Wisconsin Regains Its Position
As Momentum Changer In Democratic Primary

9:45 p.m. Lone Star Time

In 1960, Wisconsin turned the momentum away from Hubert Humphrey and toward JFK. In 1968, LBJ got out of his re-election bid when he feared humiliation by a defeat in Washington. 1976, it put Jimmy Carter ahead of an unimpressive pack and tonight, it handed a sizable victory to Barack Obama in a state Hillary Clinton was long expected to win.

Barack Obama behaved poorly in his victory speech first, and foremost, by going on the air during Hillary Clinton’s concession speech. He also spoke of himself as though he were already the presumed president, let alone nominee. He also referred to Hillary dismissive-ly. IS THE PROCONPUNDIT STICKING UP FOR HILLARY CLINTON? IS THE ProConPundit SYMPATHIZING WITH HILLARY? Y-E-S. There, I said it. I don’t want her to be the president but Obama behaved badly. To the casual observer, it may not mean much but in political circles its considered VERY POOR FORM to interrupt someone’s concession speech.

Obama is well on his way. He’s not there yet. Hillary never does so well as when she is down and when she is perceived to be mistreated. Obama is woefully lacking in experience to be president and demonstrated that tonight. The next chapter is going to be VERY ugly. The Clinton's are not going down without a fight. And, brace yourself, again, the ProConPundit will take her side. This is the fight of her life and, despite my non-veiled contempt for the Clinton's, it must be very frustrating to be losing to someone so inferior to her capaibility.

The primary season will likely be OVER on March 4 when the Buck-eyes and Lone-Stars decide the fate of the Democratic nomination.

Meanwhile, John McCain clobbered the Huckster in Wisconsin. Huckabee needs to get on with his life.

Sidebar: The ProConPundit won an award in San Antonio tonight. For what? You’ll never believe it–for my EDGINESS! Jack Welch writes of the 4E’s of Leadership[: Energy, Energizing, Edge & Executing. I won the award for edginess–perhaps jagged!

An astute and fervent Hillary supporter of Latino extraction told me tonight that if Obama gets the nomination he is going with McCain because Obama is not ready for "prime time." The ProConPundit is positing a yet unheard of constituency: HILLARY FANS WHO WILL NOT DIGEST OBAMA SHOULD HE BE THE NOMINEE. I like it.

As Wisconsin Goes, So Goes Ohio
Decline fo the Clinton’s Continue
Michele Obama Has Not Been Proud of America in 25 years
Fidel Castro Resigns To Accept VP Slot for Obama
San Antonio, Texas--ProConPundit on Special Assignment
5:45 p.m. Lone Star Time

The race is getting more exciting by the minute.

Obama will win Wisconsin handily and is now poised to beat the Clinton’s in Texas. If he wins Ohio, it will be over. He is taking an anti-NAFTA stand which will serve him well in Ohio where, along with most of the Midwest has lost tons of jobs due to NAFTA which was Bill Clinton’s gift that keeps on giving, also endorsed by all former presidents: a bad, bad move.

Fidel Castro’s resignation comes just in the nic of time should Obama get the nomination and need an older, wiser person of similar ideology. This is reflected, certainly, in Michelle Obama’s assertion that she has not been proud of America in 25 years. Great attitude for a first lady.

Bill Kristol, Editor of The Weekly Standard, is a neo-conservative and has not historically been a fan of John McCain, but has been on the band wagon in recent times signaling to other conservatives that McCain’s Straight Talk Express is the bus ride you want to be on. Kristol said Sunday on Fox News Sunday that a McCain vs. Obama race in the fall will be a unique race in that it will truly be an ideological race. How you say can that be if McCain is not a right-wing conservative? Here’s how: it will be an ideological race between Obama, a liberal to the left of Ted Kennedy and John McCain, a moderate. We have not had a moderate vs. liberal race since Bush I vs. Dukakis in 1988. There are more moderates today than there was then. Some guess that 30-40% of the country consider themselves moderates. These are people that normally have to pick someone much more liberal or much more conservative than they are. This time, conservatives and most moderates will go for McCain and liberals will go for Obama.

Tonight’s results in Wisconsin will be VERY interesting. The ProConPundit is still on assignment in Texas. Where else would I be? My favorite former president, George Bush I endorsed my favorite future president, John McCain, here yesterday. Having a face for radio, The ProConPundit stayed out of the camera’s view!

