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Got this email from a reader about my earlier post ...

Matt, I'm a big fan of yours, but you don't address the central point in Bluey's response to Dean: that Dean and Hugh were doing the exact same thing to the NRSC three months ago. That was nearly as vitriolic (go read what they wrote about Ric Keller back then,) aimed against Republicans, written as activism... Dean just doesn't want to do it over this issue, which is fine, but then he should have written a column describing why corruption on the Approps Committee is so much less important than a non-binding resolution on whether the troop surge is a good idea.

The award will not be available in the final version, says Microsoft.

"A lot of you say that the joke isn't political, but you're wrong- A joke about a politician IS political...don't get me wrong, the joke is pretty funny," wrote forum user RedHound5. "I mean, it's not every day that a man shoots another man in the face by accident- but the problem with this joke is people turn it political."

But another forum user named Dark Quiche Boy wasn't happy with the one-time vice presidential in-game achievement.

"Dude," Dark Quiche Boy complained. "Thats not a cool medal. Poor Cheney, it was an accident."

This recent (but pre-debate) poll shows McCain is gaining on Rudy. 

Here's some commentary (that the McCain team provided) from last night's debate:

National Journal's Marc Ambinder: "John McCain Convincingly And Incontrovertibly Won Tonight's Debate. He Was Strong, Confident, Answered Tough Questions With Ease And Dispatch, And Seemed The Most Presidential." "[I]n my judgment, John McCain convincingly and incontrovertibly won tonight's debate. He was strong, confident, answered tough questions with ease and dispatch, and seemed the most presidential." (Marc Ambinder, National Journal's Hotline "On Call" Blog, "Pre-Spin Room Thoughts: McCain, Rudy, Romney," hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com, 5/15/07)

Townhall's Matt Lewis: "McCain scores a big laugh and lots of applause with his Drunken Sailor' line." (Matt Lewis, "Townhall" Blog, "The Drunken Sailor Line Meets John Edwards At A Beauty Shop," www.townhall.com, 5/15/07)

NBC's Chuck Todd: "There's the animated McCain ..." (Chuck Todd, "First Read" Blog, "Romney, McCain Score Points," firstread.msnbc.msn.com, 5/15/07)

National Journal's Hotline "On Call" Headline: "McCain To Romney: The Line Of The Night." "McCain: I've take and kept a consistent position on campaign finance reform. I have a kept a consistent position on right to life. And I haven't changed my position on even number years and haven't changed my position based on what offices I may be running for.'" (National Journal's Hotline "On Call" Blog, "McCain To Romney: The Line Of The Night," hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com, 5/15/07)

The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza: McCain "Came Out Swinging" And Dropped "The Hammer." "In McCain's rebuttal, he came out swinging. He noted he had been a consistent supporter of campaign finance reform before dropping the hammer: I have not changed my position in even numbered years or based on the offices I have been running for.'" (Chris Cillizza, The Washington Post's "The Fix" Blog, blog.washingtonpost.com, 5/15/07)
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Behold the political analysis abilities of the AP: Second GOP Debate Contentious

Clinton and Giuliani butting heads in the Buckeye State.

GOP mods work on Surrender Lite bill.

Richardson's dirty, dirty oil-stock-holding profiteer hands. What's that? He's a Democrat? Oh, I guess he can't be dirty, then. Nevermind.

Free the crackheads!

Former Romney aide Andrew Bacevich dies in Iraq. Rest in peace.

I'm sure the Nutroots can find a scandal in this story.

And, Al Gore wept.

My good friend Rob Bluey has gone after Dean Barnett over at RedState. While I understand Rob's point of view, I'd like to take a moment just to point out why I think he is making too much of this ...

Rob specifically notes that, "After days of making no mention of RedState's effort to oust embattled Rep. Ken Calvert..." yada, yada, yada. The implication is that Townhall should have been all over the RedState vs. Calvert story (because, obviously, if RedState does something, it's huge news!). While we frequently link to other blogs, etc., I don't think there's any obligation for one conservative blog to write about another. Second, while Dean disagreed with RedState's new direction, I believe he did so in a cordial way. The last time I checked, disagreement was allowed.

It should also be noted that other RedState bloggers have, themselves, questioned RedState's new direction. Streiff, for example, recently posted a blog with the title: "Are We Becoming Them?" So it's not as if Dean's observation is from out in left field. Clearly, RedState is repositioning itself as a blog that focuses more on activism and less on commentary. Essentially, they are taking a page from the DailyKos. It's a business decision, and I believe that it will ultimately help the movement. 

