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Opinion
Jan. 13, 2008
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J.C. WATTS: Front-runners shaking things up

J.C. WATTS
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In my role as a cable television political analyst and as a political junkie, my take on the results in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary is simply this: The political establishment on both sides of the aisle took a punch in the nose.

Many of us sensed this developing as early as last August, on the occasion of the Iowa GOP straw poll in Ames. I attended the straw poll as a neutral observer and was struck by what I saw.

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    • For those who may need a refresher course, the Iowa straw poll is a concoction of the Iowa Republican Party to fill its coffers every four years. Attendees pay for the right to cast a vote for their candidate in a non-binding political beauty contest to which the media gives an extraordinary amount of coverage. Candidates pull out all stops to get their supporters there.

    The relevance of the event is debated every four years. Phil Gramm tied Bob Dole in 1995, and was an early casualty of real voting in the primary season months down the road. This year, John McCain tallied all of 101 votes, outpacing only a guy named John Cox. Yet it is perceived as an organizationally mandatory stop on the way to the nomination.

    For Straw Poll 2007, Mitt Romney shelled out more than $2 million in television ads, not to mention hundreds of thousands of dollars in direct mail, consultants, staff, a big barbecue on the grounds, and the purchase of tickets for his supporters to vote for him on the big day.

    Mike Huckabee, on the other hand, shipped watermelons in from Arkansas at a cost of a few thousand dollars.

    Romney won the event by a large margin, but not by a margin reflective of the dollars spent. Huckabee finished a strong second, followed by Sam Brownback (remember him?) and Tom Tancredo. Seems like so long ago ...

    The grass-roots ground games of Huckabee, Brownback and Tancredo far out-delivered Romney's high-tech plan.

    Huckabee is doing politics the old-fashioned way. He is energizing the grass roots -- not grass tops-- and this is a threat to the system.

    With Huckabee being a former Southern Baptist pastor and denominational leader, one could rightly expect the evangelical establishment to line up behind him. But as his campaign manager once noted, when they would meet with these "leaders," they were basically patted on the head and told to come back when they get "traction," to which the candidate responded, "You are my traction!"

    But he's doing it without them. As Marvin Olasky, editor of World magazine recently noted, the evangelical leaders are "following their followers."

    Indeed, the political establishment is shaking in its boots because the top candidates in both parties are not their anointed ones.

    Barack Obama is shaking up the Democrat establishment as well. His campaign is poking the Clinton machine in the eye, and they didn't realize it until he had removed his finger from their optic cavity.

    And John McCain, who I've always said is more comfortable being uncomfortable, is doing his thing and doing it well. It wasn't long ago that the conventional wisdom (read: establishment) wrote him and his campaign off. In fact, that was after McCain jettisoned his high-paid and big-spending establishment consultants and got back to being John McCain.

    They call McCain a maverick. I've always thought that was establishment code for "we can't control him." After a lackluster start, he removed the shackles, dismissed the establishment types in his campaign and concluded if he was going to do poorly, he could do poorly without them and save a lot of money. To everyone's surprise but his own, McCain has surged (pun intended) along with our new success in Iraq, and could well be waving his arms in victory behind a podium in Minneapolis in September.

    Hillary Clinton struck a blow for the Clinton machine in New Hampshire and kept the establishment's EKG beeping for another day, and perhaps beyond. But the lines have been drawn, and politics as we have known it has been turned on its head.

    Huckabee, McCain and Obama have gotten their traction by courting the grass roots. Huckabee and Obama's wins in Iowa were blows to the establishment. McCain stuck it to them in New Hampshire -- again. Now, it's on to Michigan and South Carolina to see which non-establishment juggernauts keep rolling.

    Whichever bandwagon prevails, the establishment types will be running to jump on. The challenge over the coming months for these anti-establishment candidates will be to resist the lure of the Status Quo Caucus in Washington, D.C., and stay focused on the grass roots.

