February 28, 2008
Bye-Bye! The Last Gate Post Ever.
At least a few of our readers have figured it out already, but here goes: We've been winding things down at The Gate for the last couple of weeks, and today we formally say goodbye. Actually, we prefer John McLaughlin's way of doing things, so we say: Bye-bye!
It has truly been an honor and pleasure to write for and interact with you. (Even the Ron Paul fanatics who hate us because we don't cover him enough.)
The Gate would have turned a year old next month, but we're pretty proud of the more than 1,700 posts we've churned out. Most memorable for me -- Jane Roh -- was covering the U.S. attorney firings investigation, which culminated with the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in August, and liveblogging the David Petraeus/Ryan Crocker hearings in September. It's been an intense and rewarding experience, and I'll always be grateful for those opportunities.
And then there's our campaign coverage, where I've gotten some witty and insightful assists from fellow Deputy Managing Editor Irene Tsikitas. The abundant and frequently silly MSM campaign coverage wore us out at times, but it's been a real honor covering what is likely the most pivotal presidential election of my lifetime. (Won't miss liveblogging those debates, though.)
You can tell by the accompanying photo that we had lots of fun along the way, too. Thanks to our online graphics team, Ryan Merrill and Reuben Dalke, for gamely producing myriad image requests.
As for me, I am leaving National Journal and moving on. I will still be participating in the Horserace '08 weekly radio roundtable on the campaigns, so look for me on air and online. To keep up with my whereabouts and reporting, visit me on Facebook. If you want to weigh in on the demise of The Gate, e-mail thegate[at]nationaljournal.com.
Thanks for reading along. I enjoyed writing for you.
-JANE ROH
Posted at 3:27 PM
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February 27, 2008
Clinton & Obama: The Alamo Debate In Ohio
Media fixation on the March 4 primaries as do-or-die contests for Hillary Rodham Clinton guaranteed that last night's debate -- the final one before voters in Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont go to the polls -- would get a lot of attention, but it was something of a surprise to see Clinton turn some of that attention back on the media.
Clinton called MSNBC's moderators out for going easy on Barack Obama, telling Brian Williams that she is used to always being tapped for the first question on any given topic. (Slate has a lengthy explanation of Clinton's comment about the SNL skit mocking the media for fawning over her rival.)
A question about the North American Free Trade Agreement sparked Clinton's comment last night at Cleveland State University. NAFTA is particularly delicate territory in bellwether Ohio, which has a high proportion of blue-collar workers concerned about jobs going overseas.
Continue reading "Clinton & Obama: The Alamo Debate In Ohio"
Posted at 12:07 PM
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February 26, 2008
Obama-McCain Squabble Injected Into Army Readiness Hearing
A controversial anecdote relayed by Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in last week's Texas debate wended its way into a Senate Armed Forces hearing on Army readiness today.
Obama claimed that he'd "heard from an Army captain who was the head of a rifle platoon" that was sent to Afghanistan grossly undermanned and underequipped. "They were actually capturing Taliban weapons, because it was easier to get Taliban weapons than it was for them to get properly equipped by our current commander in chief," Obama said during Thursday night's debate.
Lindsey Graham, who lately has been stumping hard for Republican John McCain, relayed the story to Army Secretary Peter Geren and Army Chief of Staff William Casey during the hearing. "Has Sen. Obama talked to you or anyone in the department about this?" the South Carolina Republican asked.
"I have not discussed this with Sen. Obama," Geren replied, before handing the baton to Casey.
"As we looked into this, the best we could tell was this incident occurred back in 2003 and 2004," Casey said. "We talked to the brigade commander, looked at readiness reports. The brigade was manned over 100 percent and stayed 100 percent manned when they were there."
Continue reading "Obama-McCain Squabble Injected Into Army Readiness Hearing"
Posted at 12:26 PM
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FEC Impasse Threatens To Undermine McCain & Obama
A fight over whether Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., can reject federal funds for his presidential campaign has thrown new attention on a stalemate hamstringing the Federal Election Commission and given unexpected attention to the role of McCain's possible election opponent, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in that impasse.
The situation presents problems for both McCain, whom Democrats are accusing of defying the same campaign finance regulations he has championed, and Obama, who is seeing a hold he placed on an FEC nominee used in a bid to undermine his claims of working in a bipartisan manner.
