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END QUOTED TEXTMcCain can't get back in this race by running against a fictional character. He has to run against Obama, and make a case that he has a better strategy than Obama for getting the economy back on track.
But that would require having a strategy. And he's running out of time to come up with one.
(BUT BY ALL MEANS, read on. Bill Scher is one of the smartest and least excitable folks on the political internet, and he also eats deep-fried hamburgers)
BILL IS CORRECT: the time for defining Obama as a crazy, fist-bumping, BLACK!, Muslim, secret agent for Al Qaeda was back when no one really knew him. Like during the primaries.
(And it failed then, too. Because for the attack to be effective, the audience has to ACTUALLY BELIEVE that Obama is a villainous secret jihadist who REALLY AND TRULY CAN'T WAIT to paint the White House black. Surely there are some who actually do believe this science fiction; but most people are not INSANE. They just like acting that way in blog comments--and sometimes, newspapers).
BUT WHAT'S EVEN MORE startling is that the Ayers conspiracy theories and "Barack HUSSEIN Obama" dog-whistling that was once left to rumor spams and whisper campaigns has now been taken up, OFFICIALLY, by the candidates themselves.
THAT IS TO SAY, McCain/Palin are essentially attacking Obama with BLOG COMMENTS.
That is all.
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15 comments:
Yes, it does seem that McCain and Palin's smear attacks are only convincing a limited group of people....and those people only seem to be getting more and more hateful:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/08/more-hatred-at-rallies-of_n_133115.html
Lynch mobs or political rallies?
Their tactics are certainly turning so ad hominem that they may as well have copied their latest speeches from trolls.
I'm not surprised by the borderline hate speech being uttered by the candidates themselves. After all, they have to play to their base.
Today I heard that Barack Hussein Obama has been caught masturbating out of a window no less than five times.
And it turns out that Barack Hussein Obama also goes by the name BARACK OBAMA.
Apparently he is also a terry-wrist.
Cat out of the bag, Mr. Obama?
These attacks are dumb and all, but they also just make me think how weird must it be to have political views so messed up that even KNOWING you can make someone ineligible to be president.
But is that a strategy or a tactic?
I'm so naive...
Hey, this gives me an idea for McCain's next ad:
Aerial pan of Capitol Hill, voiceover highlights major accomplishments of McCain's long Senate career. Something something open book.
Something something Barack Obama lack of experience, mysterious. Closed book, possibly Koran.
Camera zooms in through window of Capitol to show McCain standing alone on Senate floor. Graphic on screen (boldface sans-serif), followed closely by voiceover:
John McCain: Firsties.
As much as possible, I've avoided playing the race card in this election, but I think with the way the dow has been tanking and the panic that has set in, as well as McCain and Palin's negatives going up, it's time to admit that if Barack Obama was a white man, he wouldn't be 10 points up, he'd be 40 points up. McCain wouldn't have a chance against a white man with Obama's positions and style. McCain only has the most die-hard of Republicans (the 26 percent who still think Bush is doing a heck-of-a-job) and people who are scared of either a.) terrorists lurking around every corner, b.) too much change, or c.) a black president who they think might be a secret muslim. Even those people are turning now, though, with people who would graciously be called bigots begrudgingly choosing Obama because they don't want to lose their jobs/homes/savings.
McCain is stupid. Obama is lucky. The last four weeks gave both candidates the opportunity to completely reinvent their campaigns.
Either one of them could have said, "Everything we've been saying is out the window, now. The economy dwarfs all other issues, we're calling every economist, every banker, every businessman to understand the situation better. All resources are going to be focused on the economy. Sorry, hot button voters."
But neither of them did. McCain decided to start hammering (personal) issues that, six months ago, he said were out of bounds. Obama keeps delivering the same platitudes as the last 19 months. Result: both candidates seem, at least to me, pathetically small and inadequate.
And Chris, you're entitled to your opinion, but I really don't think it's time to be playing the race card. Obama's ideas, vague as they are, are very polarizing. And if we're honest, I think we're all big enough to admit that in our current political climate, even Jesus couldn't win with more than 55 percent of the vote.
Furthermore, Obama has also benefitted from his race. Trivial issue or no, no white politician's career--regardless of his personal views--could survive sitting through even one white power sermon. Obama, regardless of his personal views, gets a free pass for twenty years of Jeremiah Wright. Whether or not you like to admit it, I think we both know why.
uh Master, have you met Sarah Palin?
From the Times Union via Talking Points Meme, Barack "Osama" has showed up on some absentee ballots:
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's last name is spelled "Osama" on hundreds of absentee ballots mailed out this week to voters in Rensselaer County.
The misspelling, which elections officials on both sides of the aisle insist was simply a typo, is causing embarrassment for the county.
Nice.
*Memo, ugh, sorry about MY typo.
I'm sorry, but I must agree with Chris. Any white male would be up 20 points. Al Gore, hell even John Kerry or John Edwards.
I'm sure Bill Clinton is sitting in some dark corner, rocking back and forth and going: "Stupid 22nd Amendment...we hateses it so..."
Oasis,
I have not met Sarah Palin. I also have not figured out quite what you are getting at. Am I missing something?
My post had nothing, so far as I can tell, to do with Palin, except to say that the joint campaign strategy (or is it tactic?) that she and McCain have pursued is a foolish one.
Unrelated, but noteworthy:
Youtube now has an 'audio preview' button for the comment section, and I swear the robotic speaking voice sounds vaguely like you. Or at least a robotic facsimile.
Yes. For the record I am a member of the Comedy Troupe 'Chocolate Cake City,' and as we are all fans of your work, we keep our eyes and ears peeled for robotic tricksters attempting to be you...So...this seemed very newsworthy.
Check out youtube. See if it sounds like you?
-CAP
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