Wisconsin, Like So Many States–
Finally Able to Make a Difference

Kenosha, WI--ProConPundit on Special Assignment

February 17, 2008 10 a.m. Cheese Standard Time

Please remember that Clinton operatives like Terry McAuliffee worked behind the scenes a couple fo years ago to get all the pecking order changed for the Democratic primaries this year. They believed the earlier voting and front loading of New York and California would effect and early Hillary Clinton victory. I thought it was a bad idea then and realize how wrong I was. This has been a great primary. Think of all of the states that have voted earlier, actually had a say in selecting the nominees for president. Now, attention turns to Wisconsin and here is what I have learned.

Hillary Clinton left Wisconsin yesterday and won’t be back. She is ceding this state to Obama. This is no small thing. Although Wisconsin lines up as a blue state, it did so narrowly in 2004. While Madison is considered a rather liberal place, Milwaukee’s Democrats include a lot of working class and minority voters. A lot of the state is red and Kenosha, Wisconsin, a city of 95,000 people just over the Illinois border has a huge Democratic population, and a heavily union town due to, among other things, the Chrysler plant and onetime American Motors plant.

The ProConPundit is positing that the Wisconsin results on the Dem side will tell us something about who will win Ohio. Democratic constituencies are probably fairly similar in both states except that Ohio has a lot more black voters than Wisconsin’s 6%. Some are suggesting that an Obama victory in Wisconsin would be a surprise because of the low black population here. Not so. Remember, Obama was first popular with white voters while black voters were slow coming to him. Their allegiance was with the Clinton’s and they liked Obama but were afraid to trust that he could win. White Democrats were first to embrace Obama. Bill Clinton helped make the case for Obama among black voters by offending them. Richmond, VA Mayor Doug Wilder, the former governor of Virginia, and I believe, the first black governor in US had harsh words for Bill Clinton this morning on Face the Nation. He asked, "Who is Bill Clinton to presume some mantle of authority to speak for, and to, and to be dismissive of African Americans." Folks, the Clintons are in trouble. Its not sexism, either. Its bullyism. The Clinton’s have been incensed at the temerity, or audacity dare I say, of Obama to stand in the way of their campaign of inevitability and rubber stamp coronation.

Wisconsin has not had the chance to make a difference in a long time. Wisconsin helped JFK overtake Hubert Humphrey and turn momentum in his favor in 1960 and helped Jimmy Carter in 1976 when the Democrats, like the Republicans of 2008, had a pack nobody was very excited about. Its great to see the dairy state have their voices heard and votes count in this primary. Obama will do well here and continue the mounting momentum toward an Obama victory. Texas seems to be to be Obama’s most looming upcoming primary. I think he may do well in Ohio.

Meet The Press had "The Odd Couple" on this morning, Democratic Senators Dick Durbin (Illinois) and Chuck Schumer (New York). Hillary saves these two clowns from being my least favorite senators. Hillary is first, Durbin second, and Schumer third. Durbin "Felix" and Schumer "Oscar" share an apartment in DC and are good friends. Each of them allegedly loyal to their junior senator, they were on MTP to supposedly face off to make the argument for their candidate. Trouble is everyone knows Schumer despises Hillary Clinton. His only possible goal in her being electing president would be to get her out of New York. Durbin, for all of his faults and hypocrisy, is totally behind Obama.

Howard Wolfson, Clinton Communications Director and David Axelrod, Obama campaign manager faced off on Face the Nation. The Clinton’s and their minions are just nasty. Her remark, of Obama, is that "talk is cheap." Unlikable people don’t get elected president. I am not prepared to pronounce her dead at this point, but life support has been removed and last rites are fast a comin.

McCain needs to make sure he is not the Bob Dole of 2008. Bob Dole’s year to become president was 1988 when was short circuited and eclipsed by a vice-president named George Bush. He then had to wait eight years to get nominated in 1996. It was too late, he was past his time. McCain’s year was 2000, got eclipsed by another George Bush and has had to wait eight years for his turn. He needs to do something to make sure he doesn’t become another Bob Dole. Both were old, both were well respected war heroes. I do think McCain is more liked across the board and is much better known among rank and file voters than was Dole. McCain’s nastiness has tended to be more behind the camera’s where as Dole was routinely caustic on the air...a trait the ProConPundit loves by the way!

