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Going negative won't work for McCain until he has a positive message to match it

James Forsyth

Monday, 6th October 2008

There is less than a month to go so it is perhaps not surprising that the presidential campaign is turning sharply negative. But there do appear to be two huge problems with McCain’s strategy at the moment. The first problem is how much of an impact will Obama’s ties to the Weather Underground member Bill Ayers have on voters given the dire economic news? There needs to be something more to this connection than what has currently been established—they knew each other in Chicago and sat on some boards together—to make it cut through amidst the current economic news. I suspect that a decent number of swing voters find it worrying that Obama knew an unrepentant domestic terrorist but unless evidence of a similarity of mind can be produced not enough people will find it disqualifying to make it a truly devastating line of attack.

Second, McCain has no message of his own. As former McCain strategist Mike Murphy notes, it is hard to see how McCain actually moves into a lead without one. If these attacks do succeed in raising questions about Obama, McCain needs to be able to pounce with an alternative offer to voters—something he doesn’t have at the moment.

Karl Rove’s electoral map currently has Obama winning the election even if McCain wins every toss-up state. McCain really has to start to turn the election around in tomorrow night’s debate or Obama will just be able to run out the clock.

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THX1138

October 6th, 2008 11:18pm

Howard Wolfson Hilary Clintons campaign manager slams the point home on a TNR blog.

"This is a big election about big issues. McCain's smallball will not work. This race will not be decided by lipsticked pigs. And John McCain can not escape that reality. "

The markets goes into free fall & all the bastards can talk about is something that happened when Obama was eight.

Still Palin refuses to hold a press conference.

Pathetic they deserve to be crushed

Ian C

October 7th, 2008 11:29am

Events, dear boy, events. Until Lehmans was torpedoed by Paulson McCain had a more than prayer. It looks like a case of Obama by default. How he has got to this position is quite staggering. The free ride given him has been the most craven thing witnessed in US politics ever.

The backlash will be so vicious when he disappoints. Or he really could be the great saviour he has presented himself as.

Ganpat Ram

October 7th, 2008 12:02pm

McCain is "not going negative" as the brainless would have it.

When you tell the harsh truth about someone aspiring to rule the country, you are doing a great public service.

It's too late, probably, to save the McCain presidential bid, but I salute the man for having,however belatedly, tried to warn the poor gullible US public what a sleazy and utterly dishonest man Obama is.

Obama has merrily associated with a terrorist, Bill Ayres, who has expressed pride in bombing the Pentagon. McCain is now hammering on this, but he should also point to the preposterously shameful fact that Obama sat in the pews of a church for 20 years where a racist hate-preacher, Jeremiah Wright, spewed hatred of the US - took the man as his "spiritual mentor", for crying out loud.

These horrific facts about Obama should be told to the American people loud and clear. Even if it cannot prevent Obama's victory.

Well done, McCain !!!!