How Wilson Helped Obama.

It's hard to believe that a lawmaker caught on a live microphone bragging about his extramarital affairs wasn't the biggest gaffe made by a politician yesterday.

First Read: "Well, South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson didn't help the GOP's cause one bit. Indeed, the most effective part of Obama's speech last night might not have been what he said -- but rather what Wilson yelled: 'You lie.' It could be an incredibly important moment for the president and the congressional Dem leadership because it does a couple of things: 1) paint a picture of the Republicans as ornery and hard to work with, and 2) remind conservative Democrats that they may not want to line up with folks like Joe Wilson when casting votes. Let's be honest: Wilson did more to undermine the GOP's efforts to come across as reasonable opposition as anything any conservative cable host has done in the past few months. Remember how conservatives were able to turn Cindy Sheehan into someone very difficult for the anti-war Democrats in Congress to support during the Bush years? Well, Wilson could end up providing that kind of symbolism. In short, he gave voice -- literally -- to the president's attempts to paint some of his opponents as shrill."