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 Jay Cost grabbed my attention - and will yours too, with this RealClearPolitics blog posting, How Do You Solve a Problem Like McCain? Much
of the article is spent defining the problem of McCain, which I think
we all know, so I skimmed anxiously to the bottom paragraphs, looking
for the magical elixir that will make this blackhead go away.
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By themselves, conservative leaders cannot stop McCain. The liberalization of the nomination process has left the upper echelons of both parties less able to determine directly who wins. However, they have indirect power. They can influence which candidates are seen by the voters to be credible candidates. Through their dialogue with one another as well as their direct communications to the public - they help establish voter expectations, and therefore the range of viable alternatives voters perceive. The more they talk up a candidate's viability, the more viable he becomes. The less they talk it up, the less viable he becomes. This is the power to set the agenda. Conservative leaders could help take McCain off the agenda if he falters, or they could help to place an opponent on the agenda to stop him. Final point. Everything that has been written here applies to Mike Huckabee all the more. | ” |
Nothing magical, of course, but then there couldn't be, unless Jay has video of McCain and a goat. Nope, the answer is to do what we're doing. Talk up Fred as much as possible, and let one and all understand how many of us abhor the cactus prick from Arizona.
