10/10: The Roger Clemens Of The GOP Field

When their stable of inadequate options left them significantly behind their arch rivals, partisans began yearning for a familiar southern face to come out of retirement and save the team. Months after the rest of the competitors entered the game, the savior did return ... although his performance could be described as average at best. We're talking about the New Yankees and Roger Clemens of course, but the above story line could easily be applied to Fred Thompson as well. Like Clemens, Thompson's debut in 10/9's CNBC debate proved he could still compete at a major league level, but it was also painfully obvious that he is not the savior many were hoping for. Clemens ended his season in only the second inning on 10/7 after getting shelled by the Cleveland Indians. We'll see if Thompson's comeback has a happier ending.

CNBC DEBATE: Exit Tommy Thompson And Enter Fred

Three moments seemed to capture all that was newsworthy from 10/9's CNBC GOP debate: Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani's fight over taxes, Romney's "We're going to let the lawyers sort out" Iran answer, and the exchange NRO's Jim Geraghty says we'll 'be seeing for the next 48 hours':

Mitt Romney: This is our sixth debate, and I thought it's like Law and Order - there's a huge cast, it seems to go on forever, and Fred Thompson shows up at the end.

Fred Thompson

: And to think, I thought I was going to be the best actor on this stage.

The Corner's Kate O'Beirne managed to have succinct consensus opinions on everyone's performance: "I don't think there has been a real stand-out performance by anyone. Format? Topic? Too repetitive? Fred Thompson has held his own and gave the best answer on war powers question. Rudy Giuliani has given a typically competent performance - found opportunity to criticize Hillary. John McCain seems sober, maybe annoyed? A few weak answers from Romney and he picked a puzzling fight with Rudy that he didn't win." Candidate specific reactions include:

DEBATE GIULIANI: A Singles Hitter

• The Corner's Rich Lowry: "Rudy is such a talented guy. Answer-to-answer in these debates he's just very impressive."


• Townhall's Mary Katharine Ham: "Rudy was strongest for me. He was optimistic, funny, comfortable talking about these issues. He thrives on the little dust-ups with Romney and Paul, and continues to play presumptive nominee by taking shots at the absent Hillary."


• Power Line's Paul Mirengoff: "Giuliani, the clear winner, was on top of his game from start to finish."


• RCP Blog's John McIntyre: "Appeared confident and on the offense. Clearly acts like the front-runner."


• The Corner's Mark Hemingway: "Giuliani appears to be leading the field by virtue of being the most consistent guy in the field. That said, he's reliably hitting singles. I don't feel like I've seen a home run from him yet."


• RCP Blog's Tom Bevan: "Another solid performance. Rudy came off well in his exchange with Romney over the line item veto despite the fact he's probably in the minority on that issue with the base. The most notable part of Rudy's performance is that he took every possible opportunity to bash Hillary and the Democrats."


• The Corner's Kate O'Beirne: "The governor's generous "we both believe in low taxes and cutting spending" sure gave the mayor a lot of ground. Dispute then down to different versions of line-item veto - advantage Rudy. Although it is the latest example of Rudy's judicial philosophy, i.e. activism from the bench."

DEBATE MCCAIN: Should Stick To Debating In New Hampshire

• The Corner's Rich Lowry: "McCain is a real scold tonight."


• RCP Blog's John McIntyre: "what most people will probably take away from today, was the trouble McCain had hearing the questions. Fair or not, it made him look old, and for the first time I found myself thinking about his age."


• Power Line's Paul Mirengoff: "McCain was solid, but a bit subdued. He didn't approach his commanding performance of the last debate."


• The Corner's Mark Hemingway: "McCain isn't doing badly, but to continue his recently ascendant trajectory he sure could use another commanding performance like he had at the last debate. So far this isn't it."


• Townhall's Mary Katharine Ham: "I appreciated McCain's unabashed defense of free trade on a stage with a bunch of hemming and hawing. Well done, informed history lesson for everyone. McCain is generally good in debates, but I'm not convinced this is a comeback for him."


• The Corner's David Freddoso: "McCain Takes On Big Ethanol! He's back - it's the old John McCain from the Senate floor! I imagine he's definitely skipping Iowa now."


• The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez: "McCain continues to make a reluctant conservative take a second look."