McCain needs to be able to speak more clearly about domestic issues and also needs to stop dismissing Obama for his platitudinous oratory. I am well documented in saying that candidates need to stop trying to emulate Reagan. They need to learn from him. Reagan ran for president during a most difficult time and did so by being optimistic and hopeful. McCain and Hillary are both talking too much gloom and doom. McCain has a great sense of humor–he needs to use it. He can’t beat Obama on being the most lefty senator–not for being a good speaker.

The ProConPundit heads for Texas tomorrow to get a better grasp on the upcoming primary there.

The last time a U.S. Senator became president was on January 20, 1961. John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States.

On January 20, 2009, another U.S. Senator will become the 44th President of the United States.

Concession Statement from the ProConPundit,
a Progressive Conservative,
To Conservative Conservatives,
Real Conservatives,
Consistent Conservatives,
Right-Wing Conservatives,
Religious Conservatives
and Authentic Conservatives...

I should have admitted this before now, so please accept my apology, my concession and the truth I should have spoken sooner. John McCain is not perfect. He has disagreed with you folks–and with me on some things that really mattered and may never be someone you can totally embrace. I also admit that, with rare exception, his strong and, self-harming, support of President Bush these eight years harms his chances in a general election. The fact that he will be the oldest person to ever run for president does not help. I concede all of this. I feel better now but conceding and apologizing was not nearly as painful as what I need to ask you. If John McCain is so flawed, who was your perfect choice and, if the stakes are so high, why didn’t they run? Why didn’t they win?

Mitt Romney wasn’t close to being your first, let alone, best choice, was he? Who was?

Bill Frist. It was supposed to be Dr. Bill Frist but he made an ass out of himself, and demeaned the stature of the U.S. Senate, interfering in the Terri Schavo matter, declaring her to have brain function, an assertion later ruled out by an autopsy. Bill Frist also presided over the Senate when it went from Republican to Democratic leadership, didn’t he?

George Allen. Then there was George "Macaca" Allen, Former US Senator and Governor of Virginia, and past football legend. He was a darling of the far right to become our president this year until he disgraced himself, embarrassed the GOP and forfeited his career in the Senate by making a nasty, racial, slur on camera.

Rick Santorum. Then there was Rick "Sanctimonious" Santorum, former US Senator from Pennsylvania. Santorum was another right wing darling. The ProConPundit ejected him from the human race when, in an effort to throw red meat to rabid dogs, declared that homosexuals were on the same rung of the ladder with adulterers, murderers, child molesters, and, I forget, barnyard animals or something. He watched his Senate career go up in flames the MOMENT Pennsylvania Democrats were willing to nominate a pro-life Dem to run against him. Note to Left Wing: If you’d have a little more tolerance for pro-lifers, a lot more Republican office holders would become radio hosts or bloggers. Scratch that.

Fred Thompson. Then there was Fred "Law & Order" Thompson. Weren’t we in trouble when a guy who retired from the US Senate because he was bored and went on to a rewarding career working 5 minutes a week with a stinging quip on Law & Order suddenly, albeit briefly, became the best hope?

Rudy Giuliani. I don't know what to say. Many of you preferred the openly liberal Rudy to the generally, genuinely conservative McCain.

Newt Gingrich. Last, but actually most significantly, there was Newt Gingrich, our hero. Mr. Speaker. A political genius, masterful historian, and brilliant guy. He inspired and engineered the historic GOP takeover of both houses in 1994, tremendous victory and backlash at the Clinton presidency. Newt was the chief antagonist of Bill Clinton and vocalizer of moral outrage against Clinton’s philandering and breaches of office, the one who pushed impeachment, but was noticeably absent from it as he resigned, in disgrace, because of his own bimbo eruptions. Gingrich, who surpasses everyone else in naming our challenges and articulates logical methodologies to our greatest days being ahead of us, broke our hearts again lacking the balls to actually do something other than talk. Newt flirted with a run, teasing us in a way that gave nasty names to girls in high school, while he racked up speech revenue and book sales. Shame on him.

