I just had a meeting with Steve Clemmons at the JB’s Big Boy All-U-Can-Eat Early Bird Buffet over by the interstate.  The thing I like most about Steve is that he’s a straight shooter just like my best friend in the world, John Sidney McCain.

As Steve dug into his chicken fried steak he suddenly lit into me about John saying that we’re going to have more wars in the Middle East, that he might want to bomb Iran and that we might have to be in Iraq for 100 years.

I said, “Steve, when you’re 847 years old, 100 years really ain’t a lot of time.”

And Steve said I was being glib.

Well, maybe I should of slapped the pucker off his face right then and there but instead I just said, “Steve, you’re pushing us in the direction we need to go.”

Steve smiled then said he wanted to go get some Gaiatsu and headed back to the buffet table.

Now I thought I’d put my foot in my mouth but then I come back to TPM, what do I see but a column from Steve Clemmons.  He must have written it on his Blackberry in the men’s room he got it up so fast.  Steve says this:

“When top tier advisers are looking for excuses for positions that they need to take -- then it raises serious questions about authenticity of the rhetoric we are hearing from all three -- Obama, Clinton and John McCain.”

You might think that Steve’s taking an equally sour view of all the candidates there, but I consider this a personal victory.  I mean, what does he disagree with Clinton and Obama about?  That they won’t say they want to change a Cuba policy that the United States has been pursuing for half a century because they’re afraid if they do say it they’ll lose Florida in the general?  That they’re both treading carefully around Israel/Palestine issues?  Those are quibbles!

John Sidney McCain wants to bomb the hell out of the Middle East and bring them peace by the light of our flashing swords!  And Steve thinks all three of them are the same!

That was a good line I came up with today.  Keep pushing us where we need to go, Steve!  If Sidney singing “Bomb, Bomb Iran” is equal to Obama not saying that he’ll relax an obscure travel regulation on Cuba then we got this thing in the bag.

Now, if you’ll all excuse me I need to get back to the buffet before all the Gaiatsu is gone.

Vote McCain!