Sources tell Extreme Mortman that these famous folks will be in the audience at tonights CNN/Politico Democratic debate in Hollywood:

• Leo DeCaprio
• Tom Hanks
• Warren Beatty

Washington Times editorial page editor Deborah Simmons’ appearance this morning on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” raising a fascinating prospect — will the conservative Times editorial page make an endorsement in the Democratic presidential primary?

Here’s Simmons talking with host Susan Swain:

SWAIN: So, the question of newspaper endorsements.  Do they matter this year?
SIMMONS: Yes, they matter.  They always should matter because people who serve on editorial boards and write editorials for newspaper also live out in the very communities of American voters who are selecting, whether they’re local, state or federal, elected officials.  One of our dilemmas this year is that we usually don’t endorse in the primary.  Sometimes newspapers, majors and smaller newspapers will look at candidates on either side of the spectrum of Republican and independent or Democrat and endorse in the primary and endorse in the general election.  Well we’re weighing now whether we should stick with our tradition, which is just to endorse in the general election or whether we should endorse in the primaries, as well.
SWAIN: We’ve got what’s being called the Chesapeake primary, which is the D.C., Maryland and
virginia, which is now getting a lot more attention with the race not being settled.  That’s your home state region.
SIMMONS: Direct them not only on that day, but come September after the conventions and the
nominees are chosen, as well as –
SWAIN: Does the fact that this primary is increasing important, is that why you’re weighing
whether or not you want to do a primary endorsement?
SIMMONS: We didn’t have this dynamic four years ago, 12 years ago, there is a different dynamic here.  Why we didn’t weigh in whether the primary should be early or not, we think it’s important particularly since Super Tuesday is Tsunami Tuesday with so many other states weighing in.  So, we’re — that’s our discourse going on right now.  We do think it is really important, absolutely.

We’re dying to see the outcome of this deliberation — and we’ll publicly predict that if the Times does endorse in the Democratic primary, in a delicious irony they’ll pick Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama, based on her stronger position on the Iraq war.  For that same reason, we’ll predict that the Washington Post — with equal irony –  endorses John McCain prior to the Feb. 12 pundit primary.

America is poised to elect its first sitting U.S. Senator as president since John F. Kennedy in 1960.

Kennedy has been in the news a lot lately because of Ted Kennedy’s endorsement of Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton.

We’ll know on Super Tuesday how much of a difference that endorsement made.

Until then, it’s worth noting some additional Kennedy symbolism.

Ted Kennedy, the third-longest serving U.S. Senator ever, endorsed freshman Obama at American University.  Turns out, AU holds an important place in Kennedy lore.  It was at AU that John Kennedy gave his famous June 10, 1963 commencement address, otherwise known as the nuclear test ban treaty speech: “As Americans, we find communism profoundly repugnant as a negation of personal freedom and dignity.”

The question Feb. 5 will answer: Can Camelot — and American University — still inspire greatness?

Looks like someone forgot to tell him Florida is full of old people.

 

 

Here’s something great for the candidate who just can’t make up his mind — a primary with three different kinds of greasy chicken.

Miami Herald:

The typically health-conscious Mitt Romney made a campaign pit stop at a KFC here — but was careful to plug an array of chicken joints, lest folks think he was playing favorites.

Topping his list: Miami’s own Pollo Tropical.

Sitting at a corner table with Al Cárdenas, the former Florida Republican Party chairman and key campaign advisor, Romney tucked in to his KFC meal.

‘’You know what I love down here? Pollo Tropical,'’ said Romney, who likes the Miami-based chain’s grilled chicken, rice and black beans. “I just got introduced to it a couple of months ago and now whenever I see a Pollo Tropical I like to pull in.’”

Romney’s selection Saturday included baked beans, coleslaw and fried chicken — which the presidential hopeful noted he had stripped of its breading.

‘’I also like Chick-fil-A,'’ he said.

No doubt that when the Feb. 9 Louisiana primary approaches, Romney will also pledge allegiance to Popeye’s.

Republican pandering in Florida just ain’t what to used to be.

Take Fidel Castro.  Used to be we could end that by saying ‘please.’  We can’t even do that anymore.

Castro merited but one mention in last night’s Republican debate.

Rudy Giuliani:

“The longest dictatorship, I believe, in the modern world, is the one of Fidel Castro. The presumption is that if you’re fleeing Fidel Castro, given decades and decades of murder, oppression — including, most recently, the way he cracked down on the Cambio Group, Brothers to the Rescue, all of these things — there’s a presumption in the immigration law that if you’re fleeing Fidel Castro, you’re fleeing political persecution.”

