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I recently had the chance to chat with Matt Keller of DraftNewt.org.  Here's our interview ...

ML:  Thanks for joining us. Why did you decide to start Draft Newt?

MK:  David Kralik, our former chairman was the original founder of Draft Newt. I came on in January as the Manager of Media Outreach. That being said I joined because whenever I hear Newt Gingrich speak, I leave inspired. Our country was founded on inspirational thinking; I wanted to help foster that by being part of the call to in turn inspire Newt Gingrich to run for president. He’s given so much to conservative thought in the past 20 or so years, I wanted to give something back.

ML:  What legal restrictions do you have to contend with?

MK:  Well due to campaign finance law under McCain-Feingold, we much like a 527 cannot have any contact with Newt Gingrich or coordinate with his team in any way. That being said we are not a 527 group.

ML: Okay, let’s talk about the process stuff, first. I notice your website has a Meetup icon on it. I haven’t seen one of those since 2004 (when they were de rigueur). It strikes me that the medium might be very good for what you’re doing, though. How are you utilizing Meetup, and other technology, for your cause?

MK: Meetup has been very useful because it allows our extra dedicated followers to gather at their own time and location. They can do their own thing whether it's coffee, dinner or drinks. They can also raise money as a group that they can contribute to our effort. Right now we also have three active internet media campaigns: facebook, youtube and myspace. Each one funnels back to our core site www.draftnewt.org. Facebook can easily replace Meetup with its "events" feature for those that don't want to use meetup.

ML:  What do you think of the other draft movements? Clark had one. Rice had one. What did you learn from their efforts? Draft movements are the spirit of the American people.
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My new Politico column is up.  Here's the teaser:

Newt's not the safe choice for Republicans to make, but he may be our Goldwater. Sure, the "adults" won't like him -- too much personal baggage from his speakership in the 1990s and his bombastic congressional career before that. They will tell you to take your vitamins, open a savings account, get good grades and vote for one of the big three. The adults will tell you that this election is "the most important election in history," and after all, "the next president will likely get several Supreme Court picks."

 

John McCain's fundraising numbers should send shivers down the spines of his supporters.

It wasn't that long ago that John McCain was locking up all the big Bush donors -- and senior Bush staffers.  I went so far as to equate his team to the New York Yankees.  His early start  made many pundits wonder if anybody could catch him.  

But McCain's disappointing (his campaigns' sentiment, not mine) fundraising numbers remind me of a baseball series in which one team (with all the big stars) gets off a seemingly insurmountable lead, only to be caught from behind (think Yankees vs. Red Sox, 1994 -- or even worse, Mets vs. Orioles, 1969). 

I still think it's too early to count anybody out, but let's just say the team with all the big-name stars is trailing.  The game is still early, but it's not an enviable position to be in, either.

These numbers also make me a bit suspicious about something ...

After largely ignoring conservatives for months, John McCain made a concerted effort to reach out to conservative bloggers and radio talk show hosts last week.  It worked; he had a very good week.  But while this was a welcomed and encouraged change of course, McCain's fundraising numbers make me wonder if he would have bothered to court conservative opinion leaders with such gusto, were he still in the lead. 

As the old Mickey Gilley song went: "Don't the girls all get prettier at closing time." 

So do the bloggers.

Mitt Romney clearly won the "money race" this quarter, but it sounds like Sam Brownback performed best at the Club for Growth meeting, this past weekend ... 

Hat tip to Soren Dayton of Eyeon08.

Hotline reports:

During the first quarter of 2007, John McCain 2008 campaign received nearly 60,000 contributions from all 50 states, averaging $200 per contribution. The McCain campaign will report over $12.5 million in contributions for the first quarter.

Campaign Manager Terry Nelson said, “Although we are pleased with the organization we’ve built and polls show us strongly positioned in key primary states, we had hoped to do better in first quarter fundraising. We are already in the process of taking the necessary steps to ensure fundraising success moving forward.” Nelson added, “Fundraising in the first quarter is no more important than fundraising throughout the entire primary election campaign.”

Hotline's On Call blog reports:

Ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani will report raising more than $15M this quarter -- and -- including a transfer -- he's amassed more than $17M for the primaries to date.

A campaign aide tells the Hotline that Giuliani will report a cash on hand total of more than $10M.

In terms of Romney, On Call reports:

Romney for President raised $23 million in total receipts for the First Quarter ending March 31, 2007.

The Campaign opted to raise no general election funds and raised $20.63 million in primary contributions.

The total includes a $2.35 million loan from Governor Romney and a $20,000 transfer from his 1994 Senate campaign.

Contributions were received from all 50 States and Washington, D.C.

Former Bush strategist, Matthew Dowd, is now saying he has lost faith in the president.

The irony is that one of my biggest criticisms of President Bush is that he surrounded himself with people like ... Matthew Dowd (which, I guess, means I have lost faith in Bush, too). 

