|
June 23, 2008
Tired of gaffes yet?
Jennifer Rubin looks at Barack Obama's recent trifecta of gaffes (the dishonest flipflop on public campaign financing, the recklessly hubristic "Great Seal" nonsense, and finally the blatant playing of the race card), and sees a genuine opportunity for McCain: Will these incidents have a lasting impact on the race? That depends on how effectively McCain's team can make the point that these incidents relate to a larger picture - a candidate falsely wearing the clothes of a game-changing reformer who is merely a bare-knuckle pol, and a not very experienced or knowledgeable one at that.Read it all. Timing is everything, though. McCain can exploit the hell out of these issues right now, but a lift in the polls right now (no matter how dramatic) won't matter in November. Things change quickly, and while Obama is still very green (and his ineptitude is very apparent right now), he has shown that he's a very fast study. The question becomes who will remember in November? And what will they remember? Obama's gaffes? Or "issues" like the "right wing" persecution of his wife? No, seriously. From an Op-Ed from today's Inquirer: The attacks on Michelle Obama are reminiscent of the assaults that a lot of black women face at some point in their lives.The Obama campaign is counting on the principle of backlash against "right wing" attacks. I think it might turn out to be so important that it will be the backbone of the campaign. Whatever gaffes Obama and his wife commit (and there will be many more), these will generate criticism. While some of the criticism will be fully justified and coming from the MSM (as Jennifer Rubin demonstrates), it is inevitable that some of it will be over-the-top, and in any event it will be spun that way. Thus, Obama's gaffes, by opening him to criticism, also are opportunities for his campaign to skillfully play the victim/backlash game. All he needs to do is trot out his well-worn line that "Americans are tired of this kind of politics." As to what will resonate most when tired voters become exhausted, I can't predict that far ahead. MORE: Speaking of tired, I know I'm tired of spending a small fortune on gas just so I can drive to New Jersey, but that's what I'm doing for the rest of the day. posted by Eric on 06.23.08 at 10:24 AM
Comments
It was Bill Clinton who moaned about the "politics of personal destruction" while bringing it to a high art. Did Democrats get it then? No - though some of them got it this year, finally. Progressives have a personal emotional stake in having their sort of person elected, regardless of that person's individual merit. Whether the Obamas are worthy is immaterial. On the left, it is all Hatfields and McCoys, Yorks and Lancasters: clan is everything. Every criticism of their candidates is perceived as a threat to their right to rule. For most progressives, this is not a hard-edged calculation, but a self-deception that they are nice, reasonable people who are being thoughtful. They really do not see that clan is 100% predictive of their behavior. It would be too painful to acknowledge, because so much of their lives (career choices, number of children, religious practice) is tied up with the clan. Assistant Village Idiot · June 23, 2008 03:56 PM Post a comment
You may use basic HTML for formatting.
|
|
June 2008
WORLD-WIDE CALENDAR
Search the Site
E-mail
Classics To Go
Archives
June 2008
May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 May 2002 AB 1634 MBAPBSALLAMERICANGOP See more archives here Old (Blogspot) archives
Recent Entries
horse's ass emissions -- at taxpayers' expense
Blackness Wins Fusion Pioneer Says: Drill Now Tired of gaffes yet? Regular junkies sometimes have more sense than political junkies bad methodology or home cooking? Two more 60s love songs My ongoing inability to explain the difference between zero intolerance and zero tolerance And if you like hedonism? Go Your Own Way
Links
Site Credits
|
|
The most well-worn tool in the Democratic attack machine is whining about the Republican attack machine.
I do have to wonder, though, if people will catch on to the fact that the Obama crew is jumping the gun and complaining about attacks that haven't happened.