McCain v. Giuliani: Who's The Bigger Demagogue?

There's nothing more transparent and unseemly in the political process than pre-election posturing by candidates appealing to a knuckle-dragging base.

That's what's happened in the last forty-eight hours on the GOP side of the campaign street.

First there was the newly-minted conservative Rudy Giuliani, running as fast as he can from a moderate political past that helped him win elections in normally Democratic New York City, remaking himself into a candidate possibly tougher on defense than rival John McCain.

Rudy told a New Hampshire audience that only a Republican president in 2008, preferably himself, could prevent another 9/11-type attack because Democrats would wave a white flag in the war on terrorism.

How could McCain respond, especially since his formal candidacy announcement was scheduled for the day after Rudy's fake, warrior pose?

McCain went on The Daily Show With Jon Stewart where he defended the Iraq War and joked (sic) about wanting to bomb Iran.

Both of these guys have no shame when it comes to throwing red meat to the righty GOP fringe (is that a non-sequiter?); if either wins the nomination, it'll be hard to tiptoe back towards the middle, with 65% of Americans consistently telling pollsters they oppose the war in Iraq.

From which you could also fairly infer that bombing the country next door to Iraq (Shock and Awe, II) would not be popular.

Let's hope that pandering on the war is a losing political strategy in the now-fifth year of the war in Iraq.