Bluey Blog - Official Blog of Robert B. Bluey

McCain Is the Man to Beat

Tonight couldn’t have gone much better for John McCain. After largely ignoring Iowa in favor of New Hampshire, the Arizona senator may have just dealt the death blow to Fred Thompson and set himself up for a big win in the Granite State on Tuesday. He might even be able to finish off Rudy Giuliani before Florida on Jan. 29 if voters in South Carolina and Michigan lean his way.

Regardless of whether he finishes third or fourth in Iowa, McCain has reemerged as the front-runner in my mind. Mike Huckabee may have won tonight, and will certainly get a bounce, but he lacks the resources and infrastructure to compete for the long term. The scrutiny of his campaign will be greater and the vitriol of the Republican establishment will intensify.

I’m not convinced McCain’s emergence is a good thing for the GOP, especially if Barack Obama wins the Democrat nomination. Unlike a race against Hillary, I’d give the edge to Obama in the general election. It would be the agent of change vs. the agent of old.

How ironic is it that just as McCain gets it back in gear for the GOP nod, he might actually emerge as the worst possible candidate in the general?

UPDATE — Jan. 4, 12:15 a.m.: Here’s video of McCain addressing supporters tonight. There seemed to be a ton of enthusiasm in the room.