In the good old days, an opponent surely would have tried to trump Giuliani by saying, “Fidel, you ignorant slut.”  Alas, last night nothing of the sort.

Israel, too, came in for short rhetorical shrift.

John McCain was the lone voice in asserting this:

“There’s many people who are concerned and have a priority of the — the independence of the state of Israel. They know that I know how to keep Israel independent as well.”

Fine, but where was the thunderous acknowledgment that a strong Israel is in the best interest of a strong America?  And even McCain’s statement was a wee bit confusing — is Israel’s independence at stake?  Security, yes — always.  But independence?  From whom?  Perhaps McCain was confusing independent voters with Likud and Labor voters.

The only real pandering we could spot was courtesy Ron Paul.  Social Security got only tepid discussion from Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney.  Ron Paul, however, said he’s still in favor of abolishing Social Security …. but ….”not overnight. As a matter of fact, my — my program’s the only one that is going to be able to take care of the elderly.”

Thank goodness.  A glimpse of Florida reality.  John McCain’s 95-year-old mother should feel socially secure if Ron Paul wins.

In case you’re interested in what George Clooney has to say about Barack Obama, here’s a YouTube video featuring these thoughts:

“You know, Michael Moore — and I like Michael a lot — but that speech he gave at the Oscars was polarizing. It became Hollywood versus the heartland, and I always find that it’s best not to raise the rhetoric at that point. I’ve been a big supporter of Barack Obama since his Senate run and I’m a friend of his, but I said to him, “I stay completely out of it.” I don’t show up at those things. And believe me, it’s not because his group doesn’t say, “Come on, help us out.” It’s just not the attention you want. I worry about that a lot, because you don’t want to do harm.”

If you’re not interested in what Clooney has to say about Obama, at least the video has Angelina Jolie.

Poor Nature Boy Ric Flair.

Last we heard from the pro wrestler, he was campaigning in South Carolina for Mike Huckabee.

Where’d that endorsement get the 16-times world champion?

Selling calls.

From ProWrestling.com:

WWE Diva Torrie Wilson and Ric Flair are confirmed to be at the 2008 Washington DC Auto Show on Wednesday, January 23rd. Fans will be able to meet Torrie Wilson and Ric Flair, however tickets are required for the Auto Show admission which are $12 for adults and $5 for children. Torrie Wilson and Ric Flair will be there between 5pm and 7pm.

Remember in 1984 when Ronald Reagan said of Walter Mondale,  “I will not make age an issue in this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent’s youth and inexperience.”

We’re reminded of that after reading this bizarre line of attack by Mike Huckabee booster Chuck Norris of John McCain:

“I didn’t pick John to support because I’m just afraid that the vice president would wind up taking over his job in that four-year presidency. We need to find someone that can handle it for four years or eight years … that has the youth and vision and communication skills to make that work.”

It’s a dismissal and discounting of the Reagan Revolution.  The L.A. Times’ Top of the Ticket blog also notes that McCain “is actually not the oldest candidate in the race. That distinction belongs to Rep. Ron Paul, who’s 72 already.”  But more important, according to Top of the Ticket, Chuck Norris will be “a creaky 68 on Inauguration Day and at that advanced age could well be fumbling the TV remote watching his old ads through the nights from assisted living.”

Forget Super Tuesday.  Consider, please, the pure power of Feb. 12 — when DC, Maryland, and Virginia vote.  The Pundit Primary.  What those states lack in delegates they make up in sheer noise in dominating the political media.  At-large delegates mean nothing next to larger-than-life celebrity journalists bloviating and pontificating about the candidates.

Which makes this all the more interesting:

On Virginia’s ballot (at least in Fairfax County), in what order do the Republican candidates appear?  Like this…

• Ron Paul
• John McCain
• Fred D. Thompson
• Mike Huckabee
• Rudy Giuliani
• Mitt Romney

Which places Ron Paul squarely on top of the ballot in prime position to, well, to do something quite interesting in Virginia.

And a footnote: Fred Thompson is the only candidate whose middle initial made it onto the ballot.  D, for Dalton.  The name Dalton is legendary in recent Republican Virginia history: Former Gov. John N. Dalton was a popular conservative Republican who led the Virginia Republican Party to dominance in the 1970’s and was one of the state’s most popular Governors when he served served from 1977 to 1981.

A candidate with a middle name Dalton versus Ron Paul.  What more do you want for a  sensational Pundit Primary?