HAILING HALEY – AT 8:02 P.M. ET:  Republican Governor Haley Barbour of Mississippi is one of the best governors in the country.  Even The New York Times condescends to recognize the attributes, and possible future, of this son of the South: 

He is a former lobbyist, Republican National Committee chairman, White House political director and a familiar enough piece of the national political furniture to be known simply as “Haley” within certain Washington circles.

Now, for the second time in five years, Mr. Barbour finds himself in a highly visible role during a Gulf Coast catastrophe. As he nears the end of his eight-year stint as governor, Mr. Barbour’s performance could help shift his political image from that of an insider party boss to an out-front crisis manager — and possible presidential candidate in 2012.

Mr. Barbour, 62, is proof that if you hang around long enough, even a good old boy lobbyist and political party animal can come back into fashion — or at least be recast by circumstance. A self-described “fat redneck,” he speaks in a marble-mouthed Mississippi drawl, loves Maker’s Mark bourbon, resembles an adult version of Spanky from the Little Rascals and fits no one’s ideal of a sleek new political model: squat, big-bellied and pink-jowled, he looks as if he should have a cigar in his mouth at all times (and occasionally does).

Mr. Barbour, one of the few politicians whose standing was enhanced by his response to Hurricane Katrina, has eagerly taken on the post of de facto director of tourism for the Gulf Coast, a task only slightly less daunting or thankless than heading a public relations campaign for BP. He has complained bitterly about what he calls the news media’s exaggerations and distortions about the spill.

And...

Recently dubbed “the anti-Obama” by Newsweek, Mr. Barbour has attributes that could prove to be a counterintuitive asset for him if he decides to seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. “If you think ahead to 2012, we are not going to beat the president with someone who has the same M.O. as the president,” said Nick Ayers, the executive director of the Republican Governors Association, of which Mr. Barbour is chairman.

COMMENT:  Barbour is one of the "anti-Obamas" the GOP should be looking at.  Another of course is Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, who actually, in contrast to The One, knows how to accomplish things.  And a third is Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, possibly the most dynamic governor in the country, if about 100 pounds overweight.

The people may well be looking for a guy in a rumpled suit and scuffed shoes to put this country back together.  Barbour, Jindal and Christie fit the bill.  And all are developing solid records.

Of course, Barbour has an obvious liability, and its name is Mississippi.  Many Americans still associate the state with the violence of the civil rights era.  That's long past.  We put racial prejudice aside to elect Barack Obama.  It's time now to put regional prejudice aside. 

June 19, 2010