    J.C. Watts, a former Republican congressman from Oklahoma, writes a twice-monthly column for the Review-Journal.



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    Gary Clouser wrote on February 11, 2008 09:49 AM: JC Watts for Vice President

    It appears that John McCain will be the Republican nominee for president. It is also obvious that unless he satisfies the base of the party, he is doomed for failure. To have any hope of winning, he must select a vice presidential running mate that is everything that he is not.

    McCain needs a strong conservative, who can forcefully and credibly, articulate the principles of the Republican Party. He also needs someone that has run a successful business and understands and can explain the principles of free enterprise. McCain needs a running mate from the south that can help him win the Republican base, which frankly is skeptical of McCain. McCain also needs someone with a strong standing in the religious base of the party. He also needs someone who understands the theories and realities of politics, and can explain them. McCain needs someone who is accomplished, but still, relatively young.

    With that criteria in mind, I strongly suggest to Sen. McCain that he select J.C. Watts of Oklahoma as his vice presidential choice. Watts is a former congressman, head of his own business, and is a frequent television commentator espousing and explaining conservative principles. He also is a principled Christian. The fact that he is a former college football quarterback star, and currently sits on the board for NASCAR are also pluses in McCain’s pursuit of a winning combination.

    Oh, and he is also black — a real plus in this racially-charged election cycle. The author of “What Color is Conservative?,” Watts can help break racial stereotypes. Watts believes in self-reliance and accountability, equal opportunity — but not guaranteed results, regardless of lack of effort and performance.

    Watts can support all three planks of the Republican conservative base:social/moral; economic, and national security.



    sth_txs wrote on January 27, 2008 05:03 AM: Thanks JC for being a sorry dishonest Republican hack.

    What about Ron Paul? This is the only guy I can have any respect for as a candidate. All the other Republicans are little more than excrement, and that is being generous.

    I reviewed your voting record and you care nothing about the rule of law or following the US Constitution. So it is not surprising you support criminal Republicans for President.

    If Ron Paul cannot get the nomination or chooses not to be a write in candidate, it makes little difference to me. McCain is an estabhlishment whore and Huckabee is a corrupt statist. Evangelicals that support anyone other than RP will once again show what worthless nonsense that organized Christianity has become.


    Lynne wrote on January 14, 2008 04:40 AM: You have hit the nail on the head. The grassroots marched to the tune of the "establishment" and all they did was become drunk on power. It is time to stop the us vs them and make the country work for betterment of the majority. Pox on the establishment of both parties.

    As a evangelical conservative I will support Huckabee or McCain but I will not show up at the polls for Romney (fake),Thompson (doesn't want this job) or Guilliani. I will not have my vote treated like the Black vote in the Democrat Party.

    Establishment's choice.


    Ross Roye wrote on January 13, 2008 06:05 PM: This isn't rocket science. If they would do the unconventional, and go ahead and make a team, Huckabee #1, and Thompson #2, the primary process and the general election would be over.


    cameron wrote on January 13, 2008 03:06 PM: you sound like a democrat bagging on Romneys wealth only democrats belittle rich people to stoke the envy of the people lower on the socio economic ladder. And I agree you didn't mention Fred Thompson and spoke negatively of Romney indicating that you know little of conservatism.


    Iowa PatN wrote on January 13, 2008 01:47 PM: I saw J.C. at the Iowa straw poll last summer, and he looked great--like he can still play! He should be every Republican's choice for Vice President. How about helping us out, J.C.?!


    Pastor Dan wrote on January 13, 2008 06:00 AM: Strange, Mr. Congressman, that you write so eloquently of the grassroots candidates, yet don't mention the one person in the race offering truly new ideas that could lead the country in the right direction.

    Your readers should go to www.Fred08.com to learn all they can about a serious man for serious times. It's not, after all, just the next four years that hang in the balance. It is the future of freedom.