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NOBODY is sure why Marc Racicot is here. Unlike the other nine speakers who have come to “the City of Five Seasons,” the Montana governor isn’t auditioning for the White House. He’s at the Iowa GOP’s “First-in-the-Nation Gala” to learn, he says. He seems like a parody of a politician. He wants to “deal with difficult questions and move in positive directions.” No easy questions for him! Several reporters tell me later that they found him thoughtful. Perhaps our cynical press corps is moving in a positive direction.

Rep. Bob Barr (R., Ga.) isn’t. He was for impeachment when impeachment wasn’t cool—come to think of it, it still isn’t—and now he’s taking the show on the road. Republican presidential primaries arc endless productions of the same play with new actors. So, for example, Phil Gramm in ’96 reprised Jack Kemp’s role in ’88 as the candidate who takes the support of the conservative movement for granted and thus loses it. Barr is trying out for the Bob Dornan role: the Clinton scold.

About the Author

Ramesh Ponnuru

Ramesh Ponnuru is the editor of National Review, a columnist for the Washington Post, and a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

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NOBODY is sure why Marc Racicot is here. Unlike the other nine speakers who have come to “the City of Five Seasons,” the Montana governor isn’t auditioning for the White House. He’s at the Iowa GOP’s “First-in-the-Nation Gala” to learn, he says. He seems like a parody of a politician. He wants to “deal with difficult questions and move in positive directions.” No easy questions for him! Several reporters tell me later that they found him thoughtful. Perhaps our cynical press corps is moving in a positive direction.

Rep. Bob Barr (R., Ga.) isn’t. He was for impeachment when impeachment wasn’t cool—come to think of it, it still isn’t—and now he’s taking the show on the road. Republican presidential primaries arc endless productions of the same play with new actors. So, for example, Phil Gramm in ’96 reprised Jack Kemp’s role in ’88 as the candidate who takes the support of the conservative movement for granted and thus loses it. Barr is trying out for the Bob Dornan role: the Clinton scold.