Republicans hungry for a Conservative candidate

John Marshall at Talking Points Memo discusses just how weak this GOP field really is...

... something I knew but hadn't seen yet quite so up close. I can't imagine that a sentient Republican could have watched that 90 minutes and not been at least quietly aghast. McCain, who is the only person on the stage with real national stature, comes off as a crushed man, almost pained. But the issue isn't so much that most of them don't seem up to the challenge of being president. It is more that the political climate and the state of the Republican party in general makes their answers to most questions either off-balance, awkward or completely incoherent.

I must differ with comments in "Shunning Tancreado," by Hugh Hewitt:

The desperation for attention that seems to guide Tancredo drove him back to the fringes of American political life a couple of days ago:

"If it is up to me, we are going to explain that an attack on this homeland of that nature would be followed by an attack on the holy sites in Mecca and Medina," he said in Iowa last week. "Because that's the only thing I can think of that might deter somebody from doing what they otherwise might do."

Tancredo's position is endorsed by no one else on the American political stage and for good reason: We are not at war with Islam.

Tancredo took fire for his views on illegal immigration and now he's taking heat for his views on America's enemy, which is 99.9% Islamic. I don't see the problem with his statements.

On Congress, The Volokh Conspiracy reports:

Congressional Shenanigans (via Instapundit):

John Fund has an interesting article on Congressional shenanigans and heavy-handed parliamentary rule in the House of Representatives. In some respects, he notes, this is nothing new, and it's not getting any better:

Fred Thompson supporters at Harford County Farm Fair, Video here

Other interesting comments:

Mainstream Journalists Pray Daily For Link On Drudge, TMP Cafe

Two Middle Eastern Men Arrested on Bomb Charges, Webloggin

Comments

[InRussetShadows]

Tancredo said what TR, Washington, or even Truman would have said. Tancredo's position is even more appropriate when you consider what Hamas and Fatah do to Judeo-Christian holy sites, like Joseph's Tomb. (Forgot about that one, did ya?)

Hugh Hewitt not only knows nothing about Islam, but he is a blowhard. I used to post quite frequently on Jihadwatch, but gave up when he routinely took over thread after thread with 10-paragraph posts. He has painted Tancredo in the colors of his own egotism.

[Cindi]

Someone needs to lay out the Big Stick and I'm glad Tom Tancredo did so.

If the Islamists are so focused on our destruction that they do not care what that destruction will entail, then maybe their citizens will make them care. If not, they should lose as well, if we are attacked.

We have weapons. They need pointing somewhere. Why not point them where the threat might purchase us the most value?

[NMS]

You're right, he did not specifically mention nuclear weapons. I misspoke.

Another thoughts came to be regarding this. Tancredo says the threat of an attack on Mecca or Medina should serve as a sort of deterrence to a potential terrorist attack. I do not believe it would serve as any sort of deterrent to the Islamist terrorists who want us dead. They're focused on our destruction, and I do not think they would care what cost such a destruction would entail. Therefore, I also think what Tancredo said is strategically wrong.

[Debbie]

The Tancredo quote said he would respond "with an attack" on the holy sites in Mecca and Medina. I don't believe he said a "nuclear attack" on those sites.

[NMS]

I pretty much agree with Tom Tancredo about illegal immigration. However, his position regarding using nuclear weapons against Mecca in retaliation for a terrorist attack are ludicrous. The problem is, the Islamic radicals that we face are not a country, and therefore to retaliate against a sovereign nation with nuclear weapons for their actions is very problematic. I am no fan of Saudi Arabia, it is a theocratic hell that deserves to roundly criticized and denounced by all who cherish freedom. Despite that, I completely disagree with Tancredo's position.