McCain's problem, meanwhile, is generating calls for the White House or Senate Democrats to blink in their battle over FEC nominees.
"When you talk about the FEC, people's eyes glaze over.... But there will be increasing public pressure to do something as more and more people understand" the situation, said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Her group called Friday for Republicans to compromise to end the standoff.
Continue reading "FEC Impasse Threatens To Undermine McCain & Obama"
Posted at 9:14 AM
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February 25, 2008
If You Needed Proof That This Primary Has Lasted Too Long...
... look no further than Time, where political reporters Mark Halperin and Joe Klein took a break from handicapping the presidential horse race last night to critique the red carpet fashions at the 80th Annual Academy Awards.
Seriously.
(In case you were wondering, Halperin finds Daniel Day-Lewis "wolfishly handsome" and Klein's a "sucker" for women like Tilda Swinton.)
Posted at 2:20 PM
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February 22, 2008
How About *A Campaign* You Can Xerox
Did Hillary Rodham Clinton step under a ladder and over a black cat before announcing her presidential campaign last year? The hits -- in the bad sense -- just keep on coming at her.
She was booed last night after sniping that Barack Obama was pushing a message of "change you can Xerox" -- a reference to Camp Clinton's charges that Obama plagiarized Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick -- an Obama supporter. It was an Ouch moment for Clinton, and the audience did not like it.
Yesterday's CNN/Univision debate at the University of Texas (transcript) was tense at times and warmly collegial at times. Neither candidate tripped up too badly, but it was clear that Obama has greatly improved his debating skills. Clinton's been strong there from the beginning, so she's not being awarded any extra points.
The New York senator ended the evening on a high rhetorical note that won a standing ovation. Points for that, right? Nope. Many viewers read her lips and saw a concession speech.
Continue reading "How About *A Campaign* You Can Xerox"
Posted at 5:52 PM
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February 21, 2008
McCain Denies Improper Relationship With Female Lobbyist
John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, denied a New York Times report that hinted at a prior inappropriate relationship with a female lobbyist. The article, published online yesterday evening, quoted anonymous former aides who said they had grown concerned that McCain's relationship with Vicki Iseman had become romantic.
"If they were [concerned], they didn't communicate that to me," McCain said, speaking to reporters in Toledo, Ohio, with his wife, Cindy, at his side. "I've seen her on occasion, particularly in receptions and fundraisers and appearances before the [Commerce] Committee. I have many friends in Washington who represent various interests and those who don't, and I consider her a friend."
According to the Times report, Iseman's frequent appearances alongside McCain at events, in his office and on trips -- beginning in 1999 -- moved top advisers to intervene. Aides began "instructing staff members to block the woman's access, privately warning her away and repeatedly confronting him," according to the report.
Continue reading "McCain Denies Improper Relationship With Female Lobbyist"
Posted at 10:30 AM
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February 20, 2008
If Speeches Were Horses, Clinton Would Be So Dead Right Now
Either the Obama campaign is too hopeful or too darn cynical for its own good.
And either the Clinton campaign is too arrogant or too tone-deaf for its own good.
Beware the punditocracy.
Whereas two weeks ago it was premature to call Ohio and Texas do-or-die states for Hillary Rodham Clinton, that is not the case today. In most other election years, Wisconsin and Hawaii would be two "so what?" states. Not this year, and not on the heels of three straight primary/caucus sweeps for Barack Obama.
Out of the 10 contests Obama's won since the Super Tuesday draw, Wisconsin's tilt toward Obama is the most significant. (NJ's James Barnes has a feature on this today.) Obama is eating into all of Clinton's constituents, including older white men, single white women and lower-income Democrats. Now the question everyone is asking is whether Camp Clinton can slow this train down.
Continue reading "If Speeches Were Horses, Clinton Would Be So Dead Right Now"
Posted at 5:40 PM
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February 19, 2008
Dems 2008: Beware The F-Word
As Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama head into yet another crucial primary test today, the latest round of national polling suggests the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is still too close to call either candidate the definitive front-runner.