Then there were the also-rans: Paul, Hunter, Brownback, and Tancredo. All of you that are righter-than-I are very smart and knew none of these guys were prime timers. That left Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee. I have quite a few friends who supported Romney and there isn’t one of you that chose him because you really liked him. He was all there was to choose from as the non-McCain. Now that he’s gotten out of the race, he’s being compared to Goldwater’s 1960 graceful exit to return in 1964 and Reagan’s exit in 1976 to return in 1980. Goldwater helped sink Nixon in 1960 only to return four years later to suffer one of the worst defeats in modern American history. Reagan helped sink Ford in 1976 with a harsh and unnecessary primary challenge to a sitting president, an accomplishment he shares only with Ted Kennedy (and Pat Buchanan) in my life time. OUCH! Reagan did much better than Goldwater upon his triumphant return in 1980.

The real problem in the Republican party is not John McCain. Its that there isn’t a fresh face, forgive me, a Barack Obama. Mitt Romney was the nothing-left-to-lose reluctant choice of a small number of Republicans for a short time. He will never be president. Comparisons to Reagan in 1976 are tempting but short on facts. When Reagan folded his candidacy in 1976, he did so at the convention having come within a handful of delegates of beating Ford. He was gracious in defeat. Historical note: The ProConPundit was not old enough to drive but was old enough to chair the Mustangs for Ford at my high school in 1976. That came as a disappointment to my dad, a Chicago Democratic precinct captain. He also taught me to never kick a dog when it was down and to never be a sore loser, let along a sore winner. Sorry, Dad.

Romney was not gracious in defeat. He was introduced today at the Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) Convention in Washington by Laura Ingraham. She used her introduction of Romney as a nasty and immature assault on McCain. Romney, for his part, showed himself to be a silly fool and a pitiful excuse for a presidential candidate. He used his speech to bash liberals and radical Islamic Jihadists. How hard is that? As usual, he had no solutions, no ideas, no plans.
He then announced that he was suspending his campaign because if he continued, he would be aiding and abetting a surrender to terror. I think that meant because a protracted GOP nomination battle would help the Democrats win in the fall. Hello? He lost. He could not possibly have won the delegates needed to win. He got out because he did not win, could not win, and could not even be honest or graceful.

I must also concede and confess that I was and am a Gerald Ford Republican and a George Bush "41" Republican, not a Reagan Republican and not a George W. Bush Republican. I take nothing from Reagan’s tremendous accomplishments as president, but I only appreciated him after the fact. I voted for George W. Bush in 2000 even after he beat John McCain with dirty tricks in South Carolina. I felt the need to overlook my irritation with Dubya for what I hoped would be the good of the country.

I believe our country would have been better off had Ford been elected in 1976 over Jimmy Carter. I blame Ford’s loss on two things: 1) Pardon of Nixon/Turn the page mentality and 2) Reagan’s needless primary challenge to a fine man who assumed the presidency under most difficult circumstances.

I believe that President George H. W. Bush was the most experienced man to serve as President in my lifetime. I also believe that our country would have been better off had Bush "41" been re-elected over Clinton in 1992. I blame Bush’s defeat on two things: 1) He under estimated slick Willie and 2) Pat Buchanan’s needless challenge of a sitting president. Pat Buchanan has helped defeat more Republicans than he ever helped win.

Some other tidbits...
1. Exit polls showed that evangelical voters have voted: 33% for Huckabee, 31% for Romney and 30% for McCain. I was not a math major but isn’t that about a third for each?
2. Its been well publicized that Limbaugh, Hannity, Ingraham and Coultier have each threatened or joked to vote for Hillary in the fall if McCain is the nominee. If their influence could not find or inspire a conservative to their liking to run in the primary, if they could not effect the outcome of the primary, what influence might they have in the general election?
3. I listened to Rush Limbaugh yesterday and watched Sean Hannity last night. Limbaugh clarified his position on McCain in the fall. He was very clear that the priority of all conservatives should be to keep Hillary Clinton out of The White House, whatever means necessary. He specifically stated that he would vote for McCain, if only by holding his nose and calling it a vote against Hillary. I presume the same would apply should Obama be the nominee.
Hannity enumerated the many things he admires about McCain as well as his serious differences with him but implicitly stated he would, ultimately, vote for McCain. I don’t know where to find Ingraham and Coultier and am afraid to find out.
4. Speaking of consistent conservatives. A week ago, Limbaugh said that a McCain or Huckabee nomination would be the ruination of the Republican party. Today he is saying that McCain MUST name Huckabee in order to win. What’s up with that?
5. G. Gordon Liddy today declared that Republicans who turn their back on McCain in the fall are "Suicide-Bomber" Republicans.
6. Ralph Reed said that the naming of a running mate suitable to conservatives may be the olive branch needed to unite the party.
7. Former Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating said that he estimates 40% of the American voting public are moderate or independent voters.

