Hug-gate

Ryne McClaren notes that the term "Hug-gate" as applied to Tom Daschle is becoming embedded in the media subconscious, thanks to the efforts of fellow Dakota Alliance blogger Quentin Riggins. Note that even John Thune has been caught using the term, as reported recently in the Rapid City Journal. To wit:

"In the middle of the Republican convention, when every other leading Democrat in the country is attacking the president, beating him up, Tom Daschle is hugging him. To me, that speaks volumes," Thune said.

He said the Daschle ad is on the lips of Republicans strategizing and socializing in New York and is seen as undermining to Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.

"Everybody's laughing," Thune said. "I'm calling it Hug-gate II."

Thune compared this hug dust-up to the controversy that ensued after filmmaker Michael Moore said he and Daschle shared a hug after the June premiere of his anti-Bush movie, "Fahrenheit 9/11." That first hug turned out to be a case of mistaken identity when a Daschle look-alike stepped forward to clear things up.

I think it's safe to say that the blogs are becoming more and more influential.