New Hampshire melted my cold Floridian heart

From Times reporter Wes Allison:

Despite my earlier skepticism, I now believe the argument that Florida could mess up what seems like a valuable process, particularly in New Hampshire. Yes, Florida looks more like America. Yes, winning Florida has become key to winning the presidency.

But New Hampshire doesn't really choose the next president, or even the next presidential nominees. Its voters last week didn't anoint Clinton and McCain, who won the Republican contest; they just let them keep going. ...

Instead, the Granite Staters cull those candidates whose organizations, ideas or personas just aren't quite ready for prime time. Their questions and scrutiny prepare the survivors to meet the rest of us. And from what I can tell, they do a wicked good job. (Read his adventure here.)

Comments

On Feb 6, no one will be able to tell you who won Iowa nor New Hampshire...They are both flawed processes.

The Iowa caucus is a public vote that pits people in the community against one another.

New Hampshire is a farce because it doesn't indicate at all someone's support within the party. It is more an indication of what independents think more than anything else.

Florida is much more representative of the nation than either Iowa or NH. We can "cull" the long list of realistic candidates down to a manageable number. Iowa and NH have too many vanity candidates. I have had enough of their insufferable priority.