While Archimedes-in-a-pantsuit tries to rewrite the laws of mathematics, the rest of the nation has properly begun to weigh the Presidential contest between Sens. McCain and Obama.
Obama has, however, learned a valuable Clinton trick from this protracted primary--how to obliquely reference the "vast, right-wing conspiracy" to misdirect people's attention away from glaring, personal deficiencies.
During his victory speech in North Carolina on Tuesday night Obama said, "We know what's coming...the same names and labels they (Republicans) pin on everyone who doesn't agree with all of their ideas."
Actually, we have some new names and labels thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Obama's own words and ideas, as well as the Senator's cozy relationships with corrupt influence peddlers, domestic terrorists, and a hateful, bile-spewing spiritual advisor.
That right-wing conspiracy shtick--being "Swift-boated"--is going to work out about as well for Obama as it did for Clinton and for the same reason-because it is without merit.
"Swift-boated" has been added to our political lexicon by the Left to lament the alleged unfair attacks to which John Kerry was subjected in the 2004 Presidential race.
And yet, it was John Kerry who made his military service an issue. He sought to use his service to distinguish himself from President Bush and to characterize both Bush and Cheney as reckless chicken-hawks.
It was John Kerry who saluted the nation nearly four years ago and said, "I'm John Kerry and I'm reporting for duty." It was John Kerry who brought several of those with whom he had served in Vietnam on stage at the Democrat National Convention to show them off to the country.
On the contrary, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth were effective with their anti-Kerry message because it was a substantive one. The facts were on their side. The fact was that Kerry's entire chain of command, every officer under whom Kerry served in Vietnam, questioned his fitness to be Commander-in-Chief. Many Kerry detractors were Democrats but they were also proud and decorated veterans who believed that Kerry had acted dishonorably and that his campaign was being run disingenuously. Theirs was a legitimate perspective for the country to hear.
Similarly, it is Barack Obama who has presented as his core argument that he possesses the superior judgment to be President. That demands a thorough examination of both his personal history and professional record.
The process demands and will extract the same from John McCain.
So as we begin the compare and contrast on the matter of the two men's judgment, at the behest of Obama, consider these two snapshots at a watershed moment in each one's life:
At the same respective points in their lives as grown men in their early 30s, Obama decided to sidle up to Chicago political machine bosses and their financiers and the chichi Hyde Park set of pseudo-intellectual socialists to advance his political career. That earned Obama an appointment to a State Senate seat in 1996.
At a similar age, John McCain made an important decision as well. He decided to forgo his early release from a North Vietnamese POW camp, an offer extended to him because of his father's position in the military. McCain would not walk unless the other POWs who had been captured before him were also released. That earned McCain an additional five years of torture in a Viet Cong prison camp and, for all he knew at the time, was a decision that would cost him his life.
What would you have done if presented with the same offer with which McCain was presented?
What do you think Barack Obama would have done as you have watched him over the last couple of months provide ever-evolving answers and, ultimately, denunciation of his 20-year pastor (only because Rev. Wright wasn't properly concerned about Obama's campaign)?
These snapshots of course do not tell the whole story of either man, but they do tell an important part of the story for each, about the values that have informed their lives.
Call it "Swift-boating" if you want but Obama's ethereal campaign will be done in by his own bad judgments measured against the very standard he has set to define the race for President.
Obama has, however, learned a valuable Clinton trick from this protracted primary--how to obliquely reference the "vast, right-wing conspiracy" to misdirect people's attention away from glaring, personal deficiencies.
During his victory speech in North Carolina on Tuesday night Obama said, "We know what's coming...the same names and labels they (Republicans) pin on everyone who doesn't agree with all of their ideas."
Actually, we have some new names and labels thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Obama's own words and ideas, as well as the Senator's cozy relationships with corrupt influence peddlers, domestic terrorists, and a hateful, bile-spewing spiritual advisor.
That right-wing conspiracy shtick--being "Swift-boated"--is going to work out about as well for Obama as it did for Clinton and for the same reason-because it is without merit.
"Swift-boated" has been added to our political lexicon by the Left to lament the alleged unfair attacks to which John Kerry was subjected in the 2004 Presidential race.
And yet, it was John Kerry who made his military service an issue. He sought to use his service to distinguish himself from President Bush and to characterize both Bush and Cheney as reckless chicken-hawks.
It was John Kerry who saluted the nation nearly four years ago and said, "I'm John Kerry and I'm reporting for duty." It was John Kerry who brought several of those with whom he had served in Vietnam on stage at the Democrat National Convention to show them off to the country.
On the contrary, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth were effective with their anti-Kerry message because it was a substantive one. The facts were on their side. The fact was that Kerry's entire chain of command, every officer under whom Kerry served in Vietnam, questioned his fitness to be Commander-in-Chief. Many Kerry detractors were Democrats but they were also proud and decorated veterans who believed that Kerry had acted dishonorably and that his campaign was being run disingenuously. Theirs was a legitimate perspective for the country to hear.
Similarly, it is Barack Obama who has presented as his core argument that he possesses the superior judgment to be President. That demands a thorough examination of both his personal history and professional record.
The process demands and will extract the same from John McCain.
So as we begin the compare and contrast on the matter of the two men's judgment, at the behest of Obama, consider these two snapshots at a watershed moment in each one's life:
At the same respective points in their lives as grown men in their early 30s, Obama decided to sidle up to Chicago political machine bosses and their financiers and the chichi Hyde Park set of pseudo-intellectual socialists to advance his political career. That earned Obama an appointment to a State Senate seat in 1996.
