Blogs

The New York Times doesn''t normally engage in the kind of reportage as Faux News. John McCain has a problem.

In a way, allegations that John McCain had romantic leanings towards Vicki Iseman could help McCain. It was only a day earlier that David Letterman was pointing out that McCain was an old man, reminding us all of the greeter at WalMart. The fact that his staff thought him capable of an inappropriate relationship, even in the age of Viagra, makes McCain seem less grandfatherly and more manly.

On the other hand, it doesn't have to be a sexual relationship to be inappropriate. Vicki Iseman is a partner in the firm of Alcalde and Fay, lobbyists. She was lobbying for Paxson Communications, trying to get quick approval for purchase of what is now WPCB-TV in Pittsburgh. McCain was on the Senate Commerce Committee at the time. He twice wrote letters to the FCC urging quick consideration of the purchase.

Before McCain wrote those letters, Paxson executives and lobbyists gave more than $20,000 to McCain's presidential campaign, and lent McCain the corporate jet at least 4 times during 1999 for campaign travel.

"I've never done any favors for anybody

Faculty politics, they say, is often bitter because the stakes are so small. I think about that aphorism often as I listen to news programs.

Tonight, on MSNBC, after the results were in from the Wisconsin primary, they had representatives from both Senator Obama''s and Senator Clinton''s campaign. After they each gave their spin, Chris Matthews turned to the Obama representative, Texas state senator Kirk Watson, and asked for an itemization of Barack''s legislative accomplishments. Watson couldn''t list any, and when he demanded that Clinton''s legislative accomplishments be accomplished, Chris Matthews refused to do so.

That's why they call it "Hardball", Matthews crowed - and Keith Olberman remarked that they were broadcasting election returns, not Matthews'' "Hardball" program. Matthews brushed that aside, saying that it was still a good question to ask.

So what are their legislative accomplishments?

It''s pretty thin for Hillary. Her "35 years of experience" amount to a bill to increase nurse recruitment, one to aid respite time for Alzheimer

They say Barack is a great speaker. Listening to him on the television, it''s hard to disagree.

Tonight, though, I heard Michele on the stump for the first time.

She was speaking at the Capitol Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin, and they carried it on C-SPAN. There''s a webcast of her speech available. (It requires RealPlayer, and runs 1:05:15). I recommend it highly, if for no other reason than to learn how more about speechifying.

My lord, that woman can deliver a speech. I''m a conservative, and I''m probably going to vote for Ron Paul when we finally get to vote, here in Pennsylvania, but wow! Mrs. Obama talks from the heart. She''s utterly sincere, and devastatingly effective. I like her husband quite a bit, but I''d like to vote for her.

Some men hate to be outdone by their wife, but not the men who marry extraordinary women. (I speak from experience; both my late first wife and my present wife have been extraordinarily capable.)

In response to of Mrs. Obama''s statement that "Let me tell you something

It