Over the last few weeks, it has been hard to watch six-term Sen. Thad Cochran fight for political survival in Mississippi’s Republican primary without thinking of some of the lyrics from Kenny Rogers’s song “The Gambler.” In the second stanza, we hear an old-timer say, “Son, I’ve made a life out of readin’ people’s faces, knowin’ what the cards were by the way they held their eyes. So if you don’t mind me sayin,’ I can see you are out of aces. For a taste of your whiskey, I’ll give you some advice.” The chorus, as most people over a certain age know, is: “You’ve got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em, know when to walk away, know when to run.” CONT.
Charlie Cook