The American Spectator

The Campaign Spectator

When Elections Aren't a Perfect '10'

By Quin Hillyer from the November 2008 issue

(Page 2 of 2)

On a bizarre night, all the crowd got was this anti-climactic appearance of—no offense—two B-list stars. Hell, not only did Bush never emerge all night, but nobody else, not even Derek or Newton, actually took the stage. Somewhere along the line, even the two celebrities just faded into the night. The networks had finally reported that Gore had called Bush to retract his concession—and it would take another 35 days to sort out the mess.

What I wrote that terribly anti-climactic night at 9:30 p.m. central time, as the election was so breathtakingly up in the air, might be worth remembering this month as we absorb the results from this year’s numbingly endless presidential campaign: “Washington, D.C.’s permanent campaign will continue, and somehow laws will still be written. And every apparent political victory will hold the potential seeds of disaster, and every apparent loss could portend a greater triumph.”

Quin Hillyer is an associate editor of the Washington Examiner and a senior editor of The American Spectator.

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