I’ve been listening to a lot of pundits this weekend so I am sorry that I can’t remember who said this but somebody stated that the election is now between Obama and himself. Either you are voting for Obama or you are voting against him. And that made a lot of sense to me because Senator McCain has never really stood out. It felt as if he were a shadow to Obama’s incandescent personality. McCain was never able to define himself with a single message which stuck unlike Obama’s continuous message of hope and change. Even worse, McCain let Obama define who he was.
Actually, I believe that McCain’s campaign has been overshadowed by three people. From the start Obama associated McCain with President Bush. At first the comparison was used to paint him as someone who will keep us in the Iraq war and perhaps get us into new wars. (By the way, did anybody see the big coverage on the news stating that October had the lowest level of deaths in Iraq? No, I didn’t see that either….)
When the economy blew up, McCain had the chance to get away from the Bush label. He tried to take control but he fumbled this opportunity so that Obama was once again viewed as the one who was on top of the issue and had the answers. Actual truth doesn’t matter as long as people believed that the economic problems were due to Bush, and that McCain is just more of the same. Obama’s continuous advertisements showing Bush’s face made it nearly impossible for McCain to break out from behind Bush’s shadow.
The second person who defined McCain’s campaign was his choice for VP, Sarah Palin. This governor appeared out of nowhere and initially electrified the Republican Party. She became the face of McCain’s campaign as McCain himself once again drifted out of sight. Some say she is still an asset to McCain by energizing the conservatives in the party and appealing to the women voters. Others will argue that she was detrimental because of her inexperience which was highlighted by her less than stellar interviews with Gibson and Curic. But, love her or hate her she became the face of the Republican ticket and overshadowed McCain who got lost in the background.
The “October surprise” was the best thing to happen to McCain. For the last person who defined McCain’s campaign is none other than Joe the Plumber. His random question nearly brought down Obama. First, everybody likes and relates to Joe the Plumber, an average guy with dreams of making it rich someday. But Obama’s answer to “spread the wealth” is anathema to all conservatives and even some independents. For the first time it showed the true intent of this most liberal candidate.
But what really had people rallying around Joe was the outrageous treatment of the press. Conservatives had already been incensed when the press attacked Palin and her family a month ago but as she was a public figure it went with the territory. Conversely, Joe the Plumber is one of us so when the press attacked him and divulged private information it truly angered the public. For the first time McCain had a face which complemented him instead of eclipsing him.
I believe that McCain was overshadowed by Bush, Palin and Joe the Plumber and only the last was truly advantageous to him. Against him is Barack Obama, the unknown freshman senator, who’s strong and commanding presence combined with a brilliant campaign has totally eclipsed John McCain just as he had earlier defeated Hillary Clinton.
On Tuesday it appears that more people will be voting for Obama than against, except for the 1 in 7 that are still undefined. Personally I think they will actually end up voting against Obama. Their long hesitation is likely due to the fact that it might feel a bit uncomfortable to pull the lever for Obama. Maybe it’s his race or perhaps it is simply that foreign looking name but many of these undecided will turn to McCain. Unfortunately, I don’t think it will matter in the long run. McCain has spent too long in Obama’s shadow and like the groundhog in February, this means that the Republicans are in for a long dark winter.
Actually, I believe that McCain’s campaign has been overshadowed by three people. From the start Obama associated McCain with President Bush. At first the comparison was used to paint him as someone who will keep us in the Iraq war and perhaps get us into new wars. (By the way, did anybody see the big coverage on the news stating that October had the lowest level of deaths in Iraq? No, I didn’t see that either….)
When the economy blew up, McCain had the chance to get away from the Bush label. He tried to take control but he fumbled this opportunity so that Obama was once again viewed as the one who was on top of the issue and had the answers. Actual truth doesn’t matter as long as people believed that the economic problems were due to Bush, and that McCain is just more of the same. Obama’s continuous advertisements showing Bush’s face made it nearly impossible for McCain to break out from behind Bush’s shadow.
The second person who defined McCain’s campaign was his choice for VP, Sarah Palin. This governor appeared out of nowhere and initially electrified the Republican Party. She became the face of McCain’s campaign as McCain himself once again drifted out of sight. Some say she is still an asset to McCain by energizing the conservatives in the party and appealing to the women voters. Others will argue that she was detrimental because of her inexperience which was highlighted by her less than stellar interviews with Gibson and Curic. But, love her or hate her she became the face of the Republican ticket and overshadowed McCain who got lost in the background.
The “October surprise” was the best thing to happen to McCain. For the last person who defined McCain’s campaign is none other than Joe the Plumber. His random question nearly brought down Obama. First, everybody likes and relates to Joe the Plumber, an average guy with dreams of making it rich someday. But Obama’s answer to “spread the wealth” is anathema to all conservatives and even some independents. For the first time it showed the true intent of this most liberal candidate.
But what really had people rallying around Joe was the outrageous treatment of the press. Conservatives had already been incensed when the press attacked Palin and her family a month ago but as she was a public figure it went with the territory. Conversely, Joe the Plumber is one of us so when the press attacked him and divulged private information it truly angered the public. For the first time McCain had a face which complemented him instead of eclipsing him.
I believe that McCain was overshadowed by Bush, Palin and Joe the Plumber and only the last was truly advantageous to him. Against him is Barack Obama, the unknown freshman senator, who’s strong and commanding presence combined with a brilliant campaign has totally eclipsed John McCain just as he had earlier defeated Hillary Clinton.
On Tuesday it appears that more people will be voting for Obama than against, except for the 1 in 7 that are still undefined. Personally I think they will actually end up voting against Obama. Their long hesitation is likely due to the fact that it might feel a bit uncomfortable to pull the lever for Obama. Maybe it’s his race or perhaps it is simply that foreign looking name but many of these undecided will turn to McCain. Unfortunately, I don’t think it will matter in the long run. McCain has spent too long in Obama’s shadow and like the groundhog in February, this means that the Republicans are in for a long dark winter.
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