St. Louis: We Have A Problem

Super Tuesday 11:30 p.m. CST as War Room yields to Bed Room

State News. Make No Mistake. The biggest state tonight is Missouri. The Show-Me-State is a bell weather state. It’s the best indicator of who the nominee will be and who will be elected in the fall. As of this hour, the state has just been called on the GOP for McCain, ahead of Huckabee by 1 %. With 97% of precincts reporting, it has just called the race for Obama over Clinton by 1%.

Momentum with Obama. The Clinton's won Arizona, Arkansas, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Tennessee. Obama won Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Utah. The movement is definitely moving in his direction.

Mitt got Hucked. As of this writing, in view of a decisive defeat in California, Romney campaign officials announced "frank discussions will take place Wednesday within the Romney campaign." Romney gave a great speech tonight and did something no one else has ever done, beside the ProConPundit: referred to President Bush I as "a great president." God bless him. The South rejected Romney as the authentic conservative to Huckabee who won Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Huckabee isn’t a spoiler. He has performed admirably with no money. If Huckabee could give all of his delegates to Romney, Romney would only have half as many delegates as McCain. Romney won Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and Utah. Romney has been talking about being Reaganesque for a long time. Watch for him in the coming days to play the role that Reagan played in 1976. When he lost the nomination to President Ford, he knew that in order for him to have a future possibility to be president, he had to get out of the way, endorse the front runner and go on to get elected four years later. McCain will only serve one term. Romney is a bright guy.

McCain won Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma & Tennessee. He did great. He stressed that he has not yet clinched the nomination and reached out to Huckabee and Romney. The bad news is that California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, New Jersey & New York are almost certain to be carried by the Democratic nominee in the fall. In a year that heavily favors a Democratic win, there is cause for hope without the need for audacity. For example, its plausible to think he could carry every state that George Bush did in 2004. The choice of his running mate will be crucial.

Final thoughts:

1. Chris Matthews bemoaned that "These Republicans are not acting like Republicans." He is exorcized that there is a real fight for the Republican nomination and that the damn fools on TV cannot predict every last thing. That’s a good thing. Republicans have a second term president who is, at this point, among the least popular president ever. Its an uphill grind to extend the least on The White House to the GOP.

2. Hillary Clinton is on the decline in terms of getting the Democratic nomination. It pains me to say this because I would really like to see her lose, but I NOW BELIEVE THAT THE ONLY CHANCE THE GOP HAS TO WIN THE PRESIDENCY IN THE FALL IS WITH HER AS THEIR OPPONENT. I like Obama and I admire his ability to fight the most formidable political operation on the planet. The Dow dropped 370 points today and we are at war in two countries. He does not possess the kind of experience we desperately need. That said, if he is the Democratic nominee, I don’t believe that McCain or Romney or Huckabee will beat the momentum.

3. I have all along thought Huckabee was running for VP. I can no longer dismiss that as a possibility–perhaps even a necessity.

Folks, it doesn’t get any better than this. I had lots of calls and e-mails to the War Room tonight.

Thanks...on we go.

Sidebar: Its merits mention that the Clinton’s won Massachusetts despite the endorsements of the Kennedy’s and John Kerry. However, Obama was polling at 22% prior to endorsement, and finished with a 38% victory. The Kennedy’s didn’t endorse Obama to win Massachusetts but for national appeal, to get a victory or near-ran for proportional delegates in California and for a boost among blue collar/union workers, Latinos and the poor. As of this writing, Obama did very well. He garnered 43% of the white vote nationally, while Clinton received 61% of the Latino vote, down from what she may have had without the Kennedy clan push.

Who Needs The Big Easy?
Best Mardi Gras Imaginable for ProConPundit:

SUPER TUESDAY

7:00 p.m. Chicago War Room of the ProConPundit

Obama is poised to hurt the Clinton’s badly. The backlash in the South against Bill Clinton will be big. The Clinton’s have won Arkansas, one of their many homes, and Tennessee, the ancestral home of Al Gore.

