double-digit leads Barack Obama enjoys over Republican John McCain in most of the major polls, we still think the election could go either way between now and November 4. So for all those of you who are figuratively measuring the drapes in the White House in anticipation of Obama's arrival, we have two words for you: Thomas Dewey.

Dewey was the Republican presidential nominee whom everybody (meaning newspaper and radio commentators and the polls) considered a shoo-in to win the 1948 election over President Harry Truman, who was not a popular man at that point. But a strange thing happened. Thanks to vigorous campaigning in the closing weeks, Truman was able to stage one of the greatest upsets in American political history.

Obama, to his credit, is taking nothing for granted. McCain, to his credit, is publicly embracing his "underdog" role. Let's all wait and see if history does (or doesn't) repeat itself.