If you think of it, Dowd was a Democrat until 1999.  He embraced Bush's "compassionate conservatism," but I doubt he ever read Barry Goldwater's Conscience of a Conservative (if you know what I mean).  The bottom line is that Bush's inner circle included a lot of people who had never seen the inside of the Heritage Foundation before.

For the record, I agree with many of the things Dowd is saying, including the fact that after 9-11, Bush, "missed a real opportunity to call the country to a shared sense of sacrifice.”  That's not the point.

Bush's insistence on surrounding himself with cronies -- many of whom are from Texas (think Harriet Miers and Gonzo) -- is one of the more troubling aspects of his tenure.   He should not be surprised when these folks turn on him.

Now, the chickens have come home to roost.

On This Week, yesterday, Tommy Thompson said he would have a different Iraq strategy.  As The Hill notes:

 He described a “completely different Iraq strategy” that included polling the Iraqi government to see whether it wants U.S. troops in the country.

“Nobody has ever asked that government, duly elected, to vote,” he noted. “And if they vote that they want the United States in their country, it immediately gives a degree of legitimacy.”

Thompson makes an interesting point.  Some might even say it's common sense.  Any thoughts?

This was the week John McCain got his groove back.

He made major inroads with conservative opinion leaders and bloggers -- stood up to the Democrats’ “surrender strategy” -- and avoided some potential landmines laid by his opponents.

While many pundits are prematurely predicting the demise of his campaign, McCain is just starting to hit his stride.

How did it happen?  Here’s a quick synopsis of the week ...

This past weekend, McCain held several town hall meetings in New Hampshire.  I flew up to see the campaign first-hand, attend some town hall meetings, and chat with McCain on the Straight Talk Express.  To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect. What I found was a guy with a pretty good sense of humor about his relationship with the conservative blogosphere ...

... Few candidates allow the unfettered access that McCain actually encourages.  But being accessible to the establishment media is one thing; talking to conservative bloggers is quite another. 

Candidates who would happily do a sit-down with David Broder, might scoff at the idea of having a blogger interview (and film) them. Not so with McCain. 

But, perhaps, the most important reason McCain's team is wise to encourage journalists and bloggers to travel with him to places like New Hampshire, is that it's a chance to see what conservative voters outside the Beltway really care about ...

The above interview (along with several others we conducted) made it clear that the issues which have plagued McCain among conservative pundits and "insiders" have not resonated with the voters in states like New Hampshire. 

But let's be honest; Opinion leaders do matter.  That's why McCain was smart to host a conference call for over a dozen top conservative bloggers early in the week (this outreach seems to be a strategic change, which I believe has a lot to do with McCain's good week, this week). 

He also appeared on several conservative talk radio shows, including: Bill Bennett, Michael Medved, and Laura Ingraham. 

But while reaching out to conservative opinion leaders is good, nothing ingratiates you to conservatives more than attacking liberals. 

On Wednesday, McCain launched a petition stating that “the supplemental appropriations bill that passed the Senate on March 27, calling for a date certain withdrawal from Iraq, is nothing more than a guaranteed date of surrender.”

He also had words with Hillary Clinton over an amendment she wanted to tack onto emergency funding for Iraq and Afghanistan. McCain has long been an anti-pork proponent crusader, and in fact, during my time with him on the bus, he discussed how Ronald Reagan would be very upset at Republicans because of spending:

The momentum he gained this week also served to eclipse the 5-year anniversary of President Bush’s signing campaign finance reform.

Sure, Rudy closed the week strong by securing the endorsement of Steve Forbes, but as NRO’s Kathryn Jean Lopez  wrote: “This week may go to McCain.”

But the real reason it was McCain's week is that he's the only one who can be happy about this graph. 

 John Murtha supports the draft ...

... That's right, young people: The Democrats are the party of the draft. 

Juxtapose Murtha's interview with this clip of John McCain (from last weekend in New Hampshire): 

Congressman John Campbell will be guest hosting today's edition of the Hugh Hewitt Show. The show will air from 3 pm to 6 pm PDT (6 pm - 9 pm EDT). During the broadcast a link to an internet simulcast can be found here.

Congratulations to the Media Research Center.  At last night's "DisHonors Awards," they celebrated their 20th anniversary!

First, the Honors:  Rush Limbaugh received the First Annual Buckley ward. 

But who was DisHonored the most?  Here's the "Winner" of the "God I Hate America Award."

Here are some of the past "winners."

Was any news made last night?  Michael Steele vowed to run for election again.

(David All and K-Lo have more on the night)...

I've heard of Draft Newt and Americans for Rice, but Draft Wilberforce may have them all beat. 

As their website says, Draft Wilberforce '08 is ...

... the movement to get eighteenth century British reformer William Wilberforce to lead America ... He has united people of all races, faiths and political beliefs with a new vision of leadership – marked by conviction, courage and the common good. Wilberforce leads with a spirit of civility and collaboration. From PETA to Focus on the Family, Americans are coming together to say “we need William Wilberforce today.”

Finally, a candidate who unites us!