The Truth At The Wrong Time?

Senator John Kerry makes the point -- and of course he's right -- that the Democrats don't need the South to take back the White House. This is probably a strategic gaffe; laying pipe for the abandonment of South Carolina while he stakes his claim in Missouri. Knowing the Kerry brain-trust, my guess is that they will be doing everything they can to set up Michigan (a few weeks hence) as "decisive" (in the minds of the media).

Part of winning the Democratic presidential nomination is defining what's important. Kerry has now said that the Southern primaries don't really matter much; what matters is one's ability to compete in the rest of the country. That works for Kerry; he's the least "Southern" candidate. The question is whether he can get away with it (1) in the media, and (2) in all those delegate-rich Southern states that are famously touchy about being looked down upon by the national Democratic Party (read: Yankees).

Something for the scribes to chew on as they gear up for their post-New Hampshire scene-setters. And no need to mention the odious Zogby, who just might be right and thus prove them all wrong.