At a similar age, John McCain made an important decision as well. He decided to forgo his early release from a North Vietnamese POW camp, an offer extended to him because of his father's position in the military. McCain would not walk unless the other POWs who had been captured before him were also released. That earned McCain an additional five years of torture in a Viet Cong prison camp and, for all he knew at the time, was a decision that would cost him his life.
What would you have done if presented with the same offer with which McCain was presented?
What do you think Barack Obama would have done as you have watched him over the last couple of months provide ever-evolving answers and, ultimately, denunciation of his 20-year pastor (only because Rev. Wright wasn't properly concerned about Obama's campaign)?
These snapshots of course do not tell the whole story of either man, but they do tell an important part of the story for each, about the values that have informed their lives.
Call it "Swift-boating" if you want but Obama's ethereal campaign will be done in by his own bad judgments measured against the very standard he has set to define the race for President.
Labels: Barack Obama, Dan Proft, Swift-boated
You are on your way to becoming a slimy, misconstruing pundit.
Inane as ever Mr. Proft. When will you actually make a provocative argument and stop sounding like an aspiring Fox pundit?
Every time I start reading this blog regularly again, one of these pops up and I begin to lose my appetite.
Keating Five, John Hagee, "Make it 100", Gas Tax Cut. I could go on, but as a favor to yourself and your candidate, never bring up poor judgment in this campaign.
The question is not "will he get swift-boated?" because of course he will. Instead, the question is "will it work?"
I don't think it will.
The thing is, for all of Obama's imperfections, at least he's a decisive break from President Bush.
In tying himself to Bush to get the nomination, McCain made a fatal mistake that will ruin his chance to be president. Come November, probably 40%+ Americans will view Obama unfavorably--not good, but not terrible. On the other hand, around 80% of American s will view Bush unfavorably, a view that will pull McCain down along with him.
First off, I want to clear up a couple of things. John Kerry saluted and presented his comrades in arms at the Democratic National Convention, long after his service was made into an issue. In addition, only one of the men in the ad served under Kerry (for about six weeks), and the military chain of command stood by its decision to award Kerry his purple hearts. The truth, in short, was in no way on their side. But hey, I'd think it was a little unfair too if the opposition ran a decorated war hero and my party ran a service-ducking deserter who openly backed the war he refused to serve in, even if by "serve" we're just talking about patrolling the air space over the Gulf of Mexico looking for the Viet Cong.
As for the current contest, I give McCain full credit for his military service. He served honorably and should be held as an example to other young men and women. Only an automaton would fail to be moved by a man making a tough decision like that, to act on principle in spite of the cost.
Sadly, his record since then is very different. He's cultivated a reputation as a maverick despite voting on party lines 85% of the time and only going against the party when there is no chance the vote will be lost.
And he has his own team of hate-spewing preachers. There is John Hagee, who called the Catholic Church "the Great Whore." He also said New Orleans was hit by Katrina for offending God with a planned gay pride parade. Really? Thousands dead for a parade? A parade put on by people and in a part of the state that was virtually untouched by the hurricane? Is God's aim just off? To his credit, McCain rejected the statements of Hagee, "that were offensive to Catholics." Oddly enough, he never rejected the anti-gay, New Orleans had it coming remarks, unless you count the time he was pressed by Stephanopoulos and said, "I condemn remarks that are, in any way, viewed as anti-anything. And thanks for asking." Then there's the whole Jews will burn in Hell for what they did to Jesus thing. But no one's talking about that, apparently thinking that McCain has the Jewish vote in a lock with McCain pointing out that Obama is the candidate of Hamas. Incidentally, if that qualified Obama as the candidate of Hamas, then McCain is the candidate of Al-Qaeda, who are totally down for the whole bomb Iran thing.
Then there's Rod Parsley, who, to the best of my knowledge, McCain has never even been asked about. If anyone knows of an instance, please post a link as I'd like to see it. Parsley is convinced that the US was founded to destroy Islam, that Muhammad received revelations from a demon and not God, and that he looks forward to nuclear war with Iran because that will bring Jesus back.
So yes, I suppose if we view each man's life as a mere snapshot, as a single moment that is the only real representation of each man's character, and if we take the best moment in John McCain's life, and compare it to a moment in Obama's life that we can make look dirty and selfish rather than a commitment to a lifetime of public service, then sure, McCain can look like the better man.
Here I notice that I have to correct Mr. Proft again. After years of being a community organizer, Obama was elected to the state legislature, not appointed. I'm not sure what the people of Hyde Park did to Mr. Proft that he dislikes them so much. I can only assume he does not care for the Museum of Science and Industry, or perhaps Frank Lloyd Wright's Robey House. How dare Barack Obama be elected in an area with buildings of a cultural and educational significance? HOW DARE HE!
Sadly, no man's life is a single moment, though it is the trend of the modern political campaign to make men into sound bytes and caricatures when in reality we are all far more complicated. Even McCain, a veteran who opposes Webb's new GI Bill and a torture victim who refuses to ban torture. These contradictions speak to a complexity that we will likely never understand because, quite frankly, it doesn't give CNN et al that ratings stiffy they love so well. And so we now take you back to your regularly scheduled programming.
I guess the politics of fear will always work to some extent, because people are fearful. But here's and interesting take from Gary Kamiya at Salon that I don't think I've seen before:
"Fear works for Obama, too — because Americans are more afraid of going back to the days of Bush than they are of taking a chance on something new."