Rob has always had a bias toward using blogs for activism. My only argument would be that I think we all bring different things to the conservative movement -- and that the movement is big enough for different kinds of bloggers.  In terms of the hypocrisy argument, it is entirely possible that, in the past, Dean felt it was appropriate to send a message to the NRSC.  He may now feel (I'm only guessing here) that it is entirely another thing to launch a series of attacks on GOP Legislators.  Whether or not he's right or wrong on that is not the point ...

There is a lot of distance between, say Jerry Falwell to George Will, yet both have helped advance the conservative movement.  There's a lot of distance between William F. Buckley and Pat Robertson, yet both have played their part in the movement.  Should Robertson criticize Buckley for "being too much of an academic?"  Of course not!  We need intellectuals and activists, alike.  If the movement is big enough for Falwell, Will, Robertson, and Bucklye -- then certainly the blogosphere has room for Rob Bluey and Dean Barnett.

For four years, I ran the Leadership Institute's Grassroots Activist School.  I've also managed races ranging from School Board to U.S. Congress, and worked for a Grassroots Lobbying firm.  So don't get me wrong -- I believe in activism.  But I'm also a fusionist.  I think we need to do both activism and punditry.

We need pundits, opinion leaders, and, yes, activists. The movement benefits when we have diversity.

Now that I think of it, Rudy's best moments didn't come during his "turn," they came when he interjected himself. For example, after Ron Paul's comments, Rudy basically stepped in (out of turn) and criticized him. Any of the candidates could have done that -- but Rudy was the one who did it -- and I think it showed leadership. Candidates shouldn't be obsessed with following the rules of the debate or appearing not to be "polite."  Was it polite when Ronald Reagan said, "I paid for this microphone...!"  Rob Bluey makes the point that:  "If Giuliani goes on to capture the nomination, his response to Ron Paul will be one of the moments that is replayed years from now."

In terms of McCain, it seems to me that he's being very disciplined, in terms of staying on message. He's got his sound bites that he wants to get out, and every question is answered with a canned response. The positive thing about that is that you control the message (and avoid gaffes). The downside is that it is very boring (especially to those of us who follow this stuff closely). Luckily, for McCain, average voters spend only about 7 minutes a week thinking about politics. By repeating his lines over and over, he is assuring that average voters will eventually absorb it.

Three reasons (among many) to honor Jerry Falwell:

1). In a profession often tarnished by scandals of a sexual and financial nature, his reputation remained clean and honorable. The controversies in his long career involved ill-considered statements or unpopular policy positions, but never charges of greed, selfishness or hypocrisy. Even his political and religious opponents acknowledged the man’s dedication and passionate sincerity.

2) He helped to build unity among conservative believers of many faith traditions. Despite the long history of Catholic-Protestant antagonism, the Baptist Falwell changed the world by uniting every denomination in the pro-life cause. The Moral Majority enjoyed an unprecedented impact in the 1980’s precisely because it recognized the importance of transcending doctrinal disagreements. Without hesitation, he enthusiastically appealed to Jews, Mormons and other “minority religions” in his efforts to rally support for the values that traditionalists of every faith seemed to share. I know first hand of the way that his obvious affection for the Jewish people and the state of Israel helped to shatter the dumb old idea that any fervent televangelist must somehow harbor anti-Semitic instincts.

3) He nobly illustrated the conservative model for reforming and improving the world – working from inside out and the bottom up, rather than from the top down. The left emphasizes sweeping change, initiated by the federal government or other central planners, as the basis for bettering the lives of the populace. Falwell understood that durable transformations begin with individuals, families, neighborhoods, communities, and then can spread outward to impact millions. He began by organizing the Thomas Road Baptist Church in out-of-the-way Lynchburg in 1971, then gained national influence and worldwide fame, but finally returned his emphasis to the local institutions he had launched and nourished (including Liberty University). He never abandoned his commitment to his own wholesome family and his small corner of the country to chase the phantoms of media glory and worldwide power; he enjoyed lasting prominence and influence because he remained grounded at home.

I first met Dr. Falwell in 1983 at a private meeting of California Jewish leaders and found myself deeply impressed by the effortless, easy-going way he charmed and disarmed a half-dozen hostile liberal rabbis. In a dozen personal interactions with him over the years, he always seemed at least as kind-hearted, down-to-earth and gracious as he appeared on TV. His personal joy, confidence and contentment in his faith could warm a room and the conservative movement, and the nation, will feel notably colder with his departure.

