A Tale of Two Polls (and One City)

There will be two polls in Fort Worth this weekend. One will have a decisive outcome that means something, and the other will be the Republican Straw Poll.

The Republican Straw Poll put on by the Texas GOP this coming weekend will not really matter. I'm not the first one to say it, especially since the Iowa straw poll a few weeks ago had low turnout of both voters and candidates. The Dallas Morning News reports that not only will top-tier candidates Giuliani and Romney take a pass, but so too will McCain and Thompson. Maybe Huckabee will win and start pulling away — he might, as his only competition will be Ron Paul, Brownback, and Duncan Hunter, all of whom are not what professionals in this business would call "viable."

Not even some big Republican names from Texas are bothering to show. Rick Perry, KBH, and David Dewhurst will all be absent, ostensibly out hunting, or boating, as Gromer Jeffers implies are favored activities.

The other poll, the American People's Poll on Iraq, may draw a bigger crowd than even the Republicans do. Rallies against the war in Iraq will play counterpoint the Republican gathering, taking advantage of the media coverage to get their message out. I received a media alert this morning from Texans For Peace, who are helping to organize the event, which says "thousands" of people will be there.

And maybe they will be. Making a little political noise when your opponents or detractors meet is a time-honored tradition, and Fort Worth looks to be a little noisy this weekend.