I admit it...

...while my favorite of the 2008 candidates is Bill Richardson (he's more conservative than me, but he's a negotiator, and he gets things done...occasionally that's a good thing...), I'm starting to get pretty fond of Obama. Not necessarily Obama the Office Holder (yet), but Obama the Speaker (via Corrente).

“Now, keep in mind, this is the same guy that said we’d be greeted as liberators, the same guy that said that we’re in the last throes. I’m sure he forecast sun today,” Obama said to laughter from supporters holding campaign signs over their heads to keep dry. “When Dick Cheney says it’s a good thing, you know that you’ve probably got some big problems.”

How hard is it to say things like that and still come off as likeable? Not hard at all. When Kerry or Hillary or even (to an extent) John Edwards take a poke at Bush or Cheney, it comes across as "My advisors told me it's okay to say that, and polls say people think it might be funny." When Obama says it, it has an infinitely more natural feel.

Plus, of course, the jab has the added effect of being 10000% right. And Cheney seems to be on a crusade to prove it right on a daily basis now (via C&L).

Vice President Cheney is going out of his way to make it clear that he doesn't think he has anything to apologize for.

In an unprecedented display of public verbosity from the typically taciturn vice president, Cheney spoke for the second time in three days with ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl. During today's 22-minute interview in a Sydney restaurant, Cheney showed no sign of backing down from controversy. Rather, he:

* Repeated and amplified his opinion that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's proposed course in Iraq would validate al Qaeda. (After Cheney's last interview with Karl, Pelosi called upon President Bush to repudiate the comments.)

* Refused to acknowledge any failure of U.S. policy in Iraq.

* Stood by his 1991 prediction that an invasion of Iraq would result in a quagmire -- but said that 9/11 changed the dynamics such that it had to be done anyway.

* Expressed pride in having done "some very controversial things" since 9/11 that he said have averted further terrorist attacks within our borders.

* Said it was "probably inaccurate" to call him an all-powerful vice president.

* Refused to address any of the serious accusations leveled against him during the course of the trial of his former chief of staff, Scooter Libby.

* Refused to rule out military action against Iran.

The other thing about the Obama article is, like lambert said, Obama drew 16,000 in Texas in the rain. I almost pointed out that even our president wouldn't draw that in Texas, but then I remembered that any event of his would be limited to people who had at least $1,000,000 and signed a loyalty oath, so that comparison doesn't even apply. Bottom line is, Hillary still has the connections, but Obama has the people. And unfortunately for Edwards, Obama has everything he has (charm, populist feel), only more. New odds (as I seem to be giving every time I post now):

Obama 40%
Hillary 35%
Edwards 15%
Anybody else 10%

Hopefully whoever wins picks Richardson as their running mate.