The following is a review I wrote about the first presidential debate between McCain and Obama. I withheld it in order to contrast my opinion on the outcome of that debate to the second one that took place last night. I have changed nothing since wrote it.
As someone who is often called angry, I appreciate it when others are called out on not being angry enough. It occurs to me that many of those that feel as though during last Friday's debate Senator Obama seemed cold, and disconnected to the average persons pain have not realized that there is a difference in Obama's debate style, and the substance of his agenda. While it is sometimes necessary to resort to indignant speech in order to make a point to ones adversaries, it does not altogether win the hearts and minds of those you wish to join your cause. Most that would wish for such a thing are already in your camp. I try to watch these things with a keen eye for moments of opportunity to attack an opponent, I can clearly say there were times I saw opportunity for Obama on Friday night, and as a skillful politician I am quite sure Obama did also.
Anyone that assumes from the debate last Friday that Obama is disconnected from the pain of the average person, needs to merely take a look at his platform to see that this is not the case. Growing our economy (once again) from the bottom up as the United States did in order to free ourselves from our last great depression is the cornerstone of Obama's plan. While he may not have claimed during the debate to "feel the pain" of the average worker, or muttered emotional post traumatic claims of love for them, average people still can get the message he cares.
As pundits claim that there were no angry assertions, and knockout punches thrown from Obama during the debate, they can hardly say the same for his opponent. Scowls, and and nervous cackles were employed by McCain as emotional counterpoint to Obama's use of clearheaded debate on policy. To McCain's detriment he came across as the angry old guy. Likely if these same angry responses came from Obama he would have appeared as an enraged young black man after an old and defenseless American hero. I say this not as excuse, but simply as truth. Nevertheless it is merely a personal talking point, and likely the least of what Obama may have been thinking.
As a politico I enjoy a heated discussion as much as anyone that finds themselves reading my words on this blog. We are politico's. We are, whether we will admit it or not, creatures interested in, and products of, the partisan politics that have permeated the airwaves, and bandwidth of our nation for the last decade. For anyone to have read a political blog, listened to a heated screed on the radio, or rifled through the Sunday paper for the comments section, to say otherwise would be a bold faced lie. The same is true for the members of the press that indulge themselves in judgment of candidates based on ratings share, and affirmation of personal political views as they have been doing all week.
At the end of last weeks debate it was far clearer to me that Obama's debate style is not one that will garner the admiration of politicos like us. It never has been.
During the previous debates there were calls for Obama to give a knockout punch. A perplexed contingent of political junkies posted time, and time again on liberal, as well as conservative blogs, that he must bloody his opponent in order to win the nomination of his party. That in order to prove he has a acceptable style of leadership he must be willing to mire himself in the the day to day filth of political battle.
We were wrong, and he proved it.
Is this affirmation of a return to a less contemptible approach to leadership?
Maybe. To be sure it has awakened many who do not respect our lust for partisan blood letting. At the very least it seemed to throw off the timing of McCain who surely came to a debate looking for a fight.
For now it seems as though our talking point for "more respectable campaigning" seems to have been hijacked by someone who may have the intent to follow through with it.
Obama may have disappointed those like us, that wanted to see a brawl. We tuned in to see a real political fight, and found ourselves listening to one man give clear respectful answers, while the other seemed to sulk and spin.
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Thursday, October 02, 2008
A precipitous withdrawl?
Today it was announced that John McCain is pulling his ads and campaign staff from Michigan and canceling a campaign event planned for next week in Plymouth, essentially giving up hope of winning the state's 17 electoral votes. Until recently many people saw Michigan as an important swing state where McCain had a chance to play offense, given his 2 primary victories in 2000 and 2008, and force the Democratic candidate to defend a "blue" state that John Kerry won in 2004. Both campaigns have blanketed the state's airwaves and made repeated campaign appearances. Obama especially seems to have focused heavily on the state, coming here to receive the important endorsement of John Edwards and then returning to get the endorsement of Al Gore.
According to Five Thirty Eight, the polling average in Michigan is Obama +4.9. New polls have shown Obama with a double digit lead, increasing what had been a fairly consistent lead, except for the bounce McCain received with the announcement of his VP selection and the GOP convention. With the economy coming into play as the major campaign issue, McCain had no chance to win in the state most affected by the failed philosophy of trickle down economics which supports tax cuts for the wealthy and falling wages for workers along with the disastrous effects of globalization which promotes trading high paying American jobs for cheap products made overseas.