Yesterday's Gallup Daily Tracking survey had Obama surging ahead to a 7-point advantage over Clinton among national Democratic voters, prompting today's Poll Track to declare Obama the undisputed leader in the race. But earlier this afternoon, Gallup released new numbers showing that the gap between the two has narrowed once again, putting Obama and Clinton in a statistical dead heat at 46 percent to 45 percent, respectively.
The 3-point dip for Obama and similar bump for Clinton in just a single day comes as the New York senator has stepped up her attacks on her colleague from Illinois. Pundits, pollsters and other close watchers of the race will be anxiously awaiting the results from Wisconsin tonight to see if Clinton's last-minute effort to paint Obama as a plagiarist will help erode the strong level of support he currently has there, particularly among the independents who are able to vote in the Badger State's primary.
See the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's politics blog for full coverage of today's Wisconsin primary.
Posted at 2:25 PM
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February 15, 2008
Horserace '08: Who's Deciding This Election, Anyway?
This week, Gate blogger Jane Roh and Government Executive senior editor Kellie Lunney discuss Hillary Rodham Clinton's perception problem. Plus: those fickle superdelegates.
Listen to this week's show here. To find out where you can hear us in the U.S. and around the world, go here.
Posted at 3:47 PM
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February 14, 2008
Most. Awkward. Endorsement. Ever.
"We always had good laughs together."
Those words, spoken by Mitt Romney about John McCain, might have seemed hard to believe just a few short weeks ago, when the two candidates were regularly exchanging harsh words both on the stump and on the airwaves. McCain's distaste for the man who endorsed him this afternoon was evident and amplified during the final month or so of the campaign. The acrimony was often attributed to Romney's wealth, the perception that he was a flip-flopper and the negative ads he aired against McCain and Mike Huckabee. But close watchers of the race know that McCain gave as well as he got in recent weeks, airing attack ads against Romney in Florida, Super Tuesday states and even in the Washington, D.C., metro area after Romney dropped out of the race.
"As all of you saw over the past year, things can get pretty rough in the thick of a campaign," Romney said as he announced his endorsement.
Despite the history of bad blood, however, those who heard Romney's exit speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference and saw McCain's smiley photo op with House Republicans earlier this week might not be too surprised at today's endorsement. Many prominent members of the GOP establishment -- talk-radio hosts and conservative commentators notwithstanding -- are making it known that they are throwing their full support behind McCain, if only because they prefer him to the alternative.
Continue reading "Most. Awkward. Endorsement. Ever."
Posted at 5:35 PM
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Clinton Wins New Mexico Caucus By A Hair
Hillary Rodham Clinton has edged out Barack Obama in the New Mexico Democratic caucus, winning 73,105 votes to Obama's 71,396. But in terms of delegates, the rivals come out about even.
The final delegate awards haven't been meted out yet, but per an earlier Albuquerque Journal tally, which had Clinton with 68,659 votes to Obama's 67,538, the delegate count was 13 for Clinton and 12 for Obama.
Still, Clinton needed a good headline after days of glowing press granting the Illinois senator the glint of an aura of inevitability. A win for Clinton here was viewed as proof that she was running away with the Latino vote this cycle, while a win for Obama would have shored up his argument that he trumps the New York senator in red states and swing states.
In a painfully drawn out press conference, Brian Colon, chairman of the New Mexico Democratic Party, called the results "one of the slimmest margins of victory in" the state's history.
-JANE ROH
Posted at 5:22 PM
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Lincoln Chafee Endorses Obama
Looks like the GOP has its very own Joe Lieberman: former Rhode Island Sen. Lincoln Chafee.
Chafee, the only Republican to vote against giving President Bush the authority to invade Iraq, is bypassing former colleague John McCain in favor of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, who wasn't yet in the Senate for the 2002 vote but opposed the war as an Illinois lawmaker.
"I believe Senator Obama is the best candidate to restore American credibility, to restore our confidence to be moral and just, and to bring people together to solve the complex issues such as the economy, the environment and global stability," Chafee said in a conference call with reporters.
Chafee's endorsement comes as McCain stumps for votes in the Ocean State later today.
Chafee, always a popular lawmaker in his state, was swept out of office on an anti-GOP tide in 2006. His successor, Sheldon Whitehouse, campaigned on an argument for Democratic control of the Senate to challenge President Bush's authority. The Republican Party didn't exactly rush to Chafee's defense, and last year Chafee left the GOP to become an independent.
