A liberal e-mailer told me, to my surprise, that he dislikes Bennett more than any other person in public life. This may help explain the legs the Bennett story may have: “I don’t know what it is, but I get angry ever time I hear Bennett speak. From a policy stand point, there are obviously much worse people in my view – including Pat Robertson. There’s just something about Bennett’s judgmental, moral, pseudo-intellectual tone that grates on me.

“I felt this way before the gambling thing came out, but that solidified it. I really just can’t believe that someone who goes around screaming about our society’s lack of morals supports the gambling industry….

“A comparison might be Bill Clinton. From a policy stand point, there are obviously far, far worse Democrats (in your view) – Clinton was pretty conservative in many ways. Yet, there is something about him (and I’ll never understand what) that drives conservatives crazy – even before the whole oral sex in the Oval Office thing. I guess Bennett is that way for me.”