At their convention in New York last night, the Republicans went bipolar on us. With coverage limited to a tight and tidy hour, the time was basically divided between two speakers with wildly contrasting styles: Sen. Zell Miller (D-Ga.), a turncoat who did a whoop-and-holler assault on the Democratic opposition candidates, and Vice President Cheney, a shoo-in for a second nomination and not in the least worried about it.
Unfortunately for the Republicans, two very different men could speak in succession, but the crowd was the same for both, and to a large degree, the Republicans behaved like a bunch of yahoos who'd been bused in expecting "The Jerry Springer Show." Nothing makes a worse case for the Republican Party than seeing a mob of them congregating.
This crowd makes your average suburban tailgate party look like a black-tie State Dinner.
(snip)
When Miller wasn't being the party pit bull, he was singing in dulcet tones the praises of President Bush. In one of the speechwriter's most laughable bits of imagery, Miller said of Bush, "I have knocked on the door of this man's soul," which may qualify as the neatest trick of the week. Miller also said Bush has a spine made of tempered steel, which suggests medical science may have advanced much further than we the poor old public have been led to believe.
more…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A55130-2004Sep2?language=printer