John McCain’s Vice Presidential Not-So-Short List

John Hawkins lists 24 candidates that John McCain might conceivably pick as his running mate with synopses as to the pros and cons of each. I'm rather sure the eventual choice is on that list, as there's nobody that I've heard of who isn't. Indeed, there are several people I haven't heard of on it. Frankly, the available ...

Fred Thompson Endorses McCain

Fred Thompson has become the latest former 2008 Republican presidential candidate to endorse John McCain. Fred Thompson, the one-time Republican presidential candidate, endorsed Sen. John McCain Friday, calling on the party to "close ranks" behind the presumed nominee. "This is no longer about past preferences or differences. It is about what is best for our country and for me that means ...

Florida Primary Postmortem

The victories of John McCain and Hillary Clinton in Florida last night presage what will happen in next week's Super Duper Tuesday contests and have significantly reshaped the race. Polls and Predictions Compared to Final Results The polls finally got one right, correctly predicting the winners and the order of finish of all challengers with uncanny accuracy. The final RealClearPolitics ...

Bainbridge Revises and Extends

Steve Bainbridge has a lengthy post responding to some questions that Steven Taylor and I have put to him vis-a-vis why he's so vehemently against John McCain after having supported his ideological twin, Fred Thompson. He makes some good points about actions McCain has taken that have irritated him but also acknowledges that personality is a part of the ...

Romney Transplants Thompson’s Braintrust

The Romney campaign has forwarded a copy of Thomas Oliphant's post for the Chicago Tribune's Swamp blog entitled, "Romney transplants Thompson's braintrust." I'm not sure why they're bragging about this but I thought it worth passing along.

Paul Beats Romney in Louisiana, Trails Dropout Thompson

The first part of the headline is what the Ronulans want you to take away from the results of last night's Louisiana Republican Caucuses, where in actuality the rump of Fred Thompson's state organization was able to secure backing for a "pro-life uncommitted" slate of delegates; delegates pledged to John McCain (who had no active precinct organization) did the best ...

OTB Radio - Tonight at 7 Eastern

The next episode of OTB Radio, our BlogTalkRadio program, will record and air live tonight from 7-8 Eastern. Tonight, we welcome UCLA lawprof Stephen Bainbridge to the show, along with regulars Dave Schuler and Alex Knapp. We'll be talking about several hot issues: The 2008 primaries, including Fred Thompson's withdrawal from the race and what it means for ...

Fred Thompson Quits Presidential Run - Officially

The speculation can end: Fred Thompson has announced the end of his campaign: Senator Fred Thompson today issued the following statement about his campaign for President: "Today I have withdrawn my candidacy for President of the United States. I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort. Jeri and I will ...

Fred Thompson Drops Out of Debate, Quitting Race?

Jonathan Garthwaite passes on word that, "Fox News is reporting that Fred Thompson has told Fox he will not be participating in Thursday's debate and may make an announcement about his candidacy soon." WaPo's Michael D. Shear, on a story buried on page A08, asks, "Will Thompson Roll the Closing Credits?" As the men competing for the GOP nomination head back ...

The Good People, Then and Now

As we commemorate Martin Luther King's life today, here is what I think may be the most important passage from his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, written to the clergy of Birmingham who counseled against the SCLC’s protests in that city in 1963: I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that ...

Does Losing Focus the Attention?

One of the key points I meant to address but failed to in my earlier response to Steve Bainbridge is this: Mason Colley quipped that “Victory brings obliviousness; defeat, attentiveness.” [...] Just as the Israelis had to be punished for listening to the 10 fearful spies, the GOP needs to be punished for having been seduced by Bush and DeLay. Just ...

Fred Thompson Loss Ends Republican Party

Steve Bainbridge is preparing to sit out the 2008 election rather than vote for anyone but Fred Thompson. If the choice is between choosing the lesser of 4 evils and teeing up a process by which the GOP reinvents itself for the 21st Century, I’m inclined to opt for the latter. Coupled with losing Congress in 2006, losing the ...

South Carolina and Nevada Post-Mortem

I dashed off some quick thoughts last night after John McCain's win in South Carolina but let's look at the race more closely. Democrats Not much has changed, really, aside from a ratcheting up in the bitterness of the Clinton-Obama battle. Both Clinton and Obama are claiming victory in Nevada, with the former winning the popular vote and the latter ...

McCain Wins South Carolina Primary

John McCain, whose 2000 insurgent campaign was derailed in South Carolina, has emerged as the victor in 2008, holding off Mike Huckabee, this year's surprise candidate and a native Southerner. Support from the state's military veterans, who account for 25 percent of the electorate in the Republican contest, and support from independents and moderates helped McCain win victory. A ...

Nevada and South Carolina Predictions (Updated)

While I've been spectacularly wrong on the Democratic results in New Hampshire and the Republican results in Michigan, I'll nonetheless keep issuing these predictions for my own amusement, if nothing else. Today's Republican primary in South Carolina will get most of the media attention but the voters in Nevada participate today in non-binding caucus that actually awards more ...