G.O.P Dog Days?

I generally don't have a hell of a lot of use for William Kristol.

During the campaign, he spawned silly rumors like the imminent arrival of Mike Murphy in Team McCain that never happened.

He's a regular panelist on Fox News Sunday and has the awful habit of finding himself more charming than just about anyone else on the panel or off does.

But this morning in the Times, he comes through with a mildly clever observation about Barry's dog talk...and how it might not bode well for conservatives.

Up until now, many of the swing voters who decided to go black did so on the hope of competence rather than because of some seismic ideological change in the country. But in talking about the dog, he added the deadly element of empathy for dog lovers and parents throughout the country.

If Barack can bring not only competence to the table, but also a healthy dose of "I feel your pain," it could be a long few years for the Republicans in the wilderness.