I ran across an interesting piece from Matthew Yglesias the other day, writing in the Atlantic…

A long, long, long ways back I took a look at the Republican field and decided that Mike Huckabee was going to win. Neither John McCain nor Mitt Romney nor Rudy Giuliani seemed like plausible Republican nominees. Huckabee, by contrast, was a pro-life conservative Protestant governor — seemingly exactly the sort of person a committed Republican would vote for. His problem, I thought, was obviously a lack of name recognition, but he’d be a classic beneficiary of the somewhat goofy primary system. It’s easy enough to become well-known in Iowa, the voters there would like him, and his strong performance in Iowa would get him press as the plain-vanilla conservative Republican candidate.

And now, following his strong performance in the Iowa Straw Poll, it seems to be happening, with Huckabee’s numbers taking noticeable leaps in early primary voting. …

Yglesias goes on to observe that given Guiliani’s vulnerability on personal issues, Romney’s less-than-convincing conversion to the pro-life camp, and other peccadilloes and peculiarities of other Republican hopefuls, that Huckabee may indeed have a realistic shot at the nomination.

The reader’s comments section reveals a mindset that suggests Democrat overconfidence. Some of the comments were predictably snarky and insulting. Others expressed a view that is often seen on liberal websites, completely dismissive of conservatism, southerners, and Christians in particular. The Left absolutely underestimates Huck’s appeal to the Republican base.

All of which is fine with me. I want them thinking that there is no way they can lose. As long as they remain within their electronic echo chambers, engaging in cheerleading sessions for the latest new age cause du jour, then the less time they will spend doing the hard work of organizing, communicating, and building a winning ticket.

Trackposted to Is It Just Me?, Webloggin, The Pink Flamingo, Big Dog’s Weblog, Colloquium, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.