Hardblogger : Mike Barnicle

A nation of 300 million columnists

Hardball — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 15:29:00 GMT

We live in an age where not only does everyone have an opinion but they now have the ability to register it on a blog, an e-mail, on talk radio or at a bus stop. We have become a nation of 300 million columnists.

And this might be one aspect of the Democrat’s Thursday night debate that the pros, the pols, the pundits, consultants and all those who sit ringside during the build-up to the primaries simply don’t pay enough attention to; it won’t be a smile, a pleasant demeanor, appealing personality or a drop-dead one-liner that will separate one candidate from another.

It will be simpler than that because this country aches to be led. Add the weight of the disaster that is Iraq, the deceits and incompetence of the Bush administration, the insane level of partisanship and the sense, held by many, that this president and too many in both parties simply do not hear the coast-to-coast cry for truth and direction and the ultimate winner will be the candidate who plants the flag and says “follow me because I have beliefs.”

2008 Race: The spring training preview

Hardball — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 20:11:00 GMT

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, it’s time once again for our spring training preview of the various players warming up for the longest season of them all: the race for the White House, 2008.

This is a moment when some of the players are still trying to figure out which uniform to wear and what position suits them best: left field, right field, center, pitcher or catcher. It’s early but eagle-eyed scouts can sort of see who’ll be able to hit major league pitching and who won’t.

Let’s look at the roster.

Hillary Clinton: Kind of a sequel in a satin pants suit. A canny veteran who got by for years with one pitch: the curve she learned from her long-time manager, the Hall-of-Fame husband whose career was stalled when he went on the disabled list in 1998 after he got caught stealing signs from an intern. But that’s ancient history and Hillary is now trying to make it to the biggest league of all on her own hook. Early line: could be over-coached and it’s increasingly easy to see the spin on her fast ball which is just average.

Barack Obama: Rookie phenom who shot from A-ball to the majors in record time. Smooth fielder, capable of stealing signs from late, great pros like Jack and Bob Kennedy. A crowd-pleaser and box office draw who looks as if he can hit to all fields. Could have more stamina than aging veterans. Fans show up to watch him play out of curiosity, not out of habit. Engenders envy from others who have been on the roster longer and think they deserve to make the team on entitlement instead of effort.

John Edwards: The guy has an assortment of pitches; throws everything from a knuckle curve to a split seam fast ball. He has shown up this spring acting like a rookie, someone on the outside looking in. In his initial appearances, he’s apologized to fans for whiffing on a fast ball the Bush-Cheney-Rove team threw past him in the ’03 Iraqui playoff game held in the U.S. Senate. Claims to care more about fans sitting in cheap bleacher seats than those in the front row. Could surprise in Iowa A-ball.

That’s the big three. There are others: the portly right-hander from New Mexico, Bill Richardson. The professional bench jockey from Delaware, Joe Biden and the slick utility player from the Nutmeg State, Chris Dodd. So far only their immediate families figure they have a shot.

Let’s take a peek at the other club.

John McCain: Legendary, aging veteran who came close to big win in 2000 but lost after he got hit by a spit ball thrown by Bush. Could be he’s thrown too many innings. Often looks like he might be tiring but has the ability to lean on experience and clearly gets a rush from adoring crowds and writers. This is his last shot at the big time. Scouts seem to think and many fans agree that his best chance to go all the way might depend on game circumstances: if trouble is on the horizon, there’s nothing like an old pro to come in and stop the bleeding.

Rudy Giuliani: Enormous potential. His basic difficulty? He’s a lefty trying to throw right handed in order to please nutcases in the right field grandstand. Another obstacle? Rudy wants to be the manager, fill out the line-up card, run the game and not take advice from any coaches. A one-man band playing in a park where a lot of season ticket holders don’t like the tune he is singing. Crowd appeal? He is used to clutch situations and has a track record of being unafraid when behind in the count.

Mitt Romney: Looks and acts like a major-leaguer but has so many different uniforms in his locker that it’s hard to figure out which he’ll wear on any given day. Appears to think that paying customers and scouts have amnesia and won’t remember back in the day when he talked like he played for another team. Capable of buying his way into the game. Early book: big hole in his swing and can’t handle inside fast balls thrown by media.

Bench strength for this club: pathetic. A bunch of hanger-ons, misfits and bust-outs; right-handers all, like Brownback, Tancredo and Hunter. No shot.

So, that’s a quick peek at spring training. It’s still quite awhile before inter-squad play begins on the road in places like Iowa, New Hampshire and California. Fasten your seat belts everybody. It’s a long season.

This war is a Humvee, and the Iraqis are driving

Hardball — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:50:00 GMT

They stand and talk and pose all day, the men and women of the House of Representatives. They discuss the lethal confusion we call war in Iraq. They do this knowing all they have to lose is, perhaps, an election. They debate back and forth - Republican versus Democrat - on another day when more Americans and increasing numbers of Iraqi civilians will lose the most precious gift God gives us all: life itself.

By now, all these years and months after Congress acted with the spine of a folding chair to give the president whatever he wanted in the wake of September 11^th - no matter how flimsy the evidence was - they finally decide to talk about something ordinary people across America have been talking about for months on end: the incompetence of a war fought...for what? For what reason? Our national security? Democracy? As if suddenly a chapter of the League of Women Voters will spring up in Baghdad? That Common Cause will open a branch in Fallujah?

The metaphor for this war is now the Humvee. It travels through constant peril, down strange roads, through hostile territory, all littered with the reality of IED’s that take life in the snap of a finger. The Humvee, powerful and quite mobile except that, in the metaphor, our troops, our brothers and sisters in uniform - our country - is in the back seat. The Iraqis are behind the wheel, not us. And the Humvee is being hit from both sides, by all sides as we sit there, targets having little control over our destination.

The war is literally life and death for thousands. And it’s about time the politicians stood and spoke to an issue that divides the land while casualties mount by the moment.