What follows is The Collegian’s coverage of the Nevada Caucus and the Republican South Carolina primary. It comes by alternating embellishment of CNN’s coverage and mocking of it, with worthwhile coverage interspersed throughout.

Be sure to check out The Collegian’s LiveBlogging of the Democratic South Carolina primary on the afternoon of next Saturday.

7:11 p.m. — McCain’s Victory Speech, Part Deux

Nothing special, here. McCain could just ramble on cliches and his supporters, like any supporters, would cheer because they could. His critics would say he’s doing that already.

Notable, perhaps, in his victory speech, he alludes to the importance of the military and the support he received from those in the military.

Three observations:
1. He’s usually looking at the cameras. Not a second goes by that he doesn’t look directly at the viewer.
2. His rhetoric picks up a little, at least to the level that it would be noteworthy in a presidential season that didn’t already have an Obama and a Huckabee. This speech is slightly better-than-average fare.
3. He is “a footsoldier of the Reagan revolution.” See the Talking Points Memo clip below for a notable use of that term. Another reference to his military use.

Quote of the speech: “I’m not running for president to be somebody, but to do something.”

Take that, Romney.

7:01 p.m. — McCain’s Victory Speech

It’s about time that he started giving his victory speech. At least he didn’t interrupt Huckabee like he did in Michigan, I guess.

6:46 p.m. — 98 percent of precincts reporting

There’s literally no change between the standings between McCain and Huckabee since the top of the hour. McCain has 33 percent, and Huckabee has 30 percent. Thompson is a distant third at 16 percent, and Romney is a close fourth to that at 15 percent. Expect Ron Paul to beat Giuliani again, 4 percent to 2 percent.

6:43 p.m. — Huckabee’s Concession, Part Deux

Now, Huckabee’s talking about the message that united his campaign. A government that will build a fence, secure the borders, he said. A government that acted with some amount of sanity when spending money, he said.

That’s not the message I got out of his lighthearted campaign. I thought it was more supposed to be about running on domestic policy while ignoring everything outside the United States. A president whose idea of foreign policy is a border fence, really isn’t the kind of president the United States needs.

Even Ron Paul talks with some emphasis on the Iraq War. Mike Huckabee wasn’t running on much of anything substantial.

6:40 p.m. — Huckabee’s Concession

“Close doesn’t count,” Huckabee says. That’s right.

Huckabee says that he’s happy he was able to do what he did, and with the honor of not going negative. This wasn’t an attack, as he seemed to allude to McCain also not going negative.

Whatever you can say about the former fringe candidate, Huckabee talks pretty. If only that really mattered, or if only that could negate his questionable political posturing. It doesn’t, though.

6:22 p.m. — CNN calls it

Nice try, for “the best political team on television.” The wire services and a college blog beat you to it. Take that, cable news.

UPDATE: Now, they’re talking about Huckabee as VP material. Called that one, too, news station at the speed of molasses.

6:18 p.m. — The Associated Press calls it

But you read it here first. Well, no. You probably didn’t, but I typed the prediction first. Doesn’t that count for something?

In any case, CNN constantly refers to John McCain and Fred Thompson as friends. Presumably, that’s true.

The way I see it, Fred Thompson waking up in that last debate was because he suddenly realized he wasn’t viable as a nominee. The only effect he could have would be as a “spoiler” against Mike Huckabee. He must have figured that, if nothing else, he might as well keep someone worthwhile in the running. For Fred Thompson, that’s his friend, John McCain.

6:16 p.m. — McCain wins South Carolina

Because CNN isn’t calling it, I’m going to. McCain wins South Carolina by a small margin.

Here’s why. As CNN reports it, there are two big counties not yet reporting. One’s a small one, and it’s a conservative country. Ostensibly, it’s a Huckabee county. If Thompson campaigned here, he’ll have drawn away that vote.

The second county favored McCain heavily in 2000. It’s much larger. Just knowing this, I see no reason that this county would support a Huckabee over a McCain.

At best for Huckabee, it’ll be a close second.

6:03 p.m. — Huckabee catching up to McCain
Now, it’s getting interesting. Huckabee’s getting close, with 60 percent of the precincts reporting. CNN isn’t going to call it for McCain yet, because Huckabee could pull it out with the last few counties.

CNN held back last time, too, and the Associated Press called it fifteen minutes before CNN got the hint. I don’t trust their caution this time around. If Huckabee gets significant portions in more conservative parts of South Carolina, as CNN reports there are no precincts reporting there yet, I’d bet that Thompson will get a larger portion, too. If anything, the most conservative parts of South Carolina will be tied, between Thompson, Huckabee and McCain.

If the rest of the results remain tied as I believe, McCain will win. If I were a betting man, and if betting on this kind of thing were legal, I’d bet on a medium lead for McCain in South Carolina. Figure 3-point to 5-point leads.

5:49 p.m. — CNN Just Keeps Talking
Nothing has changed, with 49 percent of precincts reporting.

What’s awesome about this, perhaps, is that Ron Paul is beating Giuliani in South Carolina, and came in second in Nevada. I root for him ’cause he’s the underdog, and I love viral marketing.

