I’m taking a break from a very difficult project I’ve been working on day and night through the Christmas holiday to put these thoughts down.

The tragic death of Benazir Bhutto emphasizes how John McCain has risen from the dead.

Bob Novak nicely explains his rise here but I’m not at all surprised. Before Ron Paul announced, I had penciled in McCain to lose to Hillary.

Then, when the pundits pronounced him dead, I said, not so fast: “I think it’s too early to write off McCain. He’s still in double digits nationally and he’s a tough old bird with a compelling personal story and lingering media support.”

McCain has been aided by the mediocre nature of those the MSM deems “contenders.” He is the most serious and most authentic of the bunch.

That may bring him face to face with the man who doesn’t need the media’s blessing or special interest money to fight all the way to the convention: Ron Paul.

Ron Paul also spoke out today on the Great Wolf Blitzer’s show. (Take that Russert!)

These are two serious, experienced men who say what they mean. They are the two who served in the military.

And they have sharply different views of Pakistan. Ron Paul sees the obvious failure of our policies there; McCain is impervious to all evidence and will never stray from the path of militarism and intervention. He’s a dead-ender neocon.

That’s why the real story today–missed by the MSM just as they missed the Ron Paul Revolution and the resurrection of McCain–is the strong possibility of a Paul-McCain race down the stretch.

Fasten your seatbelts!

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