DEBATE ROMNEY: You Have The Right To Not Consult An Attorney

• The Corner's Mark Hemingway: "'We're Going To Let The Lawyers Decide When We Go To War' ... What a terrible answer on Mitt's part."


• AmSpec Blog's James Antle: "Romney's performance was mostly good, but his "ask the lawyers" line was probably the night's (afternoon's?) biggest gaffe."


• The Corner's EM Zanotti: "When asked about Iran, Mitt responded with deference to the legal system and the internationals. I suppose whether that is a good strategy depends on the lawyers and internationals in question...and gave Ron Paul the upper hand. "


• AmSpec Blog's Jennifer Rubin: "Romney's "ask the lawyers" will perpetuate the sense he is not tough enough, confident enough in a post 9-11 world. And someone will have to explain why he thought the line item veto was a winner."


• Townhall's Hugh Hewitt: "On the economy and trade, taxes and optimism, Romney has the edge, but he miffed the Iran question. ... The talk of lawyers --probably a fumbled reference to when and if the War Powers Act applies, but you couldn't really tell-- was not his finest hour, but also not the huge deal that some want to make it out to be."


• The Corner's Rich Lowry: "Romney on Farm Subsidies. Not very crisp. Not his greatest night."


• Campaign Standard's Fred Barnes: "Romney should have been a stronger presence, given the debate was focused on economic and financial matters, his issues. He talked about the value of having a president with experience in working in the real economy. That's a fair point, but Romney wasn't able to make much out of it."

DEBATE THOMPSON: Giving Average A Good Name

• The Corner's Rich Lowry: "Fred Is....Fine. Not making any mistakes, but not shining by any means."


• Captain's Quarters: "Thompson showed that he was comfortable and prepared, even for the silly attacks from other candidates."


• Townhall's Mary Katharine Ham: "For the record, I think Fred's not great, but fine tonight. That may be all he needs."


• RCP Blog's John McIntyre: "Shaky start, but finished very strong. Hurdled whatever bar was set for him."


• Right Wing News: "Fred's performance improved significantly and he seemed funnier and more comfortable. All in all, even though he didn't win the debate and could have used a bit more pep, I think he showed that he has the requisite amount of personality and speaking skills to carry the GOP mantle in 2008."


• RCP Blog's Tom Bevan: "[I]t certainly wasn't a breakout performance, but he didn't fall flat on his face either. ... Fred blended in on the stage among the rest.


• Power Line's John Hinderaker: "Fred Thompson strikes me as a good guy and a good conservative, but I don't see any special appeal there."


• The Corner's EM Zanotti: "[S]o much more polished than two weeks ago at Mackinac. His camp can at least consider this an improvement.


• Power Line's Paul Mirengoff: "Thompson did well for his first time out. ... Thompson needs to become more consistently sharp, and he probably will. However, he looks old, and I don't think there's much he can do about that."


• Campaign Standard's Fred Barnes: "The impression he created in Tuesday's Republican debate in Detroit wasn't that of a dominant figure or a replica of Ronald Reagan. But he came across as likable, knowledgeable on issues but not wonky, and unexcitable. So Thompson passed the test of whether he could run with the big boys in the Republican race."


• The Brody File: "What people wanted to see tonight is whether Thompson belonged on stage and if other candidates would make him look bad. They did not and he proved that not only he belongs but he is a force that is not going away."


• AmSpec Blog's Jennifer Rubin: "Thompson wasn't great and wasn't awful. He seemed like a fellow comfortable in his skin but in second or third in the race."


• NRO's Jim Geraghty: "It was not a shining debut, but he didn't hurt himself."


• RedState's Erick Erickson: "I thought he started off slow with the first answer, but by the end, Thompson was holding his own, throwing zingers, and by the luck of the draw, looking very statesman like standing between Romney and Rudy as they squabbled with each other."


• Townhall's Hugh Hewitt: "Fred Thompson is just flat. Period. And the perpetual frown isn't going to win anything."


• The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez: "And the Winner Is... Fred Thompson. He showed up - a big thing - and he didn't do bad at all."

THOMPSON: Palmetto State Or Bust

Right Wings News participated in a 10/9 pre=debate conference call with Fred Thompson manager Bill Lacy. highlights include:

Q: In light of the comments by James Dobson, what are evangelicals saying to you?

