Beltway buzz

So was the economic meltdown, so were the debate performances, so was the Obama campaign keeping a short leash on foot-in-mouth maestro Joe Biden, so was John McCain's transformation from maverick moderate at the beginning of campaign season into whatever he is today, so was the markedly favorable news coverage for Barack.

It's easy to sit there and blame Bush, as has been the national pastime for many years now. And yet McCain -- who, yes, at one time was really "mavericky" -- had a real shot at the White House, buoyed by independents who had long liked him and Democrats who at least respected him, until his handlers went in search of the conservative base. Sarah Palin was  a spur of the moment pick intended to woo the right (though GOP voter turnout reportedly dropped) and make Hillary supporters seethe at Obama in one fell swoop. And that euphoria lasted in the polls until mid-September; by the end of that month, according to a series of Washington Post-ABC News polls, confidence in Palin's ability to slip into the Oval Office chair if needing be was seriously dragging and Joe Biden was getting higher favorability ratings. Biden! I know Dems who practically hit their heads against the wall when a) Biden ran for the nomination again and b) Obama picked him as his running mate.

Sure, Palin ranked high on the down-to-earth personality scale, but in times of crisis  -- economy, war, nuclear Iran, out-of-control Pakistan -- voters were going to jump at highly substantive answers, not just primo photo ops at the United Nations tutorials.

Were McCain's jokes on "Saturday Night Live" the weekend before the election -- you know, the skit with Tina Fey where "Sarah" referred to her 2012 ambitions -- actually jokes? For a presidential candidate to be in on a joke about his VP nominee undermining his own campaign ... well, it was pretty big. Did Palin want to see this ticket through, or did she decide to try to emerge from the contest with as little damage as possible to map a presidential run in four years? Palin said in the blitz of media attention this week that "if there is an open door in '12 or four years later, and if it is something that is going to be good for my family, for my state, for my nation, an opportunity for me, then I'll plow through that door." And I'll blame others for '08.

Simply put, Palin shares blame for the McCain loss. You can't blame the media for every hard question, and you can't wag your finger at "some blogger probably sitting there in their parents' basement wearing their pajamas, blogging" if you understand that elections will now be fought and won in the new online media. (Did she a) learn from Dan Rather's faux pas or b) pause to consider how bloggers helped as well as hurt her campaign?) And all in all, the GOP can't dwell on it, but can learn from the past to adequately look forward to the future.

 

Yesterday Chris Cizzilla reported that Bobby Jindal, despite rumors to the contrary and his invitation to the Memorial Day vetting barbecue at John McCain's house, was actually never vetted for the vice presidential position -- because, according to the Washington Post blogger, he told McCain officials he wasn't interested. Officially, it's because he didn't want to leave the governor's post, and he said as much to the media, but the unofficial reason shows the presence of a real political cranium: sinking ship. There's been disagreement on how much Jindal would have been hurt by being McCain's No. 2, but let's just say Sarah Palin is not emerging from this contest politically unscathed.

But if there's one lesson from Campaign 2008, it's that you don't even have to be a candidate yet -- er, and there doesn't even have to be a new campaign yet, or the president-elect doesn't even have to be sworn into office yet -- for the attack dogs to sniff out new, tasty prey! It's not that Jindal wasn't already on the left-wing radar -- see the Huffington Post's entire page devoted to Bobby -- but now there is left-wing offense on the GOP to be conducted in defense of Barack Obama's Oval Office chair, no matter how long down the road that contest is. And there's the Bobby Jindal is Bad! blog, which must have decided he's all right because there have been no posts since July. My favorite is this Nov. 5 post on Daily Kos:

"If you do not ever forward anything else, please forward this to all your contacts... this is very scary to think of what lies ahead of us here in our own United States... better heed this and pray about it and share it.

Who is Bobby Jindal?

Probable U.S. presidential candidate, Piyush 'Bobby' Jindal was born in Baton Rouge, Lousiana, to Amar Jindal, an Indian REPUBLICAN from Punjab and Raj Jindal, a REPUBLICAN information technology director.

Jindal takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a REPUBLICAN. He is quick to point out that he attended Brown University and was elected to office after Hurricane Katrina. Jindal's political handlers are attempting to make it appear that he is not a radical.

... Let us all remain alert concerning Jindal's expected presidential candidacy.

The Republicans have said they plan on destroying the US from the inside out, what better way to start than at the highest level - through the President of the United States, one of their own!!!"

Oh my word, that's funny -- did you know he's a REPUBLICAN (insert flames and "The Shining" soundtrack)????

Cizzilla opined that no VP nod for Jindal meant that he escapes the taint of McCain and Bush associations. I'll add that Hurricane Gustav, while thankfully not pulling a Katrina Part Deux, will also work in favor of a Jindal run in 2012: Because of it, he skipped not only the Republican National Convention (where pundits expected him to deliver the equivalent of Obama's 2004 convention speech) but was the only southern governor not to tape a message to the RNC. The message that sent was Jindal saying he had more important things to do, namely help his state in a time of crisis. The end result is priceless -- that he was AWOL for the McCain-Palin coming out party. Yup, he missed the taint.

