It's Michele - by several inches!

The WSJ is under-whelmed with the Republican candidates on offer for the presidential election.  However, there is a hint of the sort of East Coast 'intellectual' superiority that one would normally expect to find in the WaPo or the NYT.  They drip some acid onto MDM (My Darling Michele):

Mrs. Bachmann, the Minnesota Congresswoman, has emerged from cable-TV land in recent months to be a viable competitor. She is telegenic, a hard worker, and has planted herself at the front of the tea party parade in hostility to all things Washington.  [...] 

Mrs. Bachmann has a record of errant statements (see Battle of Lexington and Concord, history of) that are forgiven by Fox Nation but won't be if she makes them as a GOP standard-bearer.

More substantively, her attempt to position herself at all times as the anti-establishment outsider has made her seem on occasion less principled than opportunistic. She quickly distanced herself from Paul Ryan's Medicare reform when it came under liberal fire, even as she purports to be the scourge of uncontrolled spending. Her recent opposition to the debt-ceiling deal on grounds that GOP leaders should have insisted on first passing a balanced budget amendment, while holding only the House, was a political fantasy.

Some stern reprimands in there which deserve attention because the WSJ are seasoned watchers of the political scene.  And they end their assessment with these damning words:

Americans are already living with the consequences of electing a President who sounded good but had achieved little as a legislator and had no executive experience. Mrs. Bachmann will have to persuade voters she isn't the conservative version of Mr. Obama.

Ouch!  However, despite my utter and complete faith being shaken, this photograph, courtesy of my regular commenter, JK, has restored my fervent support for the lady!

The WSJ experts dwell on Governor Rick Perry, a late arrival at the 'presidential ball', noting his highly successful stewardship of Texan affairs which has left his State as one of the most successful economies in the USA, but they wonder whether, given recent history, a Texas background is going to sell well in the rest of the country.  They dismiss Mitt Romney out of hand:

Mitt Romney is a weak front-runner who has money and campaign experience and looks Presidential. But he gives little evidence that he has convictions beyond faith in his own technocratic expertise.

Even so, money, experience and looks is frequently all it takes to win - and the 'experience' bit is optional, as we saw with the present incumbent!  Anyway, it's all very early days yet and until a great deal more blood has flowed under the bridge there is not too much point in getting excited about possible winners.  And, as you can guess, this entire post was merely so much waffle intended to disguise my deep desire to publish that photo of MDM.  Quite disgraceful, of course, and 'Her Maj', for one, would not be amused but it made me cackle into my cornflakes this morning!

 

Comments

[JK]

Well, it can't be too, er, long before Ann Coulter begins to notice some her new gay friends seem to be AWOL. I have to admit being puzzled at the contents of the Ann Coulter link awhile back wondering why (maybe how) Republican ladies seemed so popular with gay people.

Too, I was wondering about that clinic Mister Bachmann runs that's supposed to change 'em into non-girly men. Now I know, introduce 'em to the wife!

[David Duff]

I can't think what you mean, JK!

[Andra]

She's the Deep Throat of Minnesota.

[Andra]

It occurs to me that the good people of America, after actually voting in a black man, which they don't seem to be so thrilled about now, might decide to make another major leap forward and give a woman the job.
OR: they may head in the complete other direction and stick with the stick-in-the-mud types, like Mitt Romney.
As you say, David, it's a long way off and many more foul deeds are to be done before the day of the hanging chad swings around again.

[dearieme]

It would be good fun if the Repub candidate were a woman, because we could all enjoy the sight of the Sisterhood hating her and making mendacious excuses about why they were not supporting her.

[David Duff]

How they would twist and turn!