REMEMBER, THE STRAW POLL REALLY MEANS NOTHING

As one would expect, the straw poll of 2008 Republican presidential hopefuls and wannabees taken today at the GOP's Southern Republican Leadership Conference in Memphis was hyped up good. And, as expected, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Dr. Bill Frist (R - TN) came away as the top vote-getter among the 1,427 activists from 37 states who attended.

Of course, one can expect Frist's team to be excited, and for the results to be mention on the chat shows tomorrow (expecially ABC News' This Week with George Stephanopoulos, on which the senator will appear). But one should not take the results too seriously.

Frist had true "home court advantage", as the conference was held in his home state, and 40 percent of the delegates were from Tennessee. One should also remember that the delegates are true activists who have a serious case of "politics on the brain"...what happens when the rank-and-file Republicans make their decision?

One bit of a surprise, though, was that coming in second was Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, with 14 percent. Not great, but with bigger names being touted during the weekend it will make some take notice.