Open Thread

Welcome to Monday, people. This is one of those Mondays where the list of stuff to get done when you left on Friday had magically trippled by 8:30AM. And don't get me started on the hour that Daylight Savings Time stole from me.

It is a gorgeous Sunday, following a gorgeous Saturday. I'm even thinking about working on my yard this afternoon -- a thing I try to ignore until the very last minute. In any event, I hope you are enjoying this day!

Marc Ambinder agrees with Jason that Jeb Bush will never be President (even though his moves this week clearly show that he is running):

"Bush is an ideal Republican presidential candidate. He has a national stature, an enviable record as governor, a solid temperament, and nothing significantly scandalous in his past. He is one of his party's best voices on immigration. But he is a Bush. That's going to be a problem. It's not going to be an insurmountable problem, but the Republican base is definitely wary of the Bush brand and will not embrace him, no matter how hard he tacks to the right."

It's not the base that is weary of the Bush name. In fact, the GOP teabagging base loves them some George W. Bush. I am sure you have seen the billboards and the Facebook post with the Chimperor smiling and waving saying "Miss Me Yet?" The base loves Bush. What the base does not love is anyone that disagrees with them. And with Jeb Bush being a successful moderate Governor, that necessarily meant that he disagreed with the base over issues. Exhibit A was Immigration Reform, where until Monday, Bush was for a Path to Citizenship. Now he is not, all to appease the base, whose votes he needs in 2015 and 2016. It is the GOP Conundrum. Any candidate they have that is potentially a viable and attractive general election candidate cannot win the GOP nomination without abandoning that which made them a viable and attractive general election candidate.

Michael Kinsley chronicles how Republicans, and their affiliated media, are complaining "loudly about feeling bullied by their opponents."

"Big, bad President Obama, creepy Harry Reid, that B-word Nancy Pelosi, and the rest of the gang of toughs called the Democratic Party are picking on the poor defenseless GOP. As a campaigning theme, it seems insane. The GOP has long prospered by portraying Democrats as the wimps, dangerously weak and unfit for command. Does the name Michael Dukakis ring a bell? And in really heady moments, like 1984, when Reagan earned his second term, or 1994 and 2010, when sweeping victories in off-year elections seemed to foretell an imminent landslide, Republican fantasies of one-party rule involved the triumph of their party, not humiliation by the other side." "In fact, moaning about how weak you are compared with the opposition seems so obviously a political mistake that we can only reach one conclusion: This must be sincere."

Remember, it is the bullies themselves that always cry loudest about being hit back.

The end of the weekend Open Thread -- I went to the Home Show yesterday and had the chance to meet the great Jim Westhoff, who we liked ALOT for the DE House a few years back. Just the kind of candidate we need more of IMO, and he is a great guy, to boot. Today I'm thinking about all of the cool stuff we saw at the Home Show yesterday, and wondering if I should go buy myself a house with a proper yard so I can put a hot tub out there.

Welcome to the weekend! DD is over on Facebook predicting snow for next week. He's been predicting snow ALL WINTER, and we've had bupkis. That guy!

Who dares run against Hillary in the Dem primary, Steve Kornacki wonders:

I would say there’s a decent chance Clinton actually could clear the field and face no serious opposition for the nomination. Not a good chance, but a decent one. This has never happened for a non-incumbent in the modern era, but then again, it’s not like we’re dealing with a huge data set here. And Clinton really is approaching the ’16 race with a set of advantages we’ve never before seen for a non-incumbent. Yes, there’s plenty of time between now and Iowa – time for Clinton to stumble or take a pass on the race, time for Obama to really step in it, time for a real split to open up within the Democratic Party. I’m not calling Clinton a shoo-in for the nomination, or even predicting she’ll run. I’m just arguing that if she does, she could break the mold for non-incumbent candidates of the modern era.

The only with the stature that Hillary now possesses is Gen. Eisenhower in 1952, and even he faced a credible and significant primary or a challenge from the more conservative Senator Bob Taft. I think if Hillary does run, we will still see a candidacy from Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley. Cuomo will demur to Clinton. And so does Biden, in my opinion.

James Carville told Morning Joe that Democrats have a big advantage in the debate over the coming automatic budget cuts because of the word used to describe them.

"The sequester has an advantage, and this is kind of cruel to Republicans, but it's true. The sequester, not many people know what it is, but it sounds stupid and cruel. Therefore people think it's a Republican thing."

LOL.

Former Lt. Governor Gene Bookhammer (R) has died, at the age of 94. Our sympathy to his family and friends. Lt. Governor Bookhammer served under two different Governors from 1969 until 1977. He served under Republican Gov. Russell Peterson (who, contrary to the News Journal article's revisionist history, was not a Democrat, despite his liberal policies) during his first term and Democratic Gov. Sherman Tribbitt during his second. Bookhammer and Peterson harken back to a time in the history of our state Republican Party where it was possible to be a moderate or even a liberal. It also harkens back to a time when the Governor and Lt. Governor's electoral fortunes were not necessarily tied together. In my memory, I think the 1992 election was the time I recall seeing joint Gov-Lt. Gov. signs (i.e. Carper-Minner). But I'm a relative young'n.

The best thing about this Monday is that a business trip I had scheduled got cancelled. No traveling into the blizzard!

Let's talk about the Oscars! They'll be awarding film awards tonite -- who do you think should or will win tonite? Give us your predictions in the comments or talk about the movies you saw this past year.