Observation

The only two TV networks that covered live President Trump's recent Tampa, Florida rally were Fox News and CSPAN. The over-the-air TV networks, MSMBC and CN did not cover this rally ... so why were many of these media cameras there?  And why was CNN's chief provocateur, Jim Acosta,  quite  visibly present? Hmm?

Headlines

All from Internet news sites ... including Politico.

Madrid unveils plan to take direct control of Catalonia

Trump to cover staff legal fees as Russian probe unfurls

9.7-million-year-old teeth discovery could re-write human history ...

Donald Trump: Without social media, I may not be president

Grassley won't force Sessions to answer Trump-Comey questions

Duerte now says he'll execute criminals himself

American nuke bombers buzz NKorea ...

Five injured, one arrested after knife rampage in Munich

Czech voters hand Euroskeptic Babis big victory

Survivor wonders why feminists won't fight female genital mutilation

Serial killer in Tampa?

Iraqi invasion: Looting, arson trigger mass exodus of 100,000 in Kurdish Kirkuk

Golden Moments

In his book, The Soul of a New Machine, Tracy Kidder quotes Tom West, the leader of the development team for Data General's "Eagle" computer (and a project where I was on the outside looking in), as saying, "there are no golden moments."  In other words, there is never a time when the road to success is assured. Such was with Mitt Romney's twin victories in Michigan and Arizona yesterday ... it was not a golden moment.

Mitt Romney is still in a slog up to the August Republican nomination convention.  I expect him to have setbacks and his share of gaffs prior to Tampa, but I do see him eventually to be (reluctantly) anointed to go up against our sitting President in the fall.  And the final contest might best be compared to his running a 400 meter dash after having just completed a marathon.  So, it will clearly not be easy for Romney ... The Barry will have the money edge and the bully pulpit.  Even the LasVagas oddsmakers have Obama's chances of winning at 6 to 4 (see: Intrade Odds).

But I still have faith that Romney will be our next President ... for no other reason than, if he isn't, I sincerely believe we are toast.

Merry-go-round



First Bachmann, then Santorum, then Romney, then Gingrich, then Romney, then Romney again, then Santorum, then Santorum again, then Santorum once again, and now Romney again ... I am getting a bit of vertigo from this rapid changing of front-runners in the the Republican Presidential nomination race.  Still the handicapper "pundits" think that Romney will be in front when all the ballyhoo is over in Tampa in August.  As a regular reader of this blog might know, I want Romney to win this carousel derby.  However, the whirligigging of this race has been a little unnerving, but I can find some solace in that I haven't seen a dark horse rider reaching for the brass ring ... yet.