Perils of Nepotism

It was pretty clear from a talk given last week by one part of the Neportism Cubed team, Andrew Rosenthal,  that he has decided to write off William Kristol. So he's only got a couple of months left to say silly, funny things, before returning the shrinking and increasingly irrelevant world of money-losing, low circulation conservative venues.  (No, I don't think the folks at TIME have missed the vacuity of his commentary, either.)

  Here's today's howler:

Then McCain and Palin can spend the final week speaking for themselves. They should throw themselves open full time to the media. Could the press coverage get worse?

Oh, yes it could. As it is, in very controlled settings, both Palin and McCain have had Daily Show moments.  Can you imagine Palin in an open press conference explain again, repeatedly, that "gifts" don't count if you don't want them--echoing Ted Stevens complaining all that furniture that belongs to other people is littering his cabin.  Or  another bout of "Name That Secretary of State" for McCain.

Then there's this knee-slapper:

For that matter, he might as well muzzle the campaign. McCain campaign senior staff members now seem to be spending more time criticizing one another than Obama, and more time defending their own reputations than pursuing a McCain-Palin victory. McCain should simply say that for the last week of the campaign, no staff member is authorized to speak to the media about anything beyond logistical and scheduling matters.

Does Billy think that the backstabbing and resume distribution has been authorized?   Given his role in all this, especially the Palin Pick, shouldn't he consider following his own advice?

No. Instead, he says McCain should completely retool (again, just like Billy has advised for the last three weeks) and go back to "POW POW POW!" in a 30 minute ad just like Obama's. First Palin gives a First Lady speech:

Palin could speak first, reprising her fine recent speeches on women’s issues and special needs kids — speeches that got almost no press coverage. She could then introduce her running mate, reminding people of his heroism, and pointing out, as she does on the stump, that he is the only candidate “who has truly fought for America.”

And then The Real John McCain provides the hard-hitting substance that has always been the basis of his candidacy:

As for McCain, he needs to speak about America’s greatness and its future; about how the ingenuity and toughness of the American people will turn around this financial crisis just as the ingenuity of General Petraeus and the toughness of his fighting men and women turned around Iraq; about how America’s spirit was not undone by a terrorist attack, and will not be undone by a financial mess; about how the naysayers will once again be proved wrong; about how America will emerge from its troubles stronger than ever and will win its battles at home and abroad.

Yep. That's the ticket.  A pep talk.  That's the kind of change America needs, my friends.

In fact, why not fire everybody, and have Billy write the speeches?