2008 Update: Thompson Sliding to Second, Huckabee Replacing McCain, McCain Celebrates

McCain's disastrous campaign keeps him in good humor, apparently. In an interview with Jay Leno he made several interesting remarks:

"We are doing so poorly I thought maybe I would announce on this show that I'm running for president," McCain told Jay Leno in an appearance taped for broadcast Tuesday night on "The Tonight Show." "We have obviously made mistakes," the Arizona senator said...

McCain turns 71 Wednesday - if elected he would become the oldest first-term president. Leno mentioned the birthday and McCain noted that his 95-year-old mother was refused a rental car in Paris because of her age. So she bought a car and drove around sightseeing. "I'm taking her with me wherever I go," McCain said.

The latest averages show Giuliani's lead still comfortable, with Thompson second, Romney third, McCain fourth, and Huckabee the new found distant fifth.

Romney, as anticipated, topped (bought) the Iowa Straw poll and used the resume indent to prop up fundraising, which some rumors say may be slowing down. Impressive organizational structure and handling of confrontational interviews were staples of his campaign strength.

Since his mildly surprising second place finish in Ames, media-induced popularity has gone for Huckabee like Senator Craig goes for the guy in the stall next door. Local papers, national papers, every afternoon talk show and practically network news station arranged interviews within the following weeks. While a PR miracle, and popularly called a "shocking" second place finish, it could be anticipated for several reasons.

With no other serious competition (Giuliani, McCain, and Fred Thompson were absent from the ballot) Romney was a shoo-in. The only intrigue in existence is how "also" prospects would stack up. Huckabee stole the fire from the last two Republican debates with witty one liners and eloquent charisma. Thommy Thompson looked like an insurance agent, Tom Tancredo like, well, a Congressman, and Sam Brownback more like a preacher than the Rev. Huckabee himself. While being the de facto second tier leader in the debates and media portrayal, he was near the bottom of the totem poll in fundraising, the only discrepancy in which Brownback had the upper hand. Ultimately, perceived vision and eloquence trumped cash.

Thommy Thompson's non-existant support encouraged him to finally fold his campaign, while the deeply depressed Tancredo may follow suit. Ron Paul, who has a surprising amount of cash on hand, took a Steve Forbes finish in standings. Unlike Forbes, however, Paul has a radically active group of libertarians and online activists who may keep his campaign pumping for several months.

Far more telling than the Straw Poll, however, may be the September 5th debate on Fox News. Biggest question- will Thompson be there?

Two Americas

But who envies who?

Some new Heritage Research is very interesting.

The following are facts about persons defined as "poor" by the Census Bureau, taken from various gov ernment reports:

Forty-three percent of all poor households actu ally own their own homes. The average home owned by persons classified as poor by the Census Bureau is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage, and a porch or patio.

Eighty percent of poor households have air conditioning. By contrast, in 1970, only 36 percent of the entire U.S. population enjoyed air conditioning.

Only 6 percent of poor households are over crowded. More than two-thirds have more than two rooms per person.

The average poor American has more living space than the average individual living in Paris, London, Vienna, Athens, and other cities throughout Europe. (These comparisons are to the average citizens in foreign countries, not to those classified as poor.)

Nearly three-quarters of poor households own a car; 31 percent own two or more cars.

Ninety-seven percent of poor households have a color television; over half own two or more color televisions.

Seventy-eight percent have a VCR or DVD player; 62 percent have cable or satellite TV reception.

Eighty-nine percent own microwave ovens, more than half have a stereo, and more than a third have an automatic dishwasher.

Democratic Tongue-Twisters

Sorry about my hiatus from posting, some trips and a busy schedule have severely limited my time. I'd encourage you to subscribe to my RSS feed to keep up with the halfway sporadic updates.

To catch some humor from the Democratic debates, I'd recommend this article on severe flaws in logic and economics.