Call him a pit bull without lipstick -- or just check out these media characterizations of Barack Obama's new chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel. First, from Time:

"Instead, you bring in a guy like Emanuel, the most hard-headed, no-nonsense, foul-mouthed, smart-as-hell, get-it-done-or-get-out-of-my-way Washington insider of his generation. And you put him in charge of a White House staff whose task it is -- and this is putting it conservatively -- to conceive, propose, promote and somehow push through Congress the most ambitious agenda any President has carried forth at least since Ronald Reagan rode into town with a lopsided grin in January 1981. 'Rahm does not sing Kumbaya,' laughs an old friend and colleague. 'He barks orders.' His hometown paper, the Chicago Tribune, calls Emanuel 'a brutally effective taskmaster.'"

Or from Nina Easton at Fortune:

"Rahm Emanuel, the Chicago Congressman who will be President-elect Barack Obama's White House chief of staff, is 'dangerous, absolutely relentless when he's got a political kill in sight,' according to an admiring Republican colleague, Oklahoma Congressman Tom Cole. Emanuel is also, President Clinton once told Fortune, 'one of the top political minds in Washington,' a former ballet dancer who 'favors the counterattack over the attack.'"

Or the Chicago Sun-Times:

"With Emanuel, Obama gets an enforcer, a bad cop who loves the f-word, with a unique resume no one else in the United States can match ... If Obama is reserved Mr. Cool, Emanuel is emotive Mr. Hot."

OK, so let's make sure we have this straight:

• John McCain was branded a hot-headed cranky temperamental old guy. Rahm Emanuel is "emotive."
• Karl Rove was dubbed "Bush's evil genius" and a wicked puppetmaster. Rahm Emanuel is "a brutally effective taskmaster."
• Newt Gingrich was once named Saturday Night Live's "Pr*ck of the Week." Rahm Emanuel is "the most hard-headed, no-nonsense, foul-mouthed, smart-as-hell, get-it-done-or-get-out-of-my-way Washington insider of his generation."
• Dick Cheney was characterized as being unhinged and/or rude and/or un-vice presidential for dropping the F-bomb on Patrick Leahy. Rahm Emanuel is "an enforcer, a bad cop who loves the f-word, with a unique resume no one else in the United States can match."

Got it?

You know you're somebody when a Facebook fan page is created in your honor -- and you know you're on the minds of voters when membership jumps after one's party just got thrashed on Election Day. It's the Bobby Jindal in 2012 movement, kicking into gear and on the lips of pundits just two days after Barack Obama's election.

Now, I'll be the first to say that I need a break from electioneering. I'm pooped, really. And cold, but that's another trip to the Eddie Bauer. But I did say in September that the Louisiana governor would have been the better choice for John McCain's running mate, and I got accused of hatching a conspiracy against Sarah Palin as a result. Now the rumor is that Jindal was offered the slot but said no, though Jindal steadfastly says that he was just interested in governing and never said if he was even extended the invitation. And it's probably all for the best: There's no telling what kind of damage to Jindal's young political career could have been wrought on McCain's coattails.

Jindal's just 37 right now, yet has enough credentials (in the following order) to make an early-thirtysomething like me feel like a complete slacker:

• Rhodes scholar and Oxford grad
• Advised Fortune 500 companies
• Director of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (and took the Medicaid from deficit to surplus)
  
• President of the University of Louisiana system
• Assistant secretary of Health and Human Services for Planning and Evaluation under Bush
• Congressman (two-term; re-elected with 80 percent of the vote), served on House Committee on Homeland Security
• First Louisiana governor of color since Reconstruction, as well as America's first Indian governor

He's also found the time to marry and have three kids. His life makes one tired just thinking about it. He also seamlessly guided Louisiana through Hurricane Gustav after the state's disastrous Katrina experience.

I think the past two days of GOP reflection and musings have led to one unmistakable fact: The GOP needs to rebuild. And that means, in four years, a very clean slate. My recommendation as of this point? A ticket of Bobby Jindal and Eric Cantor. All another Palin run would do is bring Tina Fey out of SNL retirement. The GOP needs to move forward, unless it craves another trouncing.

You can all get back to Post-Election Detox now.

Oh, my my my my... remember this was the guy who marveled about Barack Obama being "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy"? The AP is reporting that Joe Biden is Obama's No. 2, and that the text message will be sent out Saturday morning (does this mean some Dems won't answer their phone now?). ABC News reported late tonight that Secret Service had been dispatched to Biden's home, so either he's been printing counterfeit bills in the basement or needs executive-wannabe-level protection.

For a campaign that has consistently chided John McCain for being mired in the old Washington guard and conducting the "same old Washington politics," Obama's choice is bizarre. Joe Biden, change?? Biden, the sixth-longest-serving and notoriously long-winded senator? Biden, who was named a Face for the Future by Time magazine in his freshman senatorial year -- in 1974, before I was even born? Biden, who withdrew from the 1988 presidential race after speech-plagiarizing and school-grade-exaggerating scandals? Biden, who snagged a whopping 1% of Iowa delegates in January?