The Providence Journal reports that Chafee excoriates the leaders of both parties, particularly on the Iraq war vote, in a soon-to-be-released memoir.
Posted at 11:46 AM
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February 12, 2008
WH '08: The Hurry-Up Primary Campaign
In homage to the great sportswriter (and Brookings Institution egghead) Gregg Easterbrook, we're dubbing today's spate of regional votes the Potomac Drainage Basin Primary. (It's no worse than any of the other nicknames we've seen.)
So in case you missed it, there's a primary vote happening today in Virginia, Maryland and right here in the District. Barack Obama's going to sweep those votes, and Hillary Rodham Clinton is going to keep losing contests until March 4's Ohio and Texas primaries, which she might also lose. Wow, those are a long way away. She's a goner.
And... scene.
So goes our cheeky ribbing of the media speculation-a-thon regarding today's primaries, which according to MSM bylaws a) must have a cutesy nickname (Chesapeake or Crab Cake?) and b) must be predictive of the nomination winner and, while we're at it, the winner of the November general election vote.
Continue reading "WH '08: The Hurry-Up Primary Campaign"
Posted at 6:10 PM
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February 08, 2008
Horserace '08: Holding Their Noses
This week, Gate blogger Jane Roh and Government Executive senior editor Kellie Lunney discuss Mitt Romney's exit, John McCain's emergence as the presumptive Republican nominee, and conservatives who don't heart "Huckananny."
Listen to this week's show here. To find out where you can hear us in the U.S. and around the world, go here.
Posted at 5:18 PM
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McCain & Conservatives: It's Not Love, But It'll Do
Conservative activists still haven't forgiven John McCain for thumbing his nose at them in 2000, when he challenged their candidate, George W. Bush, for the Republican nomination. That's evident this week, as thousands of the conservative grassroots convene at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington for the 2008 Conservative Political Action Conference.
Eleven months ago, as the 2008 presidential race was kicking into gear, there was zero support for McCain at CPAC. Though Mitt Romney emerged the CPAC straw poll winner, support for him at the time seemed to be borne of resignation. The conservative base was agonizing over its choices for the nominee, and at its dim hopes of hanging on to the White House in the wake of a tremendously unpopular Republican presidency. The ennui prompted Mike Huckabee to quip that the conference ought to be renamed, "Dude, where's my candidate?"
With no offense intended to Huckabee, who still remains in this contest, it's now pretty clear that, dude, your candidate is John McCain.
"I hope you will pardon my absence last year, and understand that I intended no personal insult to any of you. I was merely preoccupied with the business of trying to escape the distinction of preseason front-runner for the Republican nomination which, I'm sure some of you observed, I managed to do in fairly short order," McCain said at the conference yesterday, using humor as he often does to defuse an awkward situation.
It worked, and not just because the room was packed with the McCainiacs who were totally absent at last year's CPAC. Just hours before, Mitt Romney informed attendees he was dropping out of the race. Romney supporters were also on hand to hear from McCain, in an irony-laden, fresh-start introduction to the GOP's presumptive nominee.
Continue reading "McCain & Conservatives: It's Not Love, But It'll Do"
Posted at 5:07 PM
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The Democrats' Nail-Biter Continues
Even though the candidates have moved on to the next round of contests -- caucuses in Nebraska, Louisiana and Washington tomorrow; Maine on Sunday; and the Potomac Primary next Tuesday -- the final Super Tuesday tally in the incredibly tight race between Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama remains unresolved. As delegate counts from various states continue to trickle in, the latest count by MSNBC has Obama with a razor-thin lead over Clinton, 861 to 855.
Meanwhile, the results of New Mexico's Feb. 5 caucus still hang in the balance. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, MSNBC (a NationalJournal.com partner) has Clinton leading, 49 percent to 48 percent. But with just over 1,100 votes separating them, the two senators are waiting for more than 17,000 provisional ballots to be counted before a winner is declared.
AP reports that it "could be a couple of days" before there's an answer; UPI quotes state party leaders who say it may take another week. Either way, the two are likely to split the delegates from that state down the middle.