McCain is well positioned to clinch or nearly clinch the nomination. He has won Connecticut, New Jersey and Illinois. Romney naturally won the state he liberally governed, Massachusetts.

The talking heads are wrong about Huckabee...he has won Arkansas and West Virginia and will continue to do well in the South. They think he will be able to command a VP slot should McCain get the nomination. Don’t bet on it. I am having a blast watching Pat Buchanan and his sister, Bay Buchanan frenzied in their insistence that Romney will beat McCain. They have been wrong in EVERY election since 1980.

The ProConPundit manages to work full time, provide stunning devotion to this blog AND provide you today on Fat Tuesday, Super Tuesday with 2 election embeds in places where it takes some hootspa to be a Republican.

6 a.m. CST Chicago Heights, Illinois/ The ProConPundit
"I went into a mostly African American polling place and managed to drop jaws by asking for a Republican ballot. Spirits suspicioulsy revived ever so slightly when I quipped, 'Well, you want Obama to have a good opponent in the fall, don’t you?' There were so many empty spots on the GOP ballot that there wasn't even a GOP nominee for Illinois assembly in that district. Chalk up one write in vote for--you guessed it, The ProConPundit."

10 a.m EST South Bronx, New York/ The Captain
"The polls are located in a senior citizen housing complex. As I walked in, I was warmly greeted by an African-American woman who quickly looked up my name. She filled out a voter card and handed it back to me after I signed the roll. She directed me to the voting booth and as I was about to pull back the curtain she yelled out, "Wait a minute! He's a Republican. We got a Republican!" Maybe it was just me but the eyes of the entire room seemd to be on me. The woman apologized for filling out the wrong card - my guess is she hadn't had to use one all morning. Again, I walked over to the booth where the gentleman had to change the settings because, well, I'm a Republican. My guess is he didn't have much experience in doing this, if he had ever done it, because it took him awhile to figure it out. Eventually I proceeded into the booth to do my civic duty."

It will be a late night.

Smart people know this election is not about idealogy...its about unity, practicality and, depending on your view, transition or transformation.

Checking In Before Super Tuesday
Democrats Falling In Love
Republicans Falling In Line

Last week’s debates

Democratic Debate...The ProConPundit was amazed to watch the Hollywood actors and actresses who packed the house at the Dem debate. They sat their riveted by the outstanding acting performances of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. They were playing the part of two people who don’t despise each other. They seemed to have fooled the home crowd. When the question was asked about a Clinton-Obama or Obama-Clinton "unity" ticket, the theater ‘s roof was nearly blown off by the applause, hooting and howling. This is an example of dreamy eyed idealism of the far left elites. Take this to the bank: there will never, ever be a ticket with both Clinton and Obama on it. The most significant reason for this is that they hate each other and don’t trust each other. Beyond that, should Hillary be nominated, she would not want someone capable of outshining her. She needs someone capable and competent, dutiful and boring. That role will be played by Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana. If Obama gets nominated, it will be for having convinced Democrats to turn the page. If that’s the case, he would not need her. Her as the Vice-President brings all of the Clinton problems without any real value. If Obama is the nominee, he will need a white, male, with LOTS of foreign policy experience. Biden or Dodd would be his best bet. One good line of the night was when Hillary said it took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush and it may take one now. It was a funny line. Not true, of course.

Republican Debate...Huckabee and Paul are lucky to even be included in the debate. They should stop wining about not getting called on more often. McCain went overboard in debasing Romney. Romney and Hillary Clinton both prove an important point in selecting a president. Neither one of them can take criticism without getting PISSY. That is a word used on the north side of Chicago, incidentally. The ProConPundit only uses it to be inclusive of the misfortunate! Romney blew up and got all pissy when some reporter at an Officemax merely pointed out that what Romney was saying was, guess what, not true. It was actually a Staples store but it sounds better to say that if you can’t keep from blowing up at Officemax you are not ready to be president. McCain had two good lines that night. One was when he was willingly flushing his own political career down the shoot to speak his truth about the war, Mitt was flip flopping. The other was when Romney brought up the New York Times endorsement of McCain, saying that you’re not much of a conservative if the NY Times endorses you. Mitt should have kept quiet. McCain went on to point out that Romney’s own local newspapers, including the Boston Herald, had all endorsed McCain.

