Republicans only hope to keep the White House is

[gorkay]

If Giuliani is the Republicans' only hope, that's good news for Democrats, because his chances of winning the election are very, very slim. He has too much baggage, and his biggest selling point (maybe his only one) can easily be turned against him, as it can be argued that he has used his status as mayor of New York during the "war on terror" to promote himself and make huge amounts of money. Rudy reminds me of Thomas Dewey, and you know how successful his Presidential runs were.

I continue to think that Thompson has a good shot at the nomination if he will just declare himself a candidate, because he is the only conservative with a chance. The Republican base is conservative, and I can see them flocking to someone like him when faced with the alternatives of Romney and Rudy. However, barring unforeseen events, Thompson's nomination virtually guarantees a Democratic win next year, no matter who they nominate, because the political trends in the country right now are headed to the left. This won't keep the GOP from stampeding to Fred, though, just as the knowledge of certain defeat didn't keep them from stampeding to Goldwater in '64, nor the Dems to McGovern in '72.

I don't think the accusation that she is picking him just to win his home state would keep Hillary Clinton from selecting Strickland, or anyone else, as her running mate. Actually, if she thinks she has a chance to pick off some states in either the South or the West, she should probably look there for a running mate, because her chances in states like Ohio should be pretty good without any help. But there is one thing I am absolutely positive about, and you can write it down now-- if she wins the nomination, her running mate will be a male WASP. There is absolutely no chance that she would pick Obama.