Just Calm Down!

Despite all the back-and-forth about whether or not Ron Paul is being excluded from anything, it finally appears true that, YES, he has been excluded from a Fox News forum with Chris Wallace on January 6. And yes, that’s insane, and it so blatantly reveals Fox’s bias, they should be embarrassed.  (They can’t possibly argue it’s because he’s not doing well enough, what with the fundraising and the fact that he’s polling better than Thompson in New Hampshire, the primary that’s held two days after the forum. And as for Iowa, this recent poll has him tied with Thompson for fourth and beating Giuliani by 4%).

There’s also talk of excluding candidates from fan upcoming ABC debate, and of course, Ron Paul supporters are upset about that prospect, but we need not be. Here’s the criteria:

To participate in ABC’s Saturday night debate, Republican and Democratic candidates must meet at least one of three benchmarks: place first through fourth in Iowa, poll 5 percent or higher in one of the last four major New Hampshire surveys, or poll 5 percent or higher in one of the last four major national surveys.

These aren’t unreasonable benchmarks for a post-Iowa debate, and what’s more, Ron Paul will easily get into the top four Republicans in Iowa. Prediction: Paul takes an easy third, with percentage points in the high teens, behind Romney (1st) and Huck (2nd).

And when he does, Fox News’s exclusion will look all the more absurd and every bit as biased as it really is.

So there’s really no reason to get too furious.