Grand Old Party? More Like The Donner Party

So Newt Gingrich has won the South Carolina Republican primary, despite allegations by his second wife that he requested an open marriage and despite him unloading on CNN's John King for asking about said alleged request. Independent expenditure PACs have been firing at Romney and Gingrich in ways that do violence to President Ronald Reagan's 11th Commandment -- Thou shalt not speak ill of another Republican.

I'm not a Republican, but is it me or is the Republican party looking more like the Donner Party? It seems each candidate or their surrogates are willing to do or say anything to stay in the game, even at the expense of the party's ability to put someone in office come November.

What's more telling is that none of the candidates is speaking of their vision for the country going forward. Their campaign slogan? "Beat Obama," as if this were the Army/Navy game, or Big Game between Stanford and Cal for that matter.

Republicans, let me give you a hint: Running on beating Obama might get you through the Republican primaries to the nomination, but it won't necessarily get you to the White House. And feasting on each other on the way there certainly won't help.

From my point of view, given how the GOP has disrespected this President and the First Lady in ways I've never seen in all my born days as an American, any candidate running on "Beat Obama" without more strikes me as racist because the GOP has done little, if anything, to disavow the racist attacks from its own party operatives on President and Mrs. Obama. Given that the economy is starting to pick up, Republicans are going to need more than just "Beat Obama" to win the independent voters they're going to need to get to the White House. More like "Beat Obama because (fill in the blank)." But "Beat Obama"? That's not enough.

Plus, the candidate who had the best chance of "beating Obama" is already out of the race -- John Huntsman. Huntsman was articulate, independent-minded, and without the 1% baggage of Mitt "I Like To Fire People" Romney and the failed ethics of Newt "Contract ON America" Gingrich, yet he had the misfortune of not being conservative enough to make it out of the primaries. Are Republicans not old enough to remember that Newt's speakership was a failed one? That he had ethics charges handed down against him? That as he was chastising Bill Clinton for lying about having an affair, he was engaged in one himself? Quite frankly, the personal stuff in Newt's life might not matter had he had a stellar political record as speaker, but he didn't. In my opinion, the only Republican candidate who could have possibly beaten President Obama hands down is sitting in the governor's mansion in New Jersey. Heck, even I would have given Governor Christie a look-see, and I'm a yellow dog Democrat. And yes, the Southern evangelicals need to get over the elephant in the GOP room (no pun intended) -- Mitt Romney's faith. No one will say they won't vote for him because he's Mormon no more than they would say they won't vote for President Obama because he's black. But that doesn't mean they're not thinking it, and both thoughts are bigoted ones. I might disagree with Romney on the issues, but I respect his faith, period.

So, as a Democrat who will be supporting the President this fall, I can't help but say I'm enjoying the Donner, er, Grand Old Party doing the work for the Democrats this fall. Munch on, Donner Party. Munch on.

Why Big Daddy (Herman) Cain Should Lose: The Clinton Principle

If you believe the parade of sexual harassment claimants and one alleged mistress, GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain is a mack of epic proportions, a Big Daddy Cain. And clearly the only chocolate sister he has any love for is his wife, although if these claimants and alleged mistress are telling the truth, I would not want to be loved that way.

Even if these ladies are telling the truth, and I'm not saying they aren't, they aren't the reason why Herman Cain should lose the nomination.

I'd be the first to admit that Bill Clinton, unfaithful as he was, was far and away the smartest president we've had in a long time. Unless you were on welfare, life was pretty good under Clinton.

Bill Clinton is precisely why Herman Cain should lose. I would call this the Clinton Principle: As long as you do your job well, no one should care who you screw. But you better damn well do an exceedingly good job.

Herman Cain, in contrast, is incapable of doing the job of POTUS. Why? He's an idiot.

Yep, I said it: Herman Cain is an idiot.

It is absolutely appalling and insulting to listen to him discuss foreign affairs. His dismissiveness of the press is insulting to the public. He's so not ready for primetime. At best, he's ready for naptime.

And that's why Herman Cain should lose. Not because he has an alleged wandering Johnson. Because he's an idiot.

Yep, I said it. And I don't care that he's African-American. He's an idiot.

Bill Clinton wasn't.