A: Dr. Land and Gary Bauer have been very vocal in our support. We will continue to work to make a case to the social right.

Q: Mitt's strategy seems to be to win Iowa and New Hampshire -- then hope that vaults him to the top. Rudy seems to be aiming to clean-up on Super Tuesday. It sounds like you're hoping to just do well, but not necessarily win in Iowa and New Hampshire, and then win SC and count on that momentum to take you into Super Tuesday. Is that your strategy?

That's basically right. This is a winnowing process. We don't have to win Iowa and New Hampshire; we just have to go into SC viewed by the voters as being a competitive candidate.

DEM FIELD: This Has To be Playing Well Somewhere Right?

The netroots were not impressed by John Edwards, Barack Obama, and Bill Richardson's decision to pull their names off of MI's 1/15 primary ballot. DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas comments: "Ridiculous. It's fear, no less. They are letting Iowa decide where they can travel and who they can talk to. Whoever the nominee is will have to go back to Michigan during the general -- a swing state, let's not forget -- and explain why they gave them the big "f' you" during the primaries."

Open Left's Chris Bowers adds: "As for potential blowback, I have a hard time seeing Iowa or New Hampshire residents getting angry at [Hillary] Clinton for staying on the ballot in Michigan. And, as far as the general election goes, now she won't have to deal with any potential blowback from withdrawing her name from the ballot in the primary. Score another point for the Clinton campaign."

CLINTON: You Go Girl

After posting a defense of Hillary Clinton's confrontation with IA voter Randall Rolph, Taylor Marsh reports many have accused her of being "in the bag for Clinton." Marsh responds:

I have no intention of standing by while the first viable female candidate for president is unfairly depicted, mocked, or politically gutted because she's strong, but instead is called "harsh." Any woman who has ever stood her ground knows what this is about. It will not be ignored on my watch, on my show or on this blog. ... Clinton and I will never agree on everything, but we do have one thing in common. We understand how hard it is for a woman to do what she's doing, especially in the boy's club where national security, military matters and foreign policy, at least in America, are seen as guy things. Ask Nancy Pelosi.

Talk Left's Jeralyn Merritt admits she has received similar accusations and reiterates she has not made up her mind between John Edwards and Clinton. Merritt then goes on: "Like Taylor, I'm covering the 2008 election, not a single candidate. I write about Hillary the most because so far she is the most interesting candidate. She also has great campaign outreach through Peter Daou, her Internet communications director. He doesn't flood our e-mail boxes with every possible soundbite, but knows the individual blogs well enough only to send each those items he thinks would be of interest. As to what he sends TalkLeft, he's always on the mark."

EDWARDS: Sometimes The Medium Is Not The Message

MyDD's Todd Beeton critiques an innovative John Edwards networking tool ... a text message directing the recipient to call in for a voicemessage from Edwards manager David Bonior. From the message: "In head to head matchups, John Edwards beats out Giuliani, Romney, and Thompson with a 9 to 11 point lead in both the latest Rasmussen and SurveyUSA polls. John is the only Democratic candidate that beats each Republican in these match-ups."

Beeton comments: "Putting aside for a moment the concern troll aspect of the voicemail, this idea that John Edwards is the only Democrat who can win next year this argument also smacks somewhat of desperation, since for much of the campaign, Edwards has been very much about making the policy argument for his candidacy; if he's resorting to citing polls, doesn't that mean the policy argument isn't working? Also, while I'm unaware of exactly to whom these text messages were sent, the Bonior voicemail seems a bit insider baseball to be effective on a mainstream level. ... Very smart way of potentially expanding his list, I just don't know if this was the message to do it.

OBAMA: If Only The Rest Of Us Understood How Truly Marvelous Obama Really Is

Barack Obama fans in the netroots are still hoping Obama will stop just "trying to show us how marvelous he is" and instead exhibit the 'ruthlessness' necessary to win elections. Ezra Klein comments: "The most remarkable political triumph of this campaign was the Clinton campaign effectively defining Barack Obama's 'new politics' as 'not attacking Hillary Clinton by name.' ... It was real incompetence on the part of Obama's handlers, and it's called into question his skills and, yes, ruthlessness, as a campaigner."