Continue reading "The Democrats' Nail-Biter Continues"
Posted at 2:38 PM
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February 07, 2008
McCain At CPAC: Joy, Boos, But Mostly Joy
Just a few hours after Mitt Romney announced he was pulling out of contention, a swarm of conservative activists were pushing and shoving their way into a hotel ballroom to catch a glimpse of the soon-to-be-officially-anointed Republican presidential nominee, John McCain. Much like the Arizona senator's revived White House hopes, the sight of hundreds of attendees brandishing "McCain for President" shirts, buttons and placards was a stunning turnaround.
The ballroom at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington was filled beyond capacity. After making the mistake of wandering around to interview attendees, this Gater was nearly shut out, along with fellow reporters from AP, the Financial Times and Time magazine. Hotel staff weren't even cracking the doors for NPR's Mara Liasson and the New York Times' Maureen Dowd.
After mistaking this Gater for one of CPAC's College Republican organizers (humph!), Liasson was squeezed in, along with some of the rest of us -- including yours truly.
Continue reading "McCain At CPAC: Joy, Boos, But Mostly Joy"
Posted at 5:30 PM
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Romney Ends White House Bid 'For Country, Party'
Speaking before a roomful of conservative activists in Washington, Mitt Romney drew his presidential campaign to a close.
"This is not an easy decision for me. I hate to lose," Romney said before an audience at the Conservative Political Action Conference. "If this were only about me, I would go on. But I entered this race because I love America, and because I love America, I feel I must now stand aside, for our party and for our country."
Romney was announcing the suspension of his campaign -- a technical term that allows him to keep raising funds -- two days after a deeply disappointing performance on Super Tuesday. John McCain has won 13 of the states that have held primaries or caucuses so far, and Romney is close behind with 11. But McCain's wins in big-prize states like California on Tuesday gave him a nearly insurmountable delegate-count lead. With Mike Huckabee strongly defending his turf in the South, it became impossible on Wednesday morning to see how Romney could overtake the Arizona senator.
"I disagree with Senator McCain on a number of issues, as you know. But I agree with him on doing whatever it takes to be successful in Iraq, on finding and executing Osama bin Laden and on eliminating al-Qaida and terror," Romney said. "If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator [Hillary Rodham] Clinton or [Barack] Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror."
The crowd let its disappointment be known, booing Romney's decision to bow out and pleading with him to hang on. But the politically tuned-in CPAC attendees know better than anyone that their guy has virtually no shot at the Republican nomination.
McCain skipped the conference last year because he had no support there. He's scheduled to speak at 3 p.m. today, and now that Romney's out, will ride in as the Republican nominee. We got a preview of how he'll be received, courtesy of talk-radio host Laura Ingraham.
Continue reading "Romney Ends White House Bid 'For Country, Party'"
Posted at 1:32 PM
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February 06, 2008
Super Tuesday Updates: New Mexico & Romney
We called it quits last night with two states outstanding. The results are in for one of the states, while the other is turning out to be a nail-biter.
In the New Mexico Democratic caucus, the Clinton-Obama contest is still too close to call. Fewer than 120 votes separated Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama after counting earlier today, so that contest will be decided by provisional ballots, the Albuquerque Journal reports. State Democratic Party workers will begin counting the more than 16,000 provisional ballots today.
Per the Journal, Clinton took most of the counties while Obama bested her in Santa Fe and Bernalillo counties. The strong Latino vote helped Clinton here, but it's too soon to tell if that will be enough.
New Mexico is a proportional delegate state, with 38 up for grabs. That means both will walk away with some of the booty. But a win here for Obama adds another swing state to his column, further undergirding his claim that he would perform better than Clinton in the general election. That's why both candidates lobbied so hard for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson's endorsement. He declined to tap either until the nomination is decided, but he did watch the Super Bowl with Bill Clinton. (Of course, President Clinton used to be Richardson's boss.)
Continue reading "Super Tuesday Updates: New Mexico & Romney"
Posted at 2:24 PM
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The Economy: Not So Super
The excitement surrounding yesterday's unprecedented Super Tuesday nominating contests obscured the latest and perhaps most damning news to come out on the troubled economy: Activity in the crucial service sector slowed for the first time in nearly five years last month.
