Quick Hits

Slate.com's Gonzo-meter Death Watch for the Attorney General makes a great point in advance of Alberto's April 16th testimony:

His testimony later this month—even if it jibes with his most recent interviews—can at best amount to an admission that he is one of the worst and most clueless managers in the history of government. Short of capturing and trying Osama Bin Laden on April 16, there isn't much Gonzales could do in the coming weeks to restore his reputation.

From The Caucus at the New York Times, McCain's low fundraising number proves that trying to change your stripes, no matter how much the clever Maverick you think you are, is never wise.

A Salon.com article looks at how Fox News' main sin may not be the outright Republican bias but the weak "Democratic" talking-heads it places on the air, using "scary Democrats" like Al Sharpton or "losers" like Susan Estrich as pathetic foils for the ultra-conservative hosts. "Other Democrats who are chosen to counter Fox's conservative guests and hosts often appear as enablers. They're on-screen to prove to viewers that even Democrats agree that a radical left wing dominates the Democratic Party, not to mention the media," the article smartly notes. This has been one of my biggest problems with Fox, and with many MSNBC shows (other than Countdown) in general. Is this the networks fault, or the Democrats fault for not pushing smarter, more representative spokespeople?

Matt Drudge's good friends at Politico.com come to radical conclusions when looking at fundraising numbers: McCain is not doing so well, Hillary is not inevitable, and the Democrats are more pumped with their field. Um, did we need first quarter numbers to tell us this?

The article does make two important observations to keep in mind though, 1) "The Clinton camp highlighted the $4 million she raised on the Internet, but that number seemed less impressive when Edwards reported that of the $14 million he has raised, more than $3 million of it came in online," and 2) "The Obama camp said it couldn't yet release its figures for the first quarter, which ended Saturday, because the finance team is still counting cash raised at 5,000 house parties on the last day."

Exactly. To be continued.