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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Huntsman's Chances

Every four years pundits from throughout the country and around the globe focus as lasers on the voters in New Hampshire.  A few weeks in most believe they have a solid grasp  of what makes the Granite State's electorate tick.  Reporters and talking heads pontificate at length as to why one candidate is sure to emerge as the winner of this quadrennial event called the presidential preference primary.  Sometimes they are right, often they are wrong.

The proliferation of poll results are reflective of a revolving door.  They are supposedly conducted by questioning potential primary voters, yet their reliability has proven questionable.  There are certainties in this season's Republican race, not all of which are reflected in polls.
  • There will be a winner and more than one loser.
  • The winner will not necessarily be the party's eventual nominee.
  • Despite what the candidates say about competing in all 50 states, it won't happen...never has, never will.
  • Once again, New Hampshire will prove to be the great winnower of the field, narrowing it to no more than three viable contestants.
  • The second place finisher will go on and prove that it isn't necessary to finish first in the drive to  carry the party's banner toward the 2012 election in November.
As it stands today, former Massachusetts Gov. Willard Mitt Romney will be the number one choice of New Hampshire Republicans.  Of the two spots remaining of the viable three, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich will likely fill one of the spots, and don't be surprised if one of the national media's least covered, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, sneaks into the number two spot.

One thing my years of covering politics in New Hampshire taught me is that the Granite Staters are cagey, seldom showing their hand before entering the voting booth.  Remember Jimmy who?  When the little known governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter, was campaigning he was given little shot at winning the state's primary and going on to capture the White House.  Like it or not, he emerged atop the Democratic Party's pile in 1976 and survived a challenge within his own party four years later.  Winning the GOP nod in New Hampshire but failing to gain their party's nomination were such notables as Pat Buchanan in 1996 and John McCain in 2000.  Bill Clinton failed to win over the state's Democrats in 1992, finishing second, and neither George W. Bush nor Barack Obama got the state's endorsement.  Both Bush and Obama proved that finishing second wasn't a bad thing.

So, what about Huntsman?  He seems to be running a stealth campaign, flying just far enough below the radar that the only attention he gathers is that of the people who really matter, the GOP voters.  He has said on more than one occasion that he will be quite happy finishing second, and I for one will not be surprised if he meets that goal.  As for the darling of the state's largest newspaper, Gingrich, the harder Gingrich campaigns and the longer it drags on the better for everyone else in the contest.  As for the remainder of the crowded field, forget about it; maybe in another four years.

Wait four years?  Most likely.  See, Mr. Ego, Donald Trump, is so bent on ousting President Obama that he has made it perfectly clear that if Republicans don't nominate someone of his liking, he will strongly consider running as an independent.  If he choses to do so, the only beneficiary of his candidacy will be Obama.  So the President's team must be looking forward to The Donald's entry into the fray.  It would be Christmas in November.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Trump This!

I suppose it would be easy, maybe even sensible to ignore the proposed December 27 Republican presidential debate in Iowa being promoted and moderated by the ultimate huckster of our time, Donald Trump.  I mean, really?  Trump, who hasn't totally ruled himself out as a potential candidate for the presidency moderating a sideshow that as of this writing has only two announced candidates agreeing to be part of this vaudevillian exercise - Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum - taking part?

Now I can totally understand former House Speaker Gingrich leaping at the opportunity to pontificate on why he's the smartest person in the room, if not the planet.  Though he's leading in some polls at this point, he is in desperate need of campaign cash.  And if he's able to impress the equally egotistical Trump, perhaps the cash register will ring up sufficient coin to carry him through the primary season.

As for Santorum, he has nothing to lose.  His candidacy is about as insignificant as The Donald himself.  Ron Paul and Jon Huntsman have wisely said no thanks to participating, and Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry are said to be mulling over their course of action.  The latter two are also fast becoming irrelevant in the crowded field of GOP contenders, as is Rep. Paul.  Former Massachusetts Gov. Willard Mitt Romney says he's unable to fit the show into his schedule, that he will be busy campaigning for votes in the Iowa caucus.

So it appears that the debate will be between Gingrich and Santorum.  The egotist versus the wannabe, questioned and moderated by the carnival barker.  Will it be interesting and informative?  Probably not.  The only thing that could save the show (let's face it, that's what it is) is if at the conclusion one of the two candidates (or maybe even both) simultaneously points directly at Trump and utters the words "You're Fired".

Now that, in the words of Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry, would make my day.

Friday, December 2, 2011

My Doomed Ship

You know how many of us go through life hanging onto the old saw "waiting for my ship to come in"?  Well, no longer, for me.  I am now convinced such thinking is an utter waste of time.  Such a thought will no longer, after today, occupy any portion of my already over-loaded brain.

I mean, we have limited storage capacity, don't we?  How much can we be expected to retain as we go through life, year after year, accumulating, sorting, analyzing and rarely editing down items and information that is either useless or irrelevant to our lives.

So that's it.  My ship isn't coming in, I'm convinced beyond reasonable doubt.  No more waiting around for that big windfall that was believed to be afloat on the high seas, just waiting for a proper berth in a friendly, welcoming port.

There would be no safe harbor for my ship.  No need to stand watch, gazing out across the foamy Atlantic in search of some mystical vessel swelled with riches bearing my name on the address label.

See, 71 years ago today, the day I was born, there were no fewer than 18 ships sunk in the Atlantic Ocean. One belonged to the Royal Navy, so my intended riches certainly were not aboard the HMS Forfar, that was torpedoed by the German submarine U-99.  Only 21 of the crew of 194 were saved.  Another doomed ship was the Klaus Schoke, a German cargo ship that was attacked, attempts to scuttle her were initially unsuccessful and she later sank on December 5.  I know nothing on board her was headed my way.

As for the remaining 16, well we shall never know for certain, but I'm reasonably sure my ship's not coming in anytime soon, if ever.  It was either lost, sunk or never sailed.

Hey, at least I know, right?