Regularly, my readers worry that John McCain won't have the instinct for the jugular in this election. They see him campaigning with Joe Lieberman, and hear him singing the praises of bipartisanship, and fear that their party's candidate, who can fight his own side with relish, won't have the nerve to really rip into his Democratic opponent once he has one.
Rest easy, my friends. McCain knows how to twist the knife in the most subtle of manners, and most unusual of venues.Like last night's "American Idol." Hillary, Obama, and McCain taped appearances. It sounds like there was a mix-up with the Obama campaign, as he referred to events that are scheduled for tomorrow night as "tonight." Not a big deal, but he and Hillary offered standard-issue hooray-for-charity-work mini-speeches.
McCain did that, but more: "'American Idol' is a lot like a presidential primary election. Except for people in Michigan and Florida — their votes actually count."
Zing. Think about how many completely apolitical people watch American Idol, who have completely tuned out the details of the presidential race, who will likely ask their friends/fellow Idol watchers what that meant. They'll learn about the mess on the Democratic side, and how they're set to have only 48 states represented at their convention, while the Republicans worked out the issue on their side quickly and fairly equitably.
Finally, McCain added: "Then, at the end McCain said he had to get back to work on his immigration reform bill — and British judge Simon Cowell better watch out."
He's jokingly threatening to deport the sour, sneering, designated villain of the most popular show on television. That should lock up the Simon-hater vote.