Even if a candidate masters all the rules, unexpected catastrophes can and do occur. George Allen found this out the hard way after being caught uttering the word macaca. Obama could lose the race in a hot second if a photo of him smoking made its way to the internet. And Hillary, well, it’s hard to say. Hillary has shown inhuman resilience in the face of hundreds of scandals that would have toppled lesser mortals. Considering she will go to absolutely any lengths, my bet is she will be able to surmount most unforeseen obstacles. (Don’t forget, she still has those 1,000 FBI files.)
All the candidates are to be commended for coming so far. For being able to present whatever image will work best with a particular audience. And for realizing so quickly that the 2008 presidential race will be won based on form, not substance.
