Rush Limbaugh enthused about the GOP convention yesterday, saying:
“I did not want that to end last night…I didn’t want the night to
end. I didn’t want Rudy to stop. What a night! Folks we have a future
beyond November here. Regardless what happens…The convention has been
unified on the basis of conservatism. Properly executed, beautifully
articulated.”
“Believe me Barack Obama has a lot to fear today and he knows it…the
drivebys are in panic, the Democrat Party is in panic, the liberal left
is in panic…they do not know who hit them, they do not know who to
respond to this.”
“This lady has turned it all around…from now on on this program John McCain will be known as John McBrilliant.”
When I first read the transcript, I thought the episode could be diagnosed as a case of trying just a little too hard. Does one not detect a slight unease underneath all the rabid enthusiasm for Governor Palin? It is as if without this absurd praise, the whole house of cards might suddenly collapse.
And then today, via Halperin, there was this:
McCain opens up by praising his veep pick, saying “isn’t this the
most marvelous running mate in the history of this nation?” to wild
cheers from the crowd.
It's a good thing Adams, Jefferson, and Teddy Roosevelt were never vice president...
Update: Some readers have pointed out that Adams and Jefferson were never "running mates," but simply vice-presidents by placing second in the Electoral College. Still, McCain's comments would place Palin ahead of Teddy Roosevelt and Harry Truman.
--Isaac Chotiner