GOP Starting Off Slow
But these early shows aren't much about policy, anyway. They're about impressions, about whether the public starts to get a sense of your style, your beliefs, your authenticity. McCain had to prove he's still the maverick, and, to some extent, he delivered. (His promise to follow Osama bin Laden "to the gates of hell" was pure McCain. Old McCain, too.) Giuliani wasn't the guy we saw post-9/11 in New York. Rather, on a stage with conservatives, he seemed defensive about his beliefs-almost as if he would abandon them if only he could get the nomination. As for Romney, he gets the Bill Clinton "Best in Show" award for glibness. Indeed, when asked how he felt about Clinton making a return to the White House as the first spouse, he deflected: "You have got to be kidding."
But nervous Republicans-the ones offstage-know it's no joke.
advertisement
