9:35pm: the notion of huntsman sure is more compelling the reality. however, i can get behind term limits for congress; seems like everyone should be getting on that. if you're not running against congress this year, you're a chump.
9:05pm: james carville was great on romney's speech. 'did you see how all his kids were wearing white shirts? and his wife had a white blouse. and his signs were white. the whole thing is perfectly designed. the speech was good, and he read it well. not like iowa; romney can't speak off the cuff. he can't call an audible.' paul, speaking right now, is just the opposite. totally comfortable and just intensely himself, charming with his total anti-charisma, which is what i'd be looking for in a leader. i think he's still growing in this thing; the rhetoric is getting sharper and the appeal broader.
8:49pm: you know, last time round the chorus of cw pundits said that ron paul had a hardcore base of support at around 7%, but it could never go beyond that. he was at 20 in iowa, looking to be 25 in nh. now what's funny is that the conventional wisdom is never really wrong. so even as his support triples or whatever - as the numbers change, the jive never does: well he's got a hard core of support, but he can't get over that ceiling at 10, then 15, then 20, then 25. let's just go on to 60 or whever and dismiss him again at his inauguration.
8:34pm: in his victory speech, romney just said he will make the federal government smaller. i will bet you absolutely anything that in a romney administration, federal spending will increase every year. "i will insist on a military so powerful, no one will ever think about challenging it."
8:32pm: fox projects romney "by double digits." right now the lead over paul is 35% to 25%, with 21% of precincts reporting. course they might know more about who has and hasn't reported etc, though i think hanover (where dartmouth is) has not reported.
this romney thing is really bumming me out. cnn projects he wins new hampshire at the dot of 8, when the polls closed. i will continue watching, though. i remember hillary's late surge in '08.
