From what I saw of Gov. Kasich's unscripted, unrehearsed rambler that was bravely called the State of the State message, he could have saved Ohioans the expense of luring all of his GOP fellow travelers to Steubenville. It betrayed the setting of Wells Academy, a top rated school chosen to highlight achievement. As is his wont, the governor spoke of a new day in Ohio, sort of. (The Plain Dealer, which usually gives Kasich the benefit of any doubt, observed in the headline for its editorial that the 90-minute oration was "stirring, but vague". That's awfully close to a non-sequitur, folks.)
For all of the huff-and-puff, the governor remains deep in negative territory with the Buckeye electorate. The new Public Policy Polling survey shows Kasich trailing Ted Strickland, the ex-Democratic governor, in a speculative rematch by 20 points, 53-33. But Kasich still has nearly three years remaining in his term so the number merely suggests that the governor's low poll number is strong evidence of buyer's remorse. And with the Ohio Primary on March 6, it will be interesting to see how many of GOP presidential candidates will want a photo-op with the governor.
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Speaking of those presidential candidates, Rick Santorum, who seems at time to be running for the papacy, pulled off a hat trick - the sports term for a players scoring three goals in hockey - in Tuesday night's caucuses. The turnout was dismal, or as poet e.e. cummings once put it, the "sound of one hand clapping". Clearly there are no rock stars in the GOP's quartet.
I once referred to them as the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I must now change that to the Four Muleteers.
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Will the fallout from Komen's political disaster ever stop? The resignation of its leading politician, Karen Handel, to the rigging of Komen's decision (later reversed) to defund Planned Parenthood seemed to settle the source of Komen's problem. Yet there are still denials, particularly among right-to-life advocates, that the premeditated politically inspired severance from Planned Parenthood had anything to do with it - despite evidence to the contrary. This episode was another harsh reminder that there are countless land mines under foot when religion merges with politics. It didn't have to be, but we now see the consequences.
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2 comments:
Nah, Santorum won't run for the papacy - all his children are legitimate. (Read recent book entitled "Absolute Monarchs".)
Let's face it, Strickland isn't coming back. Rank and file democrats will never allow it. Hopefully we get someone new and exciting to lead the party at the top of the ticket.
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