The great man in the race may not win

Hearing the debate on the radio last Wednesday, I thought McCain won on points going away. Yes John McCain breaks hearts and he drives the Republican "base" wild. But he is a rarity in American politics, because he is his own man. The NH Union Leader, one month before the New Hampshire presidential primary has endorsed McCain. The venerable clarion of New Hampshire conservatism could do far worse. It is said that the core constituency of the Republican party, the conservative-libertarian strain, dislikes McCain in part he is a creation of the media. But the party faithful ought to take a closer look, the media has a new sweetheart and has pretty much abandoned the senior senator from Arizona.

Too bad the media are a fickle crew, who this go-round are smitten with the cuddly conservative, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

It's more than a bit bizarre. When McCain called the Rev. Jerry Falwell an agent of "intolerance" in 2000, the media loved him. When McCain appeared next to Falwell at Liberty University last year, pundits labeled the event -- a savvy political move to reach out to Falwell's values voters -- a sellout to the religious right. So who's their new crush? An ordained Southern Baptist minister. Go figure.

GOP voters resented profligate spending under the now-dethroned Republican leadership in Congress. They should love McCain, who crusaded against earmarks and pork-barrel spending when it didn't win him many friends in power circles.