Ross Douthat is one of my favorite commentators and he shows why in this post:
Idle Speculation:
In spite of the fact that only Hugh Hewitt seems willing to step up and defend the "deplorable" Miers appointment, I think the odds are about 1000-1 that she'll sail through her confirmation hearings. That said, it seems like there's a political opportunity here for a right-wing Republican Senator looking to become high-profile in a hurry. Somebody in the Senate is going to be the first to point out, loudly, that the Harriet Miers pick is an utterly ridiculous case of Dubyan cronyism. And if that somebody is also a conservative Republican who's willing to point out how unfavorably she compares to Scalia and Thomas (and Roberts) - well, they'd earn the eternal enmity of the Bush clan, but they'd also probably manage the difficult twofer of getting favorable coverage in the mainstream press (for being independent, anti-cronyist, etc.) and earning some serious chits with the GOP's base, to be cashed in during the '08 race or beyond.
Does that sound politically risky? Sure. But this is a moment when the end of the Bush era is suddenly and strikingly visible, and what happens during the Miers hearings might make a big difference in where various figures stand once Bush has gone back to Crawford for good.Perhaps just this thought has occurred to Jon Thune . . .
PS - Or Rick Santorum . . .
I'd say the better money is on George Allen or Rudy Giuliani.
ReplyDeleteGeorge Allen has not been willing to trash the Miers nomination just yet -- he was on WMAL yesterday am, and was trying to sound like a basic team player who was just a little skeptical.
ReplyDeleteJohn McCain's time has come and gone. He will never be a national figure in the GOP. He will never be a national figure period unless he agrees to be Hillary's running mate. The fact I can type that without short-circuiting my brain is the reason why he will never be the GOP nominee.
I predict someone will come out of the hinterlands, someone no one is even mentioning today. A governor -- someone like Bill Owens or Tim Pawlenty.
A lot of smart money is on Mitt Romney. The man got an insanely good write-up in The Atlantic last month, and he's cropping up elsewhere.
ReplyDelete"Well there is some speculation that a centrist coalition may form since both parties have essentially evacuated the political middle ground between them."
ReplyDeleteInteresting point, however I believe that the two major parties share TOO MUCH common ground on many issues. For example they argue about WHO should get federal handouts, not IF there should be handouts at all.
Your point is valid, however.