Obviously, many Tuesday morning quarterbacks will wonder what nominating Mitt Romney might have done for the campaign campaign. However, I think it's safe to say Romney wouldn't have guaranteed a McCain win in Michigan and certainly wouldn't have garnered the enthusiasm among the right wing base of the Republican Party like the Palin pick was designed to do. However, he may have been able to handle the media and campaign independently of McCain who has been forced to stick close to Palin, thus reducing in half the number of campaign stops the ticket can make in swing states.
According to Five Thirty Eight, the polling average in Michigan is Obama +4.9. New polls have shown Obama with a double digit lead, increasing what had been a fairly consistent lead, except for the bounce McCain received with the announcement of his VP selection and the GOP convention. With the economy coming into play as the major campaign issue, McCain had no chance to win in the state most affected by the failed philosophy of trickle down economics which supports tax cuts for the wealthy and falling wages for workers along with the disastrous effects of globalization which promotes trading high paying American jobs for cheap products made overseas.
Obviously, many Tuesday morning quarterbacks will wonder what nominating Mitt Romney might have done for the campaign campaign. However, I think it's safe to say Romney wouldn't have guaranteed a McCain win in Michigan and certainly wouldn't have garnered the enthusiasm among the right wing base of the Republican Party like the Palin pick was designed to do. However, he may have been able to handle the media and campaign independently of McCain who has been forced to stick close to Palin, thus reducing in half the number of campaign stops the ticket can make in swing states.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Parade politics provokes applause
Watching the annual Hastings Summerfest parade was just a bit more interesting this year for watchers of politics and the pols who use such events to campaign. Considering that Barry County has so few contested races after the August primary election (this year it seems even less than usual), I often forget such events are normally a good place for a politician to reach large crowds of people prior to the November election. Most of the time the politicians who show up seem to do it more out of public relations than a need to truly campaign and pick up extra votes since they're unopposed or might as well be. This year's parade had the expected local politicians handing out candy and campaign literature, including our State Representative, the two major party candidates for county Drain Commissioner, the Democratic candidate running against Vern Ehlers for the U.S. House seat and a surprise...
As usual, the parade kicked off with the American Legion color guard. The crowd of families and on-lookers seated in lawn chairs and on the sidewalks and curbs rose to greet the flag and gave an enthusiastic ovation. Just as the clapping had started to die down another round of marchers in military gear received some applause. Then the parade began in earnest with the Hastings High School marching band, which also received some polite applause- I half wondered if it was partly due to rampant rumors that due to a band director's schedule conflict and budget cuts which eliminated a second director position, that the band would be unable to attend the parade. Many other floats and marchers drifted by, my mind wandering more to mundane things like why there always seem to be such long stretches in between parade entries and how hot the people marching must get, a worry mostly focused on some of the older participants and those like the Society for Creative Anachronism crowd that rode in full medieval dress, including one in a suit of armor. Not to mention the smell of food provided a distraction from the lunch-time event.
Mostly, I watched for a couple friends riding in the parade and a niece that would be part of the procession. Many people in the crowd sat quietly the rest of the time, usually only broken when they shouted at someone they knew on a float or to attract the attention of the people throwing candy and Mardi Gras beads to the crowd of on-lookers. Now, the parade had settled into a routine of local churches, civic groups, charities and businesses along with local politicians. The only bits of applause coming for those entrants which were somehow connected to military or patriotic themes.
I brightened up a little when I saw the brave and foolhardy souls campaigning for a Democratic Presidential candidate in Barry County- one doesn't usually see much campaigning for President in these parts outside an occasional bumper sticker, lawn sign or letter to the editor but there was something like 5-10 people marching in support of Barack Obama. I'd heard a contingent would be there to march for Obama so that wasn't a surprise. What surprised me was how the crowd reacted. Normally, when local politicians campaign at such events they are greeted with a sort of polite indifference, most of the litter left after the parade seems to be the cheap photocopied flyers handed by local politicians. Unless a politician is a well-liked, local good old boy, most people tend to see the stumping politicians the way one always sees flies hovering around the rear ends of animals in the summer.
At least half of the crowd, it seemed to me, began to applaud the Obama campaign folks walking by. I even looked around to make sure it wasn't some trick being played on my ears or to see if there was another parade entrant sparking the applause. The crowd's greeting for the local Obama campaign was warm and enthusiastic and was matched perhaps only by the greeting given the stars and stripes at the beginning of the parade.