Top-tier winner: Rudy

The debate was heavy on foreign policy and security issues, and he spoke better on abortion tonight than in the last debate. Romney and McCain were fighting each other, and Rudy got an absolutely shining moment when he jumped on Ron Paul about saying that the 9/11 terrorists attacked us because of our presence in the Middle East. It's a soundbite, kids, and his campaign headquarters have got to be cheering.

Applause from the audience was probably the biggest of the night.

Rudy also invoked Fort Dix in his first answer, and invoked the Hillary specter and the liberal media within the first hour. Well done.

Second-tier winner: Huckabee

He deserves a couple polling points out of that Edwards comment alone. It strikes me that he's a very gifted speaker in exactly the way a politician should be-- he says very little very beautifully. It sounds like a burn, but I don't mean it that way. He hits the high points, sounds conservative enough, says all he needs to, and is engaging while he does it. He made an impact tonight, I thought, sounding appropriately sensitive on abortion and tough on terror. I thought he was a bit weak when he was defending some of his tax hikes by saying he was governing in a tough state for Republicans. Umm, Hucakbee, you governed in Arkansas. I think the guys who governed in Massachusetts and New York City have taken that argument.

Slapfights!

This debate was far more entertaining than the last one, partly because the candidates quit with the "my dear colleague" nonsense and took some shots. I also think Wallace's, Hume's, and Goler's questions were mature and extremely tough compared to the MSNBC/Politico debate. The abortion questions posed to Romney and Brownback, in particular, stood out as very tough (Oh, and the one about having no minorities on stage was tough, though I kinda wish more than one candidate could have addressed it). And, all the front-runners were made to do some serious explaining of what exactly makes them conservative.

The '24' scenario question was classic Fox. It's security-focused, entertaining, provocative, and almost outlandish. It's about as much fun as you can have with a question about security during a GOP primary debate, and will undoubtedly bring Fox some heat about fear-mongering from the Left. Frankly, I thought it spiced things up, and it allowed Tancredo to get off a Jack Bauer line, which, let's face it-- we were all waiting for it.

McCain vs. Romney: 

Romney: "McCain-Kennedy would do to immigration what McCain-Feingold did to campaign finance, and that's bad."

MKH: Ooooh, burn!

Audience: Loud applause...

McCain: (Must..cover...anger...toward...Romney...and...audience.)  Well, I  think it was necessary to deal with the money problem that was causing corruption in the government...And, I have had a consistent position. I have not changed my position in even-numbered years.

Audience: Hesitant applause...

Gonna have to give the win to Romney on that one. Though, I do give McCain the crown over Romney when it came to being genuine and genuinely funny at times.

Rudy vs. Ron:

Ron: 9/11 attackers attacked us because we were bombing Iraq for 10 years, and all up in the Middle East's biznass. (paraphrased). 

MKH: Say wha?

Rudy: Oh, no he di-in't! Take it back, punk! (paraphrased)

Ron: No, really, we brought it on ourselves because we were all up in the Mesopotamian Kool-Aid, and didn't even know the flava. It's an A-B conflict, and we should C our way out. (paraphrased)

Rest of the candidates: Hey, hey, we wanna slap Ron around, too! (paraphrased)

Wendell: Settle down. Rudy grabbed his soundbite. Go get your own. (paraphrased)

 Rudy wins!

The rest of the Big Three:

McCain lost the overcaffeinated finger-stabbing, seemed more relaxed, but punched back when necessary. Competent performance with one good line: "As a former drunken sailor, I take offense..." I noticed that several other candidates, on several occasions referred back to things McCain said with, "Sen. McCain is right..." I thought he maneuvered well on the S.C. Confederate flag question. It's tricky. He admitted wrongdoing, took a stand, and managed to get applause out of a crowd that's sensitive about the charged issue.

Romney was competent, but not memorable. His suit-so-blue-it's-black line about how blue Massachusetts is fell a little flat on my official candidate funny-meter. As I said, I think he came out on top of the McCain slapfight, but I think McCain outdid him overall. He didn't speak nearly as much as last debate, which for the guy in the Big Three with the least name recognition, should be key for him. I did like his answer to the question: "Can you cite an example of a policy on which you've changed your mind to a position that's less popular with the Republican debate."