As CNN is on infinite repeat, let’s check out something worth watching. Here’s some of the latest from A Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

It used to be The Daily Show with John Stewart, but he changed the name for the sake of strike solidarity.

5:27 p.m. — Spot-On Political Commentary Part Two

Courtesy of Talking Points Memo.

5:11 p.m. — Huckabee gains on McCain
Huckabee is a one-trick pony. I don’t think anyone didn’t see that coming after his evangelical-bolstered Iowa victory.

Evangelicals, according to CNN exit polls, support him by some margin. Non-evangelicals strongly support McCain. Each group represents about half of the South Carolina electorate, though evangelicals hold a slightly bigger slice of the pie graph.

Huckabee could still pull out a win, as about 14 percent of precincts report so far.

5:04 p.m. — Thompson’s Concession
No change in the ranking of the vote, as former Sen. Fred Thompson talks to supporters. Huckabee gained a few points and McCain lost a few, but still about the same.

Formally, it isn’t a concession speech, but it would be hard to believe Thompson could show stronger than a good third in South Carolina, or that he’d continue to any other primaries.

As I listen to his speech, I can’t help but wonder what it would have been like if Thompson actually had been awake for the past eight months. It’s a lot better than the stumbling old man approach that’s served him so poorly of late.

In other commentary, Huckabee finds himself in the awkward position of being a moderately successful candidate after starting off in a fringe candidacy. He didn’t have a prayer last summer, but the Iowa win didn’t let him stay on the side.

Now he has to defend the FairTax — bad policy any way you look at it — and feels he has to succumb to the same Confederate-flag-based “political cowardice” that cost McCain South Carolina to begin with.

The latest CNN exit polls suggest that Huckabee didn’t even win a plurality of voters who said their candidate’s faith was the most important issue in the ballot box. Huckabee’s political posturing is, from now on, a definite handicap. It’ll only backfire here on out.

Quick with a quip, he’s definite VP fodder. Considering that he has some dangerous ideas, let’s hope he never ascends to the presidency, though.

UPDATE: The polls show a smaller lead for McCain, who has a 4-point lead over Huckabee’s 30 percent, and Thompson and Romney are effectively tied for third at about 15 percent.

4:40 p.m. — First Results from South Carolina in
With almost 1 percent of precincts reporting, McCain has 38 percent of the votes, Huckabee has 23 percent, Romney has 19 percent and Thompson has 11 percent. This 1 percent almost too irrelevant, but we gotta start somewhere. After all, in New Hampshire, Clinton kept a winning margin from the first moments.

Well, unless you count Obama’s early Dixville Notch lead, where there are fewer than 50 registered voters. I don’t.

South Carolina is must-win for Thompson, yet polls have never really been kind to him. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was doing better in the polls before he announced he was a presidential contender.

Good luck, McCain. Against a governor-preacher, a senator-actor and a businessman-governor, the millionth-term senator is the last viable bastion of sanity for the Republican Party. Considering his breakdown last summer, that doesn’t bode well.

If McCain wins South Carolina, I wouldn’t be surprised if 9/11-mayor-9/11 Rudy Giuliani finds some benefit. A fractured Republican Party going into Giuliani’s well-bastioned Florida mostly benefits Giuliani. He could emerge with some last-minute momentum going into Super Tuesday less than a week later.

4:26 p.m. — Spot-On Political Commentary Part One

Courtesy of Red State Update.

4:11 p.m. — Romney’s Victory Speech

Romney’s talking of getting a majority in Nevada in the caucus. Oh, bollocks. I had hoped he wouldn’t notice. Maybe Nevadans are just too used to sleaze to consider anything else for presidential mettle.

In the clip they showed on CNN, he’s joking about how he met his wife. Short story short, he stole her away from her date at a party. Reflecting on this later, he said he asked his wife if she ever saw the campaign coming.

“‘Honey, did you ever see me, in your wildest dreams, running for president of the United States?’

“‘Mitt, you were in my wildest dreams.'”

How sweet. Somehow, I don’t think he’s lying about this one. Maybe that’s just the hopeless romantic in me, I’d bet on it being sincere.

It’s only a matter of time before he refers to his victories up until now as two silvers and three golds. For those of you who don’t speak Mitt-nese, he uses Olympic metaphors to describe his performance in primaries to drive home his biggest and highest profile success at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics.

Here’s to him not even getting bronze in South Carolina, where it really matters. Looks like that’s going to happen.

4:01 p.m. — You read it here first.

CNN reports a tight exit poll result between John McCain and Mike Huckabee. Who called it? Hell yeah, I did.

Of course, as Wolf Blitzer says, this isn’t a great surprise. What is a great surprise is that Mike Huckabee in South Carolina — where voting is now over — may not have had the great support among evangelicals, based on CNN’s exit polls.

The talking heads like bringing up Mike Huckabee’s support of the Confederate flag and his popcorn-fried squirrel brains, and McCain’s indictment of Huckabee’s flag stance.

“These are more complicated” voters, one of them said. They don’t take to broad statements. What voters aren’t complicated? If voters were simple, endorsements would actually work.