Now, I know some will read this and pretend as if I'm arguing for an Obama win in Barry County or in the electoral college based on a smattering of applause, though I think it does mean he has a better shot than the chattering class punditry would have you believe (it is obvious to me that the corporate media types need a close election to keep ratings high as elections have become a huge money-maker for the media in an age where people are turning away from traditional media outlets and network TV ratings continue to slide- there's a reason why, despite battleground state polling indicating Obama ahead the media relies more on national polling to show a "tied" race despite Presidential elections being decided in the Electoral College).
The fact that half the people on the street applauded the appearance of the Obama supporters has to be considered a sign of optimism for those who grumble that Democrats seemingly can't win here. I wonder also if that applause wasn't just a "show of hands" from those planning to vote for the candidate being represented but also a sign of approval for the fact that they are bothering at all. Despite being Republican territory in a state very friendly to McCain's previous national campaign, no one bothered to represent the McCain campaign, which also means I couldn't gauge the audience reaction, to compare and contrast.
What I'm actually trying to say is how impressed I am overall in Obama's shoot-the-moon 50-state strategy which has abandoned the often failed Ohio-Pennsylvania-Florida strategy that gave the White House to the GOP from 2000 to the present. Obama has invested a considerable amount of money and effort in new voter registration and opening field offices in remote locations in state which Democrats have failed to contest for a generation. In other words, as someone who follows campaign strategy like some study historical battle tactics, I'm impressed by Obama's embrace and understanding of reaching out to people who have long been ignored by traditional campaigns. And no wonder the media is thoroughly unimpressed- while traditional Presidential campaigns have basically been an air war fought in the millions of dollars of prime time TV advertising, Obama has turned his campaign into a modern Special Ops style campaign which is choosing its targets wisely instead of just going for Shock and Awe and getting outspent by the better financed and more well organized Republican attack machine.
From text messaging to YouTube videos, the Obama campaign is embracing all the tools of the 21st century to reach voters directly instead of allowing the gate keepers with the big media conglomerates to continue to dominate our political discourse. Part of the Republican domination of the last 20 years was built on their strength in direct mail campaigning, one of Bush advisor Karl Rove's claims to fame. Now we see the next phase and it's fascinating to see it play out on a local level.
The fact the Obama campaign has a field organizer in Barry County, not to mention at least one splinter group taking off their local chunk of geography to concentrate on, and that Obama's campaign has increased enthusiasm among people to bother organizing what has been seen for too long as a hopeless effort in Barry County, means that this campaign has already scored a victory for anyone who is troubled by the one-party domination of the area. It helps too that in some ways, the domination of the GOP in Barry County has been over-hyped. A perfect example being in the 2006 Governor's race when Jennifer Granholm took 13 of 26 precincts in Barry County and lost the county by less than 800 votes to almost-local boy Dick DeVos. While it will still be a tough fight, especially if Senator McCain picks almost-local boy Mitt Romney to join the ticket in the VP slot, the fact that the Obama campaign is shaking up status quo politics and conventional wisdom, bringing the fight to Barry County makes me applaud. They may not win, but at least they're fighting....
As usual, the parade kicked off with the American Legion color guard. The crowd of families and on-lookers seated in lawn chairs and on the sidewalks and curbs rose to greet the flag and gave an enthusiastic ovation. Just as the clapping had started to die down another round of marchers in military gear received some applause. Then the parade began in earnest with the Hastings High School marching band, which also received some polite applause- I half wondered if it was partly due to rampant rumors that due to a band director's schedule conflict and budget cuts which eliminated a second director position, that the band would be unable to attend the parade. Many other floats and marchers drifted by, my mind wandering more to mundane things like why there always seem to be such long stretches in between parade entries and how hot the people marching must get, a worry mostly focused on some of the older participants and those like the Society for Creative Anachronism crowd that rode in full medieval dress, including one in a suit of armor. Not to mention the smell of food provided a distraction from the lunch-time event.
Mostly, I watched for a couple friends riding in the parade and a niece that would be part of the procession. Many people in the crowd sat quietly the rest of the time, usually only broken when they shouted at someone they knew on a float or to attract the attention of the people throwing candy and Mardi Gras beads to the crowd of on-lookers. Now, the parade had settled into a routine of local churches, civic groups, charities and businesses along with local politicians. The only bits of applause coming for those entrants which were somehow connected to military or patriotic themes.