The report from the Institute of Supply Management shows a significant decline in non-manufacturing activity (previously the "firmest pillar of economic expansion") in January. Those numbers, coupled with last week's news that jobs were declining, are heightening concerns that the economy is not only headed for a recession, but is already in one.
"Recession is here," the headline on CNNMoney.com read yesterday. The report quotes several economists who said the ISM report was the tipping point for them.
Continue reading "The Economy: Not So Super"
Posted at 12:20 PM
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Wednesday Morning Quarterbacking
So many numbers, so little sleep....
National Journal's Ronald Brownstein and James A. Barnes are up this morning with first reactions to the Super Tuesday results.
On the Republican side, Barnes parses John McCain's victory across a broad geographic and ideological spectrum of voters and notes that GOP nominating rules in the biggest states are working in the Arizona senator's favor.
Meanwhile, Brownstein pores over the exit polls and concludes that the persistent demographic divides separating Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama could keep the Democratic race hanging in the balance well into spring.
Posted at 9:50 AM
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Big Fat Super Tuesday: It's Still Not Over!
1:58. Obama's declared the "winner winner" in Missouri. He and Clinton are running about even in New Mexico.
In the Republican field, it's near impossible to see how anyone stops McCain. A comeback for the history books, surely. It will be interesting to see how he's received Thursday at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, which he skipped last year because there was so much hostility toward him. The Gate will be there.
Meanwhile, Romney is meeting with his top advisers tomorrow to discuss his future, the Boston Globe reports. He's been accusing Huckabee of splitting the evangelical vote, but Huckabee's supporters are more likely to go to McCain should their guy bail out. The South was in a pretty anti-Romney mood today, and there's reason to believe this has something to do with religion.
Knowingly or not, Huckabee has used the religion wedge to his advantage. Some would say knowingly, although he hasn't really been called out on it.
We're going to call it a night. Check back tomorrow later today for those lingering New Mexico and Alaska results.
1:26. MSNBC's Chuck Todd did the math, and he projects Obama and Clinton will be about tied in delegate counts. They will have to soldier on in the upcoming contests: Louisiana (2/9), Washington (2/9), Maine (2/10), D.C. (2/12), Maryland (2/12), Virginia (2/12) and probably beyond.
Continue reading "Big Fat Super Tuesday: It's Still Not Over!"
Posted at 1:59 AM
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February 05, 2008
First Winner Of The Day!
UPDATED.
Mike Huckabee became Super Tuesday's first winner after cleaning up West Virginia's 18 delegates in that state's close GOP nominating convention. The sniping has already started over the legitimacy of Huckabee's win.
Mitt Romney's campaign reacted to his loss by lashing out at main rival John McCain, accusing him of colluding with Huckabee at the convention.
"Unfortunately, this is what Senator McCain's inside Washington ways look like: he cut a backroom deal with the tax-and-spend candidate he thought could best stop Governor Romney's campaign of conservative change," said campaign manager Beth Myers.
Continue reading "First Winner Of The Day!"
Posted at 4:31 PM
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¡Martes Gigante!
Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama are dueling for the coveted Latino vote in California, Arizona, Illinois and New Jersey. Though Clinton was viewed as having cornered this demographic, Obama's late-breaking sweep of support following his South Carolina primary victory could net him a significant portion of the Latino vote.
Carin Zissis of the New York-based Americas Society/Council of the Americas breaks down where these voters might go today.
Continue reading "¡Martes Gigante!"
Posted at 4:05 PM
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It's Not Super Tuesday Everywhere
Note to voters: Make sure your state is one of the 24 holding nominating contests today before you head out to the polls.
Milwaukee resident Ethel Goodwin set her alarm this morning so she would be near the front of the line at her local polling station. When she arrived at 6:30 a.m., there were several other people already waiting for polls to open.
One problem: Wisconsin's primary contests are on Feb. 19.
"We were listening to the news and they were saying that Super Tuesday, and all the state, I figured that included Wisconsin," said Goodwin. "Probably, I just misunderstood."
(Hat tip: WTMJ news radio)
UPDATE: In all fairness to Ms. Goodwin, she's apparently not alone. (Hat tip: Wonkette)
Posted at 2:44 PM
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