DON'T TREAD ON MUBARAK

I think Jonathan Chait is absolutely right about Mubarak's next move:

... Mubarak should cut a deal to step down as president of Egypt, take exile in the United States where he'll be granted citizenship, and immediately jump into the Republican primary field.

... You want a candidate who's tough on Islamists? The other Republicans can talk all they want about doubling Gitmo, but only Mubarak has imprisoned and tortured Islamists. You can't possibly get to the right of him on this issue. And he's extremely pro-Israel.

Of course, any Republican nominee must be rock-solid on the all-important issue of taxes. Allow me to quote from the Heritage Foundation:

Egypt has below-average personal income and corporate tax rates.... In the most recent year, overall tax revenue as a percentage of GDP was 15.4 percent.

15.4%! If applied to the U.S., that would be cutting the tax burden in half. Again, Mubarak would outflank the entire field.

... Some of his opponents can say they voted to defund public broadcasting. Mubarak can say he has had the liberal media arrested and taken to the secret police. He'll make Sarah Palin look like Bill Keller....

And now that he's stepped down, he can say he was actually driven from office, mid-term, by the liberal-fascist/totalitarian/Piven-and-Cloward/Islamicist/AFL-CIO Octopus. That's way better than Santorum losing a scheduled election! Talk about a relatable sense of victimization....

Yeah, I know, there's one problem -- Mubarak wasn't born in the United States. Well, you know what the wingers would say. C'mon, kids, say it with me: NEITHER WAS OBAMA!!!