The XX Factor: What women really think.

Meghan McCain Preaches What She Practices

Meghan McCain was on The Colbert Report last night and despite some giggles and a hideous, huge, Bedazzled ring, she acquitted herself admirably. When is someone going to give this self-identified "24-year-old, pro-sex woman" and Republican her own television show? Young and Republican In America, hosted by Meghan McCain, running on one of the cable news networks twice a week? I'd watch.

The U.S. "Teabagging" Party?

I love the fact that the word teabagging has dipped its way into the cable news lexicon. For those of you who are fortunate enough not to know the original meaning of teabagging, you won't find it in a regular dictionary, and I will not retype it here, but if you are curious, you can find several definitions at UrbanDictionary.com. Be forewarned: Make sure you are not eating or drinking when you read it.

The term fell into our mouths more than a month ago, when the Republicans decided they were going to protest Obama's tax policies by symbolically re-enacting events from the Boston Tea Party. Now there are several planned protests taking place across the country, and to report on them, newscasters, commentators, and cable show hosts have been forced to take in this mouthful of a word.

I've heard it from Jon Stewart, David Shuster (sitting in for Keith Olbermann), and a poor blushing Rachel Maddow.

Of course, this is how our language evolves, and in this case, how an "unacceptable" word becomes an "acceptable" one. But, in the meantime, we are allowed to giggle a little, aren't we?

And it gave me an idea. The Republican Party, which has been foundering since even before the election of President Barack Obama as it struggles to find new leadership, new direction, new ideas, a new identity, and new members, should maybe start with a new nickname. The could easily shed the "Party of No" label if they began to refer to themselves as "the U.S. Teabagging Party." Catchy, right? Sounds like a ball to me.

Meghan McCain: "Oh My Gosh … I Can Barely Add!"

Looks like Meghan McCain is here to stay as a Republican pundit: She has a column out today in the Daily Beast, interviewing Bobby Jindal's wife, Supriya, and she was on Larry King last night talking about her party. It also looks like she's not doing anything to dispel those accusations of ditziness, as Meghan's interview of Supriya was one softball after another. First, Meghan discovers that Supriya excels at Sudoku Samurai and says in response, "Oh my gosh those are so hard! I can barely add! You do those for fun?" Then, Meghan proceeds to ask Supriya a series of questions about her early dates with Bobby, and in the intro she describes Supriya as a positive role model within the Republican Party. Couldn't Meghan have found a single positive Republican role model who was actually elected to office?

Anyway, here's a clip of McCain on Larry King last night, talking about the Republican Party's lack of leadership and her support for gay marriage while wearing a giant hair bow. 

In Defense of Michael Steele

Am I the only one who finds RNC Chairman Michael Steele’s dorky gasp at urban credibility a little endearing? He’s getting flak for trying to give the GOP a “hip-hop makeover.” But isn’t that kind of what it needs—loosening up, a bit of dazzle? Who better for the golf-shirt set to relate to than a middle-aged guy who uses the word bling unironically? And, guess what, the golf-shirt set includes people of all colors who come from diverse economic backgrounds. Steele’s flailing stab at inclusion seems more sincere than what any of his predecessors tried.

We can’t all be as cool as 44; Steele knows he’s the Steve Urkel to Obama’s Stephan Urquelle. And is that so bad? Politicians like Steele and Obama are constantly having to straddle the line between the black community and the mainstream. Calling Steele out for being out of touch with hip-hop culture smacks of the “not black enough” heat both he and Obama have faced—an experience many a bookish black kid can explain in detail.

Steele ran into bigger problems today with his anti-abortion bona fides being called into question by his own party members. Instead of backpedaling about abortion and Rush Limbaugh, he needs to put this plan to build a more ideologically and socially diverse party into overdrive. There should be room under that big GOP tent for everybody. Squares of all stripes need a party to believe in.

Meghan McCain on Maddow: Delightful or Disaster?

Speaking of Facebook, or at least the Facebook generation, Meghan McCain was on The Rachel Maddow Show last night, ostensibly to discuss her burgeoning feud with Ann Coulter. For those of you who missed it, Meghan McCain wrote an article for the Daily Beast called "My Beef With Ann Coulter." Her "beef" is that Ann Coulter "perpetuates negative stereotypes" of Republicans. Not exactly a revolutionary screed, as others have pointed out. 

Meghan is trying valiantly to revive the image of the Republican Party, but like Bristol Palin before her, Meghan doesn't exactly have the political chops to do so. She freely admits that she doesn't really understand the financial crisis. What I don't understand is why the Republican Party can't find a smart young woman to represent their movement who does understand the recession. Perhaps someone without a political legacy! Anyway, John Cook at Gawker says that Meghan "made a fool of herself." While I think she was short on substance, I don't think Meghan looks like a fool. She's incredibly poised and camera-ready, and compared to Bristol she sounds like a rocket scientist. But, again: The bar is pretty low. Watch the clip below and tell me what you think.