He says he was once for abolishing the Dept. of Education, but changed his mind and went pro-NCLB when he saw that federal money and testing can make an impact. Now, as a small-government conservative, it gave me warm fuzzies that he was ever pro-Education Dept. abolishment, but I recognize that that's not the most practical of positions, so it doesn't hurt him a lot with me to have abandoned it. I'm anti-NCLB, but he got right to talking about the children, so he softened the pro-NCLB blow. Great quote:

"“The civil rights issue of our time is not what’s going on on this stage, but what’s going on in the schools, in the inner-city where kids are not getting the education they need."

He still comes off a little cardboard for me. Guiliani gives me genuine passion. McCain gives me both genuine indignation and good humor. I don't feel anything from Romney.

Memorable lines:

McCain on federal spending: "As a former drunken sailor, I'm offended..."

Huckabee on spending: "Instead, we’ve had a congress that spent money like John Edwards at a beauty shop."

McCain on Congress' approval rating: "At that point, you're down to paid staff and blood relatives, I think."

Tancredo on flip-flops: "I trust those conversions when they happen on the road to Damascus, not on the road to Des Moines."

Giuliani on immigration: "First, I wanna thank Congressman Tancredo for calling me "soft" on anything. I think that's the first time in 20 years...may be good for my reputation." 

Tancredo on '24' scenario: "Four nuclear weapons have gone off on American soil and we're worried about whether waterboarding is appropriate? I'm lookin' for Jack Bauer at that time."

In politics, the question is more important than the answer.

With that in mind, it's not surprising that Rudy did well.  The last debate featured many questions about social issues.  It was not surprising that Rudy did poorly. Tonight, their was one short segment on the Life issue.  Conversely, there was a lot of time spent on terror.

If the most important question is: "Who can best keep us safe," Rudy wins.  If the most important question is: "Who represents our conservative values," Rudy loses.

McCain and Romney went at it without mentioning names.  But the Rudy vs. Paul back-and-forth was the most entertaining.

Chris Wallace challenges McCain's claim to consistently conservative given his votes on campaign finance reform, immigration reform, tax cuts, and embryonic stem cell research.   McCain basically evades to question by claiming that leadership means reaching across party lines for bipartisanship.

The Giuliani and Romney campaigns couldn't have planted a better question of McCain if they had tried.  Wallace basically ripped emperor's clothes right off.

Abandoning principles for sake of being liked by your opponents is now considered leadership?

Reminds me of an axiom in politics, "You cannot make friends of your enemies by making enemies of your friends."

Especially during an intra-party debate.

already calling it for Rudy (thanks to the exchange with Ron Paul).

So far, I would have to agree.  But I think McCain comes in second, and Romney third.  Last time, Romney's smoothness impressed.  This time, it was just kind of boring. 

I really think we need to get rid of some of these third-tier candidates.  They are hurting the frontrunners.

I like Huckabee's line about respecting human life.  Paraphrasing here, He says that's the reason we go out to search for a lost boyscout.  That's the reason we search for a miner trapped in a coal mine.

I think Wendell just said that Romney used to be Pro-Choice because a family member died after having an abortion.  Did I hear that wrong?

On immigration, Tancredo had a good line: "I trust conversions when they happen on the road to Damascus, not the road to Des Moines."

Rudy and Paul tangle over the cause of 9-11.  Paul actually believes we caused it by being involved in the Middle East.  Rudy says it's ridiculous and that the Congressman should withdrawl it...

Wendell asks McCain about supporting the Rebel flag in 2000.  McCain gets out of the question unscathed and, in fact, draws applause..

Ok.  Apparently Wendell is a liberal.  I guess FOX needed a liberal, and I'm guessing Mara Liasson and Juan Williams weren't available???  In any event, he's focusing on spending issues.

Thompson has a good line about how he has more than 1900 vetoes.  He claims to have more vetoes than all the candidates combined. 

Ron Paul says he would get rid of "the Departments" ... including the Department of Homeland Security. 

Gilmore is sooo glib.  But I like how he's swinging a bit.  He says he won't attack anyone at the debate one-on-one -- but urges us all to check out his website, www.GilmoreforPresident.com, tomorrow. 

Wallace asks him about "RudyMcRomney."  Upon some urging, GIlmore goes after Rudy, Huckabee, and Romney.

Rudy fires back with: "I think RudyMcRomney wouldn't make a bad ticket.  And I kind of like the order, John."   He essentially says that it doesn't matter how liberal he is -- because he's better than Hillary.

Ahh.  FOX has commercials.  Most people hate them.  Personally, I see them as a break ...

Mike Huckabee, speaking on the fair tax and Congress' inability to cut spending:

"Instead, we had a Congress that spent money like John Edwards in a beauty shop."