republican primary

This election cycle has really exposed a problem the GOP has with dealing with the media. We started seeing it with Herman Cain, who is the only one to blame for his own campaign's demise with his handling of the questions of inappropriate conduce while head of the National Restaurant Association. Instead of coming clean, he chose to make the matter worst by giving snippy comebacks and dodging the actual questions. And while the Cainiacs out there tried to play the "blame the liberal media" game, the actual blame could only be placed upon Herman himself. It was his campaign that turned what would have been a week long story into a month long circus. Sure some blame his campaign, but it is HIS campaign and the buck stops with him.

So having seen such an implosion play out on the public stage, you think that other GOP candidates would learn a lesson. For Mitt Romney that isn't the case.

Today we finally learned that he pays about 15% in income tax. That comes out after more than a month of reporting on his denying the release of his income tax returns. That added more than a month of the media asking questions and pushing the issue. Instead of just saying "yeah I'll show them when/if I'm the nominee", Mitt has drawn out the media scrutiny much like Herman Cain.

Then we have Newt Gingrich prepared to make a very good and calculated campaign move. Tomorrow Newt is set to release his income tax returns. While that isn't enough to push Newt into the nomination, it will provide even more fire for Mitt and more ammo for the not-Mitt crowd.

The problem with the GOP is that they can't look at their own downfalls. They define delusions of grandeur, viewing themselves as infallible while blaming everyone else, the "liberal media" in this case.

Santa, here's what I want!!!!!!

Newt Gingrich said a Gingrich-Hermain Cain ticket would be "a real possibility" if he won the Republican presidential nomination.

Speaking in an interview with Newsmax magazine, in response to the prospect of a Gingrich-Cain ticket or Cain-Gingrich ticket, Gingrich said that was "a real possibility."

Let's see, that would be a thrice married, serial adulterer and a serial sexual harasser on the "family values" ticket. YES PLEASE!

(And I apologize to my comedy writer friends out there. I know this puts your job in jeopardy since the jokes will write themselves with this ticket!)

Oh my it looks like their big hope has some skeletons going on. The New York Times has the full story here.

UPDATE

The dirty stuff is on page 4:

In interviews, the two former associates said they joined in a series of confrontations with Mr. McCain, warning him that he was risking his campaign and career. Both said Mr. McCain acknowledged behaving inappropriately and pledged to keep his distance from Ms. Iseman. The two associates, who said they had become disillusioned with the senator, spoke independently of each other and provided details that were corroborated by others.

(emphasis added)

UPDATE #2

Well image that. Vicki Iseman (the woman in question) lobbies for the telecom industry. Funny considering McCain just voted against telecom immunity.

UPDATE #3:

Pat Buchanan on Olbderman was just trying to play this down as some New York Times hit piece. That is rather interesting considering the NYT's endorsed McCain for the Republican primary. If they wanted to hurt him in the general, then wouldn't they have sat on it for a few months?

(More updates below the fold)

This award has to go to Erick at Red State for this tidbit :

In South Carolina tonight, Democratic voters would rather vote for the rich, Southern, white man than either the black man or the female yankee.

Excuse me? Obama won 55% of the vote. It sounds to me like Erick is trying to say that African American's can't be part of the Democratic Party, but that's not as disturbing as the logic he is using:

In fact, exit polling by and large shows that John Edwards, by staying in the race, is taking votes that would otherwise typically go to Barack Obama. Is this a racist ploy? Is John Edwards in league with the Clintons to make sure white voters, who don't want to vote for Clinton, have a white alternative to go to, lest Barack Obama get more traction?

Did we forget Iowa, a state that is predominately white and voted for Obama? Actually Erick's argument here has strong hints of racism. Perhaps he is saying that the "white folk" should drop out because of the black man in the race.

Things aren't looking good for Huckaboner:

Battling to stay competitive after his weekend loss in South Carolina, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is taking new steps to save money, including no longer scheduling planes and buses for journalists trying to cover his presidential campaign.

Huckabee said he will continue to campaign in Florida on a shoestring budget, but added that he may pull out of the state before its Jan. 29 Republican primary if his prospects look dim.

South Carolina was Huckabee's last real chance to become the front runner. Now that that's over, he doesn't have any real chance to take the lead. His only hope is to keep enough money to make it to the convention.

Today is the big day in Blue Ohio News, the day where we find out Bob Ney is out. The interesting part is that Ney is trying to pick his successor:

In a heavily Republican district, Ney reported last month that his own internal polls had him clinging to a 4-percentage point lead; Space said his internal polls showed him up by 11 percentage points. Ney hadn't gotten less than 60 percent of the vote since 1998.

Ney expects state Sen. Joy Padgett's name to surface as his successor in the fall race.

"She is a person of passion and conviction," Ney said. "I can think of no better person to represent this district."

Padgett is one who has been sticking up for Ney since his involvement with Abramoff came to the public light. The problem is that there will be another primary for Ney's spot and Padgett may not be able to run:

State Sen. Joy Padgett, Ney’s hand-picked successor for his seat, could fall under a little-known provision of Ohio election law, dubbed the “sore loser” provision. It prevents a candidate who loses in one primary from running in another during the same election cycle. Earlier this year, Padgett was the primary running mate of gubernatorial hopeful James Petro, who lost to the ticket of Ken Blackwell and his running mate, Ohio State Rep. Tom Raga.

Even if Padgett succeeds in getting her name on the new primary ballot, the controversy could invite other Republicans to jump into the unexpected race. James Harris, who lost to Ney in the Republican primary in May, said he’s considering running again — although the sore loser provision may apply to him, too.

Jean Schmidt is still in the lead for the OH-2 Republican primary but challenger Bob McEwen is quickly catching up to her.

Jean Schmidt	24,335	47%
Bob McEwen	22,346	43%
Deborah A. Kraus	3,236	6%
James E. Constable	1,829	4%

Currently 572 of 767 precincts are reporting in so this race could still go either way.

The AP does a nice job of reminding people why Tom Delay could be facing his hardest political battle yet:

WASHINGTON - Rep. Tom DeLay, whose association with lobbyist Jack Abramoff has left him politically vulnerable, is spending Texas' primary night Tuesday at a fundraiser hosted by two Washington lobbyists.

DeLay faces three opponents in the Republican primary. For the first time in the 22 years he's held office, he is up against a serious challenge after being forced out of his job as House majority leader amid corruption and campaign finance scandals.

The fundraiser is being held by lobbyists Bill Paxon and Susan Molinari, both former members of Congress from New York. The event will raise money for DeLay's re-election campaign

I am kind of torn on Delay's primary challenge today. He is expected to win and in a way I think that is a good thing.

Now before you think I have lost it let me explain in a little more detail. Delay winning today will put him up against a Democrat for the final battle to control the Texas district. With Tom Delay still facing trial on his charges and Texas and with indictments still possible from the Abramoff deal, chances are his political future is very dim.

If Delay is the one facing a Democrat in November and he either gets convicted by Ronnie Earle or gets indicted by the feds then his chances of winning become even less. As matter of fact if he gets convicted he will have to drop out of the race leaving the GOP scrambling to find a replacement.

So basically Delay is a heavy liability to the GOP in Texas right now and his win today will increase that liability ten-fold. Of course a defeat today would not be all that bad either, but that is not very likely considering Tom's district is built by his own definitions.