What's wrong with McCain's message
James Forsyth 10:52pm
I must admit that I left McCain’s rally in northern Virginia today more convinced that ever that this American hero will, sadly, lose on Tuesday. The bulk of McCain’s stump speech is dominated by an argument against redistribution. It is a classic right-left fight—and that’s what’s wrong with it. McCain is preaching to the choir but the choir is smaller than it has been in a generation.
If in 2005, when talk began about a second McCain run for the White House, one had been told that McCain would have to win Pennsylvania to win the White House one could have sketched out a plan for how he would do it. It would have involved him running as part of the radical centre, a bold reformer. The strategy would have been to keep down the Democratic margin in the populous Philly suburbs and then sweep the rural parts of the state. The one thing you would have told McCain not to do is run as a generic Republican; after all there are a million more registered Democrats than Republicans in Pennsylvania. But the argument McCain is making about taxes is a generic Republican one.
This is not to say that tax isn’t a political weapon any more, half the Obama signs I saw in Virginia today bore the slogan 'Obama-Biden For Lower Taxes'. But the point is the Democrats haven’t walked into an elephant trap this year but the Republicans are acting as if they have.
To be sure, the financial crisis has done more to dish McCain than anything else. But it seems crazy that McCain is centring the closing message of his general election campaign on a more conservative argument than he used to make during the Republican primaries.
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THX1138
November 2nd, 2008 12:11am Report this commentQuick hit on the poll crack pipe before bed
A note of reality for all of you dreaming of a McCain Victory
On this day, 3 days before the election, in 2004, George Bush led John Kerry 48.8% to 46.2%.
We all know how that turned out.
On this day 3 days before the election, in 2008 Barack Obama leads John McCain 50.1% to 44%
How do you think this is going to turn out?
I'm going to sleep soundly.
David
November 2nd, 2008 1:46pm Report this commentMcCain was excellent on SNL.
Water
November 3rd, 2008 9:48am Report this commentDoes he err in the message or the lack of sugary coating with no substance bar socialism under the guise of democracy? The facts must be acknowledged polls aside, if a true message is conveyed (as by McCain) and ignored it is not a fault of the party putting forward the righteous message (but rather a fault of the receiver[s] and not McCain’s fault). But I talk of fault in terms of purported ‘wrong’ status; I see nothing wrong on his part the fault lies with those who do not see the one truth at hand, that he is very much righteously disposed.
Water
November 3rd, 2008 9:58am Report this commentAs J. Kampfner said the other day in the Skin graph "Those who remember 2000, going to sleep in the middle of the night [one would say that they are still asleep but logical allusions aside] rejoicing Al Gore's 'victory', only to find when they woke a couple of hours later to hear that George W. Bush was being declared winner" let’s hope McCain’s message resounds of we are in for a dim future.
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