Keeping momentum away from McCain

On Hugh Hewitt's site today, Patrick Ruffini suggests that South Carolina voters opposed to John McCain should vote for Mike Huckabee "so that the rest of the country has a chance to vote for your guy on January 29th and February 5th." This, he says, will keep the momentum away from McCain and prolong the primary process.

First, this is a stupid idea because if Huckabee wins South Carolina, he becomes the front-runner. But second on the stupid list is this suggestion that keeping McCain at bay will give "the rest of the country" a say. Here's a list of the states, in chronological order, that vote after Feb. 5:

1. Louisiana
2. Kansas
3. District of Columbia
4. Maryland
5. Virginia
6. Washington
7. Wisconsin
8. Ohio
9. Rhode Island
10. Texas
11. Vermont
12. Mississippi
13. Pennsylvania
14. Indiana
15. North Carolina
16. Nebraska
17. West Virginia
18. Kentucky
19. Oregon
20. Idaho
21. Montana
22. New Mexico
23. South Dakota

Twenty-two states plus D.C., or 45 percent of the country that will likely have absolutely no say in the nomination process.

Did I mention that I'm sick of this good-ol'-boy network that picks our nominees?