I don’t know why Kristol took the NYT gig if he is just going to mail it in. The constant shilling for pro-war candidates — any pro-war candidate — is embarrassing. Anyway, Kristol’s claim, offered up trying to make the case for McCain and against Obama:

On Tuesday night, while the G.O.P. Congressional candidate was losing in a Mississippi district George Bush carried in 2004 by 25 points, Barack Obama was being trounced in the West Virginia Democratic primary — by 41 points. I can’t find a single recent instance of a candidate who ultimately became his party’s nominee losing a primary by this kind of margin.

The reality:

Utah:
Romney 90%
McCain 5%

Ark:
Huckabee 61%
McCain 20%

Massachusetts 2000
McCain 64%
Bush 32%

West Virginia 1976
Byrd: 89%
Wallace 11%
Carter: 0%

Such over-bold predictions and statements have become a running joke, one that reflects the deep pool of cynicism the Bush years have nurtured and fed among — this is important — otherwise basically conservative voters. Kristol is stuck with a clunker of a candidate in McCain and he knows it. We’d all be better off if Kristol took off his pundit hat and went to work directly for the McCain campaign.