And finally -- and this is my favorite one -- Joe Biden, who suggested on March 16, 2004, on "Hardball" that John Kerry pick John McCain as his running mate:

"'I think that this is time for unity in this country, and maybe it is time to have a guy like John McCain -- a Republican -- on the ticket with a guy he does like. They do get along. And they don't have fundamental disagreements on major policies.'

When asked by Matthews if he would support such a ticket, Biden said, 'I would. Yeah, if John Kerry said that's who he wanted, and McCain -- I'd encourage McCain to say yes. I doubt whether John would do it. I doubt whether John McCain would do it. But, you know, we need some unity here, man. The red states and the blue states -- we've got to have something to coalesce around here.'"

 
So we can conclude that Obama has picked a real winner: A guy who's about as Washington Establishment as Washington Establishment can get, who's never been near successful in his bids for the White House, who once called him a "clean" African-American, and who believes that John McCain is a great unifier.

I'd better stop laughing so hard before the neighbors start rapping on my wall...

UPDATE: Jennifer Rubin at Pajamas Media wonders if Obama's been running on the mantra that experience doesn't matter, why'd he go for the guy with the most experience he could find?

The Politico reminds us of another un-PC Biden zinger: "You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent."

A Huffington Post blogger begs Joe to keep his foot outta his mouth.

Jonah Goldberg writes, "Barack Obama has just picked his Dick Cheney." That's some serious voodoo.

UPDATE NUMERO DOS: Welcome, NRO readers, as well as Gateway Pundit readers, RCP readers, Pajamas readers, etc. -- check out our expanded DNC Opinion coverage here.

I'm so glad that TMZ has finally caught up with the Enquirer on this story. Actually, they've got the statement he just released after his "Nightline" confession hit the wires. And, like his "confession," it's a doozy. My comments are in bold:

"In 2006 (er, what about last month??), I made a serious error in judgment and conducted myself in a way that was disloyal to my family and to my core beliefs (don't cheat on a woman in chemo?). I recognized my mistake and I told my wife that I had a liaison (just one? not buying it... the woman followed him on the campaign trail) with another woman, and I asked for her forgiveness. Although I was honest in every painful detail (oh, please, not every detail) with my family, I did not tell the public. When a supermarket tabloid (trying to dis' the Enquirer) told a version of the story, I used the fact that the story contained many falsities (*cough*) to deny it. But being 99% honest is no longer enough. (I would have pegged the honesty at about 33.4%)

I was and am ashamed of my conduct and choices, and I had hoped that it would never become public ("especially the fact I continued to meet my mistress"). With my family, I took responsibility for my actions in 2006 (and 2008??) and today I take full responsibility publicly. But that misconduct took place for a short period in 2006 (and 2008??). It ended then ("that's why I was creeping around the Beverly Hilton last month with my mistress"). I am and have been willing to take any test necessary to establish the fact that I am not the father of any baby (can he do this on a daytime talk show?), and I am truly hopeful that a test will be done so this fact can be definitively established. I only know that the apparent father has said publicly that he is the father of the baby. I also have not been engaged in any activity of any description that requested, agreed to or supported payments of any kind to the woman or to the apparent father of the baby.

It is inadequate to say to the people who believed in me that I am sorry, as it is inadequate to say to the people who love me that I am sorry (me, me, me). In the course of several campaigns, I started to believe that I was special (uh-huh) and became increasingly egocentric (yeah) and narcissistic (see video). If you want to beat me up - feel free (sympathy ploy). You cannot beat me up more than I have already beaten up myself (major sympathy ploy). I have been stripped bare (no more details, come on!) and will now work with everything I have to help my family and others (guilt transference) who need my help.

I have given a complete interview on this matter and having done so, will have nothing more to say ("except I'm never giving the Hiltons another dime")."

John Edwards admits to ABC News that he did have an affair, but claims he didn't have a love child with Rielle Hunter even though he's never taken a paternity test. More:

"Edwards said his wife, Elizabeth, and others in his family became aware of the affair in 2006.

Edwards made a point of telling Woodruff that his wife's cancer was in remission when he began the affair with Hunter. Elizabeth Edwards has since been diagnosed with an incurable form of the disease.

When the National Enquirer first reported the alleged Edwards-Hunter affair last October 11, Edwards, his campaign staff and Hunter vociferously denounced the report.

'The story is false, it's completely untrue, it's ridiculous,' Edwards told reporters then.

He repeated his denials just two weeks ago.

Edwards today admitted the National Enquirer was correct when it reported he had visited Hunter at the Beverly Hills Hilton last month.

The former Senator said his wife had not known about the meeting."

Wow. He's a piece of work, isn't he? First of all, it's OK to cheat when the cancer is in remission. And if he's trying to buy some sympathy with that, why did he sneak off to meet the woman last month without telling Elizabath? And if he wasn't the father of the baby, and if the affair was supposedly long over, why did he secretly meet her and the baby?

But perhaps the greatest headline here is... The National Enquirer deserves some props from media outlets who wouldn't touch the story because of the source -- even if the Enquirer did chase John into the john at the Beverly Hilton.