I brightened up a little when I saw the brave and foolhardy souls campaigning for a Democratic Presidential candidate in Barry County- one doesn't usually see much campaigning for President in these parts outside an occasional bumper sticker, lawn sign or letter to the editor but there was something like 5-10 people marching in support of Barack Obama. I'd heard a contingent would be there to march for Obama so that wasn't a surprise. What surprised me was how the crowd reacted. Normally, when local politicians campaign at such events they are greeted with a sort of polite indifference, most of the litter left after the parade seems to be the cheap photocopied flyers handed by local politicians. Unless a politician is a well-liked, local good old boy, most people tend to see the stumping politicians the way one always sees flies hovering around the rear ends of animals in the summer.
At least half of the crowd, it seemed to me, began to applaud the Obama campaign folks walking by. I even looked around to make sure it wasn't some trick being played on my ears or to see if there was another parade entrant sparking the applause. The crowd's greeting for the local Obama campaign was warm and enthusiastic and was matched perhaps only by the greeting given the stars and stripes at the beginning of the parade.
Now, I know some will read this and pretend as if I'm arguing for an Obama win in Barry County or in the electoral college based on a smattering of applause, though I think it does mean he has a better shot than the chattering class punditry would have you believe (it is obvious to me that the corporate media types need a close election to keep ratings high as elections have become a huge money-maker for the media in an age where people are turning away from traditional media outlets and network TV ratings continue to slide- there's a reason why, despite battleground state polling indicating Obama ahead the media relies more on national polling to show a "tied" race despite Presidential elections being decided in the Electoral College).
The fact that half the people on the street applauded the appearance of the Obama supporters has to be considered a sign of optimism for those who grumble that Democrats seemingly can't win here. I wonder also if that applause wasn't just a "show of hands" from those planning to vote for the candidate being represented but also a sign of approval for the fact that they are bothering at all. Despite being Republican territory in a state very friendly to McCain's previous national campaign, no one bothered to represent the McCain campaign, which also means I couldn't gauge the audience reaction, to compare and contrast.
What I'm actually trying to say is how impressed I am overall in Obama's shoot-the-moon 50-state strategy which has abandoned the often failed Ohio-Pennsylvania-Florida strategy that gave the White House to the GOP from 2000 to the present. Obama has invested a considerable amount of money and effort in new voter registration and opening field offices in remote locations in state which Democrats have failed to contest for a generation. In other words, as someone who follows campaign strategy like some study historical battle tactics, I'm impressed by Obama's embrace and understanding of reaching out to people who have long been ignored by traditional campaigns. And no wonder the media is thoroughly unimpressed- while traditional Presidential campaigns have basically been an air war fought in the millions of dollars of prime time TV advertising, Obama has turned his campaign into a modern Special Ops style campaign which is choosing its targets wisely instead of just going for Shock and Awe and getting outspent by the better financed and more well organized Republican attack machine.
From text messaging to YouTube videos, the Obama campaign is embracing all the tools of the 21st century to reach voters directly instead of allowing the gate keepers with the big media conglomerates to continue to dominate our political discourse. Part of the Republican domination of the last 20 years was built on their strength in direct mail campaigning, one of Bush advisor Karl Rove's claims to fame. Now we see the next phase and it's fascinating to see it play out on a local level.
The fact the Obama campaign has a field organizer in Barry County, not to mention at least one splinter group taking off their local chunk of geography to concentrate on, and that Obama's campaign has increased enthusiasm among people to bother organizing what has been seen for too long as a hopeless effort in Barry County, means that this campaign has already scored a victory for anyone who is troubled by the one-party domination of the area. It helps too that in some ways, the domination of the GOP in Barry County has been over-hyped. A perfect example being in the 2006 Governor's race when Jennifer Granholm took 13 of 26 precincts in Barry County and lost the county by less than 800 votes to almost-local boy Dick DeVos. While it will still be a tough fight, especially if Senator McCain picks almost-local boy Mitt Romney to join the ticket in the VP slot, the fact that the Obama campaign is shaking up status quo politics and conventional wisdom, bringing the fight to Barry County makes me applaud. They may not win, but at least they're fighting....
