How many times can Ted say "unilateral" in half an hour.

Double insane.

I saw this and kept shaking my head in disbelief. Teddy obviously thinks he's a good speaker. Russert asks him a question, Teddy babbles a response that has nothing to do with the question, and smiles in the secure knowledge that he has just landed a killing blow against Bush.
Pathetic. I hope Karl Rove had his VCR running!

I hope Ted continues to actively support Kerry. He did a ton of damage today. Sorry to say this about anyone, but I think he may be losing it.

This is a very odd campaign, where the Democratic Party has to spend most of its time responding to statements by the Democratic Party nominee and his supporters (like Matathir).

Maybe the Dems can implode so far that not only do they discredit the looney 68er left represented by Kerry, but finally permanently damage the reputation of Great Society leftovers like Teddy. At that point, all that's left are the opportunists like Hill and Bill. Rebuilding a party on that would like building on a mudslide prone hillside at the start of rainy season.

I kept thinking he should be answering questions from a parole board instead.

> I hope Karl Rove had his VCR running!

I'm sure he did--he wants to be sure he's getting his money's worth!

(What? You mean you don't think Teddy's secretly in Rove's pay? Seems the most economical explanation to me...)

David, OJ, PJ: I'm only a second-hand observer, and I only pay attention to Ted Kennedy long enough to make "we'll cross that bridge when we get there" jokes, so: Is he going nuts? The last few times I've seen him on TV, he's seemed loopier than ever.

Chris:

One thing to keep in mind is that in politics you can lose your chops just as surely as in anything else. He's such a political liability for the Democrats that you hardly see him anywhere but the Senate floor, so when he has to try and do modern sound-bite politics he's a disaster.

Actually, I thought he was better yesterday than he been in a while. The question for me is why put him out there. He could be the most rational, forceful advocate in the world, and, just because he's Ted Kennedy, he would fail to convert anyone. As it is, I'm sure no vote was changed to Kerry by that performance.

So here's the question: Is the Kerry camp just not thinking, or do they still think they need to work to consolidate the base?

David: It's also possible that for some reason they think Teddy still carries gravitas (as opposed to gravity). What that reason would be, is beyond me, but maybe they're so Shrummed out they don't see this as less-than wise?