The best line of the night came from Mike Huckabee. When Anderson Cooper asked each candidate which one of them Ronald Reagan would endorse, McCain, Romney, and Paul, each stupidly went into this Smothers Brothers routine explaining why the Gipper would have best loved them. It was pathetic. Huckabee replied that he thought it would be arrogant for anyone to presume who Reagan would endorse. He went on, "I’m not here to presume Ronald Reagan’s endorsement of me. I’m here to endorse Ronald Reagan." It was not only a great line but something that badly needed to be said.

Folks, please, can we agree on one thing? Ronald Reagan is dead. Let him rest in peace. No great or even mediocre president has ever gotten anywhere trying to be someone else. Good presidents are good students of history and know different leadership styles, personality types and ways of dealing with difficult situations that have been employed by their predecessor. Wise presidents draw from those role models. But they have to be comfortable in their own skin. ALL OF THE REPUBLICANS HAVE SPENT TOO MUCH TIME PANDERING TO RONALD REAGAN’S LEGACY, instead of articulating their own vision.

Looking to Super Tuesday...the ProConPundit predicts a draw for Obama and Clinton. Momentum is on his side and I think he has a better chance than she does of clinching the nomination. Given the closeness between them in the polls and proportional delegate distribution of Democratic primaries, the race will continue beyond tomorrow. I think the endorsement of Obama by the Kennedy’s has been extremely helpful to him. Ted Kennedy’s pointing out that his brother’s Democratic predecessor, Harry Truman was opposed to JFK because he felt he lacked the experience. The ProConPundit watched a Truman speech yesterday where he outlined his opposition to JFK. It’s great history and a clever move on Teddy’s part. Make no mistake, JFK was a war hero, had served in the House from 1947 to 1953 and from 1953 to 1961 in the U.S. Senate. If Truman thought JFK was light and inexperienced, and he did, there is no question that he would think Obama is very light. But if we’re going to let Reagan rest in peace, the ProConPundit will not have a seance with Truman!

Family feud among the Kennedy’s? Ted, Patrick, Caroline, Ethel (Mrs. RFK), and Maria Shriver all endorsed Obama. The ProConPundit is baffled as to whether the three children of RFK endorsed the Clinton’s in angry reaction to being excluded from the rest of the family’s pep rally at American U or if it was a calculated Kennedy Family move to have eggs in both baskets. Bet on the latter. If not, Bobby Jr., Kathleen and Kerry Kennedy look foolish.

John McCain will NOT clinch the nomination on Super Tuesday, but will come close. California is unqiue for Republicans as its delegates are not winner-take-all, but proportional. Romney should not be counted out. If McCain can get through the GOP nomination, the country will have the opportunity for the first time in a long time to have a president who is a consensus builder and can have a lot of appeal on both sides. Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coultier and Laura Ingrham are in a very difficult position. They have each had a difficult time these past eight years defending a president that let them down. Nothing could benefit their careers more than returning the Clinton’s to the White House. They can’t come out and say that so they are vexing and compulsions constantly in their vitriol toward McCain. Not liking McCain, not wanting him to be president is totally acceptable. Hatred of the guy just doesn’t make sense.

Rudy’s Second Finest Hour. Rudy was a class act in his withdrawal from the race and his endorsement of McCain. The Captain, a senior advisor to the ProConPundit and creator of the alliteration now famously known from sea to shining sea as the ProConPundit, predicted more than a year ago, when Rudy was at the top of all national polls that he would go absolutely nowhere. The Captain is a Southern conservative, bright but slick, currently resides in ther Bronx and may be the only registered Republican there. I was surprised that Rudy fell apart so quickly and completely. Rudy isn’t presidential, in my view, but I like him a lot.

The ProConPundit was shocked and remains baffled by the timing of the Edwards withdrawal. His remaining in the race, given proportional delegate distribution, could have landed him in a king maker position. That he got out without making an endorsement (read: making a deal) with Obama or the Clinton’s just plain baffles me. Edwards knows he will never get elected president. His only remaining route is to become someone’s vice-president. I think he’d not only give away his delegates and endorsement, but sell his soul to be the running mate. Hillary might do it if she really needed him to get nominated. He and Obama genuinely like each other but Obama needs someone of greater experience on the ticket with him. Chris Matthews thinks Edwards should be the Secretary of Labor should Obama or the Clinton’s be elected in the fall.

Stay tuned.