Ten days ago, Dick Morris was on Fox News discussing Barack Obama with Bill O'Reilly. Here are some excerpts from their conversation:
MORRIS: Well, that [his poll numbers are] down, down, down. When we first started talking about it, he was at 19 percent in the polls, then 15 percent, and now I think it's 12 or 13 in the latest FOX News poll.Voters want a candidate like Obama. They want someone who's new. They want someone who's moderate and not a severe partisan. And they really would like to vote for an African-American. They really feel that that would promote national healing. Obama has a great future in American politics, but it's in the future. I don't think he's going to be a viable contender for president this year.
O'REILLY: He gets the softball questions. Anybody could knock him out of the park. Now do you think Americans have picked up on that?
MORRIS: Yes, I think they really have. I think that they've really seen the buzz and the fluff, but I think they're sort of saying as Mondale once said, where's the beef?
O'REILLY: Yes, I've always said in the very beginning this is a VP play. Obama's a VP play.
MORRIS: I guess so.
Oops. A new Concord Monitor poll out today has Obama and Clinton tied in New Hampshire (last month the Monitor's survey showed Obama trailing Clinton by 23 points). This comes on the heels of a poll released Thursday showing Obama tied with John Edwards in Iowa (and twelve points ahead of Clinton). I can't wait to see how Morris spins this the next time he's on television. --Isaac Chotiner