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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Feb. 19, 2008
/ 13 Adar I 5768
Call the brokers, we need relief
By
Wesley Pruden
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Brokered conventions, Florida primaries, rude opponents and anything that goes bump in the night unhinges the two men and a woman who would be president. (One of them cries a lot.)
If a rude opponent renders a candidate weak in the knees and soft in the spine, what would any one of them make of an angry mullah waving a Koran and a bloody scimitar, or that guy in Pyongyang with the goofy haircut?
The prospect of a brokered convention is the current wraith in the shadows. You can understand why John McCain, Barack Obama and Hillary want coronation ceremonies, but the rest of us are entitled to a little entertainment. We've put up with a lot over these past few months. Brokered conventions or backroom compromising can produce both great entertainment and great candidates Jackson, Jefferson, Rutherford B. Hayes, Benjamin Harrison and James K. Polk in the 19th century and Woodrow Wilson, the Roosevelts and Harry S. Truman in the century following.
The coronations have produced the likes of George McGovern, Michael Dukakis, SpongeBob SquarePants, Al Gore, John Kerry and Bob Dole. Some nice guys, but forgettable all.
At a brokered convention, the wise men repair to rumpled hotel suites after a succession of inconclusive roll calls to puff on their cigars, sip aged bourbon (Perrier or Mountain Valley water with a twist of meyer lemon for the San Francisco Democrats) and settle on a candidate with likely prospects. Brokered conventions are not ice cream socials. Abraham Lincoln's men threw their opponents off the trains to Chicago, leaving them bruised and broken along the Illinois Central right of way. Surprises make brokered conventions eminently worth watching. Warren Harding was the most astonished man in Chicago in 1920 when his name emerged from the smoke-filled room, and he slipped off to take a streetcar to the rooming house on the South Side to give the bad news to his mistress. Four years later, the Democrats went through 103 ballots before even a smoke-filled room could produce John W. Davis. But an interesting time was had by all.
The idea of overturning primary results is regarded today as dirty pool, but in politics that's often the only pool available. Mike Huckabee, who refuses to go home to Little Rock, is eager to turn it over to the brokers. "A few weeks ago," he told his supporters in a St. Valentine's Day e-mail, "I . . . said that Texas would be the place where the dynamics of this race change dramatically in our favor. Since then, after winning [caucuses and primaries in seven states] we have positioned ourselves to do just that. Remember the Republican nominee must have 1,191 votes . . . or else there will be a brokered convention. . . . Before we get to a brokered convention, however, we will need to win Texas and seize the momentum."
Conventions make their own rules and anything goes. In a brokered convention even Dennis Kucinich might get a second chance when candidates long since out of it get to speak up again. Hillary could cry again. Barack Obama could sprinkle new speeches with stolen phrases from Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King and even Ronald Reagan, without credit. Bill Clinton could copyright "a," "and" and "the," and maybe even "is," and declaim against Obama as the most shameless speech-stealer since Joe Biden swiped a transcript from a British pol and told a weepy story of how his daddy was a poor Welsh coal miner. Brokered conventions make all things possible.
Of course the wiseheads all say it can never happen, but "the brokered convention" might be unfolding before us already. This time the squalid pol with a handful of cheap cigars in his vest and a half-pint of rye in his back pocket is a superdelegate armed with piety if not necessarily wit, eager to wheel and deal. The first fistfight would be over whether to seat the delegates from Michigan and Florida, won by Hillary after Barack Obama skipped those primaries to punish rowdy Democrats who voted early despite warnings from their national committee. Democrats and Republicans alike once reveled in being rowdy, independent and ornery. They could do it again. We can always hope.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Wesley Pruden is editor in chief of The Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
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