Monday, April 14, 2008
Not as unpopular as they would have you believe
According to the newest Epic MRA poll of Michigan voters, Barack Obama leads John McCain. The more interesting bit of news is how much better he matches up against McCain than Hillary Clinton would.
Obama, the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, leads McCain 43 percent to 41 percent, according to the survey by Lansing polling firm EPIC-MRA. Obama's lead is well within the poll's error margin of 4 percentage points, however. McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, holds a 46-37 edge over Clinton.
Obama's numbers look even better when you realize he has yet to fully campaign in the state while McCain has done so twice. It's reasonable to assume his numbers could come up by campaigning here just as they have in virtually every state during the primary season.
So much for the notion that Michigan voters would hold it against him that he followed the rules in the state's primary. The Clinton campaign has waged a bitter fight for the state's delegates which many felt could potentially alienate Obama from voters, thus denying him a fairly reliable large midwestern state. Clinton has tried to use her "win" here in an effort to sway remaining primary voters and Democratic Party superdelegates by creating a mythical narrative that only she can win the big swing states many see as key to an electoral victory in November. Not only was the argument wrong because it ignores many other small states that could tip the scales which Obama has ran well in, but now it's clear that it is also incorrect to assume her "win" meant anything more than it's easy to win a beauty contest when you're the only one vying for the crown.
In other polling data, even though it's being spun as bad news, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm is not nearly as unpopular as the state's media wants to think she is. 45% hold a favorable view of the term-limited Governor, while just over 50% viewed her unfavorably (the President's unfavorable ratings are 10 points higher).
I'd say that all in all this isn't bad news for Granholm who has taken the brunt of round after round of budget battles with belligerent opponents who can't accept defeat at the ballot box as a sign that the public is not with them in their quest to restrict investments in state infrastructure and education, as well as getting the blame for the economic downturn which was caused by the failure of the Big 3 to nurse itself away from production lines raking in vast profits making gas-guzzling SUVs before the price of oil rose and dried up their profits, leading to massive job layoffs in a state already hit with the effects of trade deals without sufficient worker and environmental protections to level the playing field.
If the state's Republicans want to talk about the "unpopular" Governor then we should help them remember how few Americans still trust or support the President's failed policies and inept leadership and remind your fellow citizens that the Republican Party thinks that what we really need is more of the same.
Obama, the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, leads McCain 43 percent to 41 percent, according to the survey by Lansing polling firm EPIC-MRA. Obama's lead is well within the poll's error margin of 4 percentage points, however. McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, holds a 46-37 edge over Clinton.
Obama's numbers look even better when you realize he has yet to fully campaign in the state while McCain has done so twice. It's reasonable to assume his numbers could come up by campaigning here just as they have in virtually every state during the primary season.
So much for the notion that Michigan voters would hold it against him that he followed the rules in the state's primary. The Clinton campaign has waged a bitter fight for the state's delegates which many felt could potentially alienate Obama from voters, thus denying him a fairly reliable large midwestern state. Clinton has tried to use her "win" here in an effort to sway remaining primary voters and Democratic Party superdelegates by creating a mythical narrative that only she can win the big swing states many see as key to an electoral victory in November. Not only was the argument wrong because it ignores many other small states that could tip the scales which Obama has ran well in, but now it's clear that it is also incorrect to assume her "win" meant anything more than it's easy to win a beauty contest when you're the only one vying for the crown.
In other polling data, even though it's being spun as bad news, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm is not nearly as unpopular as the state's media wants to think she is. 45% hold a favorable view of the term-limited Governor, while just over 50% viewed her unfavorably (the President's unfavorable ratings are 10 points higher).
I'd say that all in all this isn't bad news for Granholm who has taken the brunt of round after round of budget battles with belligerent opponents who can't accept defeat at the ballot box as a sign that the public is not with them in their quest to restrict investments in state infrastructure and education, as well as getting the blame for the economic downturn which was caused by the failure of the Big 3 to nurse itself away from production lines raking in vast profits making gas-guzzling SUVs before the price of oil rose and dried up their profits, leading to massive job layoffs in a state already hit with the effects of trade deals without sufficient worker and environmental protections to level the playing field.
If the state's Republicans want to talk about the "unpopular" Governor then we should help them remember how few Americans still trust or support the President's failed policies and inept leadership and remind your fellow citizens that the Republican Party thinks that what we really need is more of the same.
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