Analysts say GOP foes need to broaden appeal

P>So say TV analysts after what Nightline anchor Ted Koppel termed the "bizarre" outcome of Tuesday's Michigan GOP presidential primary.

NBC's Tim Russert capsulized the conventional wisdom. Mr. McCain, who got only 28 percent of the Republican vote in Michigan, "must get into the 40 percent range" in future primaries while keeping his independent support, Mr. Russert said. Otherwise, Mr. McCain can't win.

Conversely, Mr. Bush must erase the perception that he's the candidate of religious conservatives and "get back to the center to try to broaden his appeal," Mr. Russert contended. Otherwise, he'll be an easy mark for the Democratic nominee.

Fox News Channel's Morton Kondracke thinks Mr. McCain still has the more formidable challenge.

"He's got miles to go," Mr. Kondracke said. "I mean, he lost the Republican vote by more [Tuesday] than he did in South Carolina."

NBC's Andrea Mitchell questions the depth of Mr. Bush's Republican support.

"I think that the loyalty is very thin with George Bush, from all of his endorsements, all those congressmen and senators and governors," she said. "I think they'll begin to jump ship very quickly if McCain can build on what's happening."

The huge independent and Democrat turnout in Michigan "hit them [the Republican establishment] like a basketball in the face," said ABC's Dean Reynolds.

Former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, who lost the 1994 gubernatorial election to Mr. Bush and is now a CNN analyst, said she wants the two principal Republican candidates to keep beating each other up. But the Democrat said she's worried about Mr. McCain's growing strength among non-Republican voters.

"I don't want him for the nominee," she said. "I am feeling really, really uneasy about that, and have from the time that McCain emerged as a real candidate. . . . The fact that McCain is winning independents and Democrats is the most worrisome thing about this, as far as I'm concerned."

Analysts generally agreed that Arizona Sen. John McCain, who got only 28 percent of the Republican vote in Michigan, must get into the 40 percent range in future primaries while holding on to his independent support. Otherwise, they say, he can't win.

Gov. George W. Bush must erase the perception that he's the candidate of religious conservatives and get back to the center to try to broaden his appeal. If he doesn't, analysts say, he'll be an easy mark for the Democratic nominee.

"The fact that McCain is winning independents and Democrats is the most worrisome thing about this, as far as I'm concerned."

- Ann Richards, former Texas governor, now a CNN analyst