Gov. Hair on the road to nowhere

The National Journal Magazine (yes, Magazine is part of its name) conducted a poll among 100 "Republican insiders" (their names can be found at the bottom of this story), and one of the questions asked was "Who among your party's current crop of governors has the brightest political future?" Guess how many named our own Gov. Hair? Too high, guess again. Still too high, guess again.

That's right. Zero. Nada. Not one of those "insiders" thinks our guv has any kind of future outside the state of Texas (five of them think Gov. Palin still has a bright political future). In case you're interested, the top four finishers were:

• (in spite of his State of the Union response) Bobby Jindal of Louisiana ("He has brains, ideas, talent, and youth. Plus, he's an ethnic minority. He's just what the doctor ordered to bring us out of the wilderness.");
• Harley Barbour of Mississippi ("The incompetence of [Republican National Committee Chairman Michael] Steele makes Haley the real party leader in 2010.");
• Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota ("If the GOP is ever going to broaden its appeal, it's going to have to look outside the South. Pawlenty is the real deal -- mainstream conservative principles, minus the fright wig."); and
• Charlie Crist of Florida, who is apparently abandoning the governor's mansion for a run at the U.S. Senate ("The antithesis of the Ann Coulter-Limbaugh model Republican. This is the fault line the GOP must confront, and Crist will be one of the primary voices in this debate.")
  

When "Democratic insiders" were asked the same thing about their party's governors, the top four finishers were:

• Tim Kaine of Virginia ("Kaine has helped turn a red state blue and is well positioned to move eventually to a prominent Cabinet position in the Obama administration.");
• Brian Schweitzer of Montana ("He is pro-green, pro-God, and pro-gun. He appeals to the future without abandoning traditional values.")
• Jennifer Granholm of Michigan ("A smart, strong, charismatic governor in a hard-hit state, she has the capability of serving her country in a number of different roles."); and
• Martin O'Malley of Maryland ("Young, smart, with it.")