An Opening for Obama

I can see the logic in trying to tie McCain with Bush. Bush is after all one of most unpopular presidents in the history of the US.

However, one of McCain’s greatest strengths is his image as a maverick who is (occasionally) a thorn in his party’s side. Phil Singer writes that if he were McCain, he would, “Pick a real-time fight with Bush on an issue that won’t alienate the GOP base — Maybe hit Bush for allowing earmarks to spiral out of control or whack him for his opposition to cracking down on oil speculation or smack him over the fact that spending has skyrocketed during his two terms."

This is why I’ve been concerned from the beginning about Obama’s almost singular emphasis on trying to paint McCain’s election as a third term for Bush. Politics is all about perception and if McCain can revive the maverick narrative, the McCain-Bush narrative would lose at least some of its effectiveness.

Unexpectedly, McCain has given Obama a great gift by putting forth all sorts of distortions and falsehoods. The media is even starting to question McCain’s authenticity. I mean I never thought I’d see the day when a Fox News anchor would question a Republican candidates’ charges on taxes or when a Karl Rove quote was greeted with approval by the Democrats.

McCain has for the sake of short-term gains let his integrity be compromised. Obama’s latest ad, where he questions McCain's honor, is a step in the right direction. He should and he has every right to question McCain’s character and integrity when McCain puts out ads like the one accusing Obama of wanting to teach kids about sex before they learn how to read.

If I were responsible for the Obama message, I would hammer McCain on two fronts – his continuing support for Bush policies and his dishonorable and dishonest messaging.