Peg Will Not Be Ignored

Time magazine reporter Michael Duffy is now churning out press releases for Delphinia Nooners:

Part poet, part pol, Peggy Noonan was the Republican Party's go-to speechwriter for nearly a decade. Ronald Reagan turned to her to mark the 40th anniversary of D-day -- "These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc" -- and it was Noonan who helped the first George Bush find his voice in 1988. Her notion of a "kinder, gentler America" was picked up by Bush to soften the G.O.P.'s image after eight years of Reagan conservatism.

Quick... where's my insulin?

Noonan then quit politics and went on to fame as a pundit and author.

Quick ... where's reality?

Now Noonan is jumping back in the game as the party prepares its prime-time convention line-up in New York City and another Bush White House is looking for ways to modulate its message.

But who will modulate Peg's meds?

Noonan won't be penning this Bush's speech, G.O.P. sources tell TIME....

Hey, Duffy. I'm not penning this Bush's speech either. No one ever thought she would.

... instead, she will lend her hand to the addresses of New York Governor George Pataki and Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum. Though from different wings of the party -- Santorum is a faith-based conservative and Pataki a moderate -- both are believed to harbor national ambitions and could use Noonan's help in making the most of their moment in the spotlight.

I'm sure they're both thrilled to hear Peg tell Duffy that they need her help.

A master at turning ideology -- or the lack of it -- into something inspiring, Noonan has plenty to do.

There's no "r" in insipid, Mike.

Republicans watched the Democrats mount an almost pitch-perfect middle-of-the-road convention in Boston and are wondering how they can match it. Although Noonan was not recruited by the White House ("She broke down the door," says a Bush supporter), top Bush aides telephoned her last week to welcome her aboard.

Welcome aboard, you meddling lunatic! Could you make yourself the story, instead of Bush? Much appreciated!