3:49 p.m. — Duncan Hunter Drops Out, CNN reports
It’s about time. Here’s his only memorable moment ever, as presented on the CNN/YouTube debate.

Be sure to check out the video responses on YouTube.

3:43 p.m. — Hillary’s Victory Speech
She’s sounding a little hoarse. The faux-chauvinist in me wants to say something, well, chauvinist, but I resist the urge to bring up her ante-New Hampshire misty moment. The short clip CNN showed didn’t really do justice to her speech, either.

At least she’s been getting the crowd really worked up.

3:33 p.m. — Magic Johnson’s Clinton ad
This CNN story says it all.

“We won our first game on a last-second shot,” the former Los Angeles Lakers point guard says in the ad. “I was so hyped. But the captain of my team said, ‘Take it easy rookie, it’s a long season, it’s a long road to the championship.’ He was right.”

(According to NBA.com, that sage veteran mentioned in the ad who offers advice to a young Johnson is none other than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who happens to be publicly supporting Obama.)

“Whether it’s winning championships or a president who can lead us back to greatness, I’ll always want the most prepared and experienced person leading my team,” Johnson also says. “That’s why I’m asking you to join me in voting for Hillary Clinton for President.

The basketball great fails to point out the Lakers won the NBA championship his rookie season and he was named Finals MVP.

Do I sense a bit of pro-Obama bias? I like Obama as much as the next young, hip Democrat, but there are no shortage of digs at the Clinton campaign and no shortage of Obama praise on their blog.

UPDATE: Now, this is what I like to read. The Chicago Sun-Times really hates Obama — your one-stop shop for negative Obama news. I love dissent.

3:25 p.m. — Thompson’s South Carolina Stump
Thompson, his salty Southern charisma hanging out all over, is doing pretty well for himself in the campaign stumping he’s up to as shown on CNN.

He looks more comfortable in this smaller audience than he ever has in any of the debates, or any other speeches. He’s talking about states’ rights, the 10th amendment and the founding fathers. It’s South Carolina. What ya gonna do?

3:17 p.m. — South Carolina Projection
After taking a look at the South Carolina polls, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Obama make a strong showing ahead of Clinton — race trumps gender? — but that’s more a hunch than a realistic update.

For what little it’s worth, I predict that two Republicans will do well in South Carolina — John McCain and Mike Huckabee. Huckabee’s support among the heavily evangelical South Carolina shouldn’t be sapped too much by Fred Thompson. Just because Thompson happened to wake up at the last debate doesn’t mean that Huckabee will suffer for it. It’s too little, too late for the former senator.

South Carolina is must-win for Thompson. If he can’t win here, as he’s supposed to be the great champion of the religious bloc of the Reagan Coalition, he can’t win anywhere.

2:54 p.m. — Rudy’s Florida Campaign, Part Deux
Now, he’s taking potshots at the two-and-a-half viable Democrats. He would.

He had a good quip about wanting to expand the Endangered Species Act to include Republicans, but he didn’t think he could get it past the city council. Sounds like he’s alluding to an ability to reach across the aisle. Too bad for him, for many Republicans think he’s already on that side of the aisle, especially considering his stance on gay marriage and abortion.

How hard is it to reach across to the guy sitting next to you?

2:47 p.m. — Rudy’s Florida Campaign
His lips just keep flapping, on and on. This talk doesn’t look nearly as staged as Romney’s Michigan victory, but it has all the sincerity. He’s in Florida now, but in Nevada’s caucus, Rudy Giuliani came in a disappointing sixth. His 4 percent showing is behind both Huckabee and Thompson, who each came in at 8 percent support.

For all the criticism you could have for Giuliani, at least he’s talking policy and talking nicely about his competitors. Except for McCain. And Romney. Both didn’t support the Bush Tax Cuts, according to him.

Let’s see how it plays in Florida.

2:35 p.m. — Nevada Caucus Results
We kick off the LiveBlogging with a look at the results from the Nevada caucus. CNN shows that Hillary Clinton’s projected 9-point lead seems to have mostly held. Husband and former president Bill Clinton’s outburst doesn’t seem to have affected the New York senator’s showing, as she has 51 percent to Obama’s 45 percent support.

On the Republican side, Romney has a commanding lead with 55 percent support. A surprise second may come for outsider maverick Ron Paul with 13 percent support, the only other Republican who has paid much attention to the state lately, according to The New York Times. McCain comes in a very close third with a slightly lower 13 percent. This is with 76 percent of precincts reporting.

2:01 a.m.
Check back here this afternoon during the election results for running commentary from The Collegian Online’s Benjamin Baxter. He will be nowhere near South Carolina, and the closest he’ll get to Nevada in the next week is some place called Clovis.

CNN didn’t call the results last time, holding out for a last-minute clincher that never came. Let’s see how badly they do this time around.

If you’re starved for entertainment and you have neither Guitar Hero nor friends to play it with, check out this post for some real entertainment.

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Betting on Heather is like thinking Ron Paul has a chance. Like Paul, Heather’s probably a good person and she has a few redeeming qualities and her share of good principles, but nobody takes her seriously. Mostly, though, she simply lacks a winning strategy.