Saturday, January 19, 2008

Gone to Carolina ...

There is something to admire and something to dislike in each of the major four candidates contending in South Carolina today -- McCain, Huckabee, Romney, and Thompson.

Now that the day is here, though, and it is clearly Fred Thompson's last stand, all of those jumbled opinions and mixed emotions boil down to one realization:

If ol' Fred were to pull off the surprise upset of the season and win South Carolina, it would mean (metaphorical) dancing in the streets for the MH editorial staff. Call us suckers for a lost cause, but there it is.

On a more clear-headed note, Michael Graham -- who has in recent years known South Carolina Republican campaign politics about as well as anyone -- predicts a clear McCain win in his recent National Review column. (He more cautiously predicts a Fred Thompson 2nd in his personal blog -- but also says that this will change nothing in the race other than to finish off Huckabee faster.)

Graham also predicts that this year, South Carolina will (unlike in previous Republican nomination contests) have little or no effect on who the eventual nominee is. In his words, "Florida is the new South Carolina."

No comments: