Soccer Dad

Going with the head

In Romney, Rudy and the electability question Chris Cillizza argues that even if Giuliani is too moderate for the Republican electorate, the base will be sufficiently energized by an anti-Hillary sentiment that they won't stay home.

However he concludes:

With the specter of Clinton on the horizon, Republican voters may well opt for pragmatism in a nominee. But, they should heed well the lessons of history. Remember in 2004 when Democrats turned away from heart candidate Howard Dean and instead nominated head candidate John Kerry? We all know how that turned out.

Of course, is there any evidence that Gov. Dean would have run better against President Bush than Senator Kerry did? Dean wasn't even close when the media was fawning all over him. If he couldn't win the hearts of the extreme leftists of the Democratic base, why does Cillizza suggest that he might have done better in the general election? That's just plain cilli.

rudy giuliani, mitt romney.