The McCain nomination is a sign of just how abysmal the Republican prospects have become. Think about it. Over 70, stooped of shoulder and hard of hearing, the twin pillars of his platform are a 100-year war and the ridiculous notion that the tax code is still too tough on millionaires. His disgusting, on-his-knees pandering to the party's most conservative elements has alienated many of his one-time independent admirers while failing to appease the base, whose loudest voices practically shreik for his blood. Yet for all that, his competition was so weak he walked away with the nomination while hardly breaking a sweat. (On the plus side, when he voted this week against making waterboarding illegal, former chief rival Mitt Romney decided he had finally flip-flopped on enough issues to earn his endorsement.)
Not that Democrats should be complacent. No, no, no. Seven years of Bush's leadership have traumatized the country to a state of near-schizophrenia. The public is highly unpredictable, and with Bush still at the helm, world events are highly unpredictable, too.
But beyond that, mere victory is not enough. For myself, I won't be entirely satisfied unless the slaughter is so bad that the Republican Party simply ceases to exist. I want them to have to start over, under another name, like criminals on the run.
That's a sad fate for the party of Lincoln, but there it is. They've worked hard for it, and they've earned it. I say we give it to them.
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