TPM's Josh Marshall responds: "I suspect this gets the order wrong, and that the 'strategy' is rooted in the personality. ... I'm getting the sense that it's a little more that Obama thinks what he's selling is so choice that people will come to it rather than bringing it to them. And that can lead to a kind of campaign passivity and fuzziness, notwithstanding confidence and scrappiness."

Less convinced of Obama's inherent 'choice'ness, Working AssetsDavid Sirota picks up on reports that Obama will vote for a trade agreement with Peru next week and comments: "Obama is the first presidential candidate to officially declare his/her support for the NAFTA expansion moving through the Congress. His announcement is not necessarily surprising, considering he was the keynote speaker at the launch of the Hamilton Project - a Wall Street front group working to drive a wedge between Democrats and organized labor on globalization issues. ... Trade has been known to be a huge issue in Iowa (remember Dick Gephardt in 1988), so this announcement could very well ripple through the 2008 primary.

Andrew Sullivan explains why he is not bothered by Obama's recent "I am confident that we can create a Kingdom right here on Earth," statement. Sullivan: "I have worried about Barack Obama's tendency toward liberal Christianism in the past, but, although it isn't to my taste, I don't think, after more research, that it strays too much into the kind of social Gospel of Bush, Dobson or, on the left, Jim Wallis. Obama has too much Niebuhr in him. The Drudge-highlighted phrase "Kingdom on Earth" would worry me more if it hadn't been uttered in a church service and if Obama's record weren't demonstrably subtler than a simple Bush-like transference of abstract religious doctrine onto a complicated, fallen world."

BLOGGERS VS BELTWAY: A Make Or Break Issue

The netroots are pressuring members of the progressive caucus to defeat provisions in the RESTORE Act that would grant telecommunications companies amnesty for any past cooperation with Bush Administration surveillance efforts and that allows the Bush Administration to obtain 'umbrella warrants' from the FISA court. Glenn Greenwald blogs: "There is absolutely no justification whatsoever -- neither substantive nor political -- for expanding the scope of warrantless eavesdropping powers and especially for granting amnesty to lawbreaking telecoms. It is unconscionable even to consider any changes to FISA without full disclosure by the administration of how they used their illegal and secret warrantless eavesdropping powers in the past."

Fire Dog Lake's Christy Hardin Smith urges: "Please make calls today to all of your elected representatives in the House and Senate and tell them this is important to you - and that it is important that they get this right. That means no retroactive immunity for telecom companies that may have already broken the law. No bypassing the FISA court where jurisdiction is appropriate for US citizen surveillance."

Greenwald warns: "If the Democratic Congress capitulates yet again, there will be plenty of time and opportunity for all sorts of recriminations. I think it is quite encouraging that much of the "netroots" is now devoting its energies and resources not to supporting Democrats, but to opposing Congressional Democrats who merit defeat."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Location, Location, Zoning

Virginia Postrel writes:

Dallas and Los Angeles represent two distinct models for successful American cities, which both reflect and reinforce different cultural and political attitudes. One model fosters a family-oriented, middle-class lifestyle-the proverbial home-centered "balanced life." The other rewards highly productive, work-driven people with a yen for stimulating public activities, for arts venues, world-class universities, luxury shopping, restaurants that aren't kid-friendly. One makes room for a wide range of incomes, offering most working people a comfortable life. The other, over time, becomes an enclave for the rich. Since day-to-day experience shapes people's sense of what is typical and normal, these differences in turn lead to contrasting perceptions of economic and social reality. It's easy to believe the middle class is vanishing when you live in Los Angeles, much harder in Dallas. These differences also reinforce different norms and values-different ideas of what it means to live a good life. Real estate may be as important as religion in explaining the infamous gap between red and blue states.

LEST WE FORGET: We Thought Kramer's First Names Was Kosmo

Few things piss DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas more than the flood of catalogs that seem to invade his mailbox on a daily basis. Kos blogs: "I don't request the damn things, yet somehow they seem to find their way. ... Enter Catalog Choice, a project endorsed by the NRDC and the National Wildlife Council to help stem this wasteful practice. ... You enter your personal information, check off the catalogs you receive from a list, and they contact those merchants and ask that they stop sending you their crap. And the real impact of participating and spreading the word could be huge."