A Preview of Things to Come: Phil Bryant

The second part of my pre game postulating about how the Republican Lt. Gov primary will break down. This is the Phil Bryant edition.

Phil's up and he knows he's up. They're on offense and every time somebody comes at him, they deploy the Phil Bryant shuffle and come out completely unscathed. It's amazing. The man deserves a moniker, like Slidin' Phil Bryant or something. That's not nearly good enough to describe way that operation completely avoids catching on a gear that could grind them up. The problem is that, in the spirit of keeping with the horse euphemisms that have dominated this campaign, he's a one trick pony.

They have nothing of substance. No policy outlines, handbooks, contracts, or Blueprints for a Better Mississippi printed in four color glossy. If I were running in a Republican Primary against a guy nicknamed "Harvard Charlie," that's exactly what I'd do. I'd make him look like a light weight. This is the essence of the Karl Rove game plan. Take away their strengths. That is not the game they're playing.

Phil could be made to look weak on social issues. He is weak on management issues. He's buddies with Mike Moore. And unless you dig up a document that's at least a year old, you can't find out his position on anything. There's not even a policy section to his website. So you could say whatever you want about what he thinks on an issue and they have no avenue of recompense, except for that "trot out the reporter so she can say what she videotaped me saying" routine. That's a trick with a limited shelf life.

So this is how The Bryant Crew conducts themselves until the August primary--

Duck and Jive. They've got a poll in their hands that says over 2/3 of R. primary voters know who he is. Of those, 85% have a favorable opinion. They do nothing. They keep glad handing, making the appearances. They put at least two pieces of mail in the box of every R. primary voter. They do a couple of the requested debates and intentionally diminish the media presence. They avoid saying anything that can be used against them. There will not be a substantive answer come out of his mouth. He'll be for good things, against bad things. He'll want to study things that could go either way. He'll use a lot of great stories about made up uncles in Catfish County. He's looking to chew up time more than anything else. They'll burn up a lot of pavement and eat a lot of fried food. Look for him to put on a few pounds.

And since they know that they're stronger among the electorate than Harvard Charlie, they 1. pray to God he waits another month to go up on statewide TV. 2. They start thinking in the beautiful ways Republicans do, about how to suppress voter turnout in traditional R. strongholds. They want low turnout in Desoto, Lauderdale, and Madison counties. Those are the places where you'd have to persuade among the primary voters. You'd have to go give them something other than a handshake and a nod of that well sculpted pompadour. It's easier to keep them at home than work for them. The rest of the state will carry them over. The fewer votes out of that area, the fewer votes Harvard Charlie has in play.