Roy's Mis-speak

I get what Roy Neel is saying.

We don't have to win Tuesday. We don't even have to win the following Saturday.

If we just hang around, picking up delegates where we can, and saving all that money coming in off the bat, we can get Kerry all alone, starting around Wisconsin, and most delegates will still be unchosen.

In other words, we're to become the "anti-Kerry."

Fine. Good. Wonderful. But does he have to put it this way:

we have elected to not buy television advertisements in February 3 states, but instead direct our resources toward the February 7 and 8 contests in Michigan, Washington and Maine. We may not win any February 3 state, but even third place finishes will allow us to move forward, continue to amass delegates in Virginia and Tennessee on February 10, and then strongly challenge Kerry in Wisconsin.

When he could just as easily have put it this way:

We have decided to fully empower our grassroots supporters through February 17. We believe you will keep us competitive while other candidates falter.

This has always been your campaign and, for the next true weeks, that will literally be the case. We believe you can shock the world, that with your hard work we can turn this race around, and that we can dominate the delegate selection process from Wisconsin onward.

You have the tools, you have the enthusiasm, you have the will to take this party back and take this country back.

Let's go get 'em!

The first is the language of a Washington insider, writing for the punditocracy. The second is the language of a general directing his troops toward the next big battle and forward toward ultimate victory. The first could have gone off in an e-mail to the Washington press corps. We need something more.

With all the pundits now writing us off, what we need from our general most right now is a pep talk. It doesn't have to sound like Joe Trippi. We know Joe Trippi. We love Joe Trippi. Roy Neel is no Joe Trippi.

Sigh. I guess I just miss ol' Joe.