The campaign has reached the non-reality based stage:
John Feehery, a Republican strategist, said the campaign is entering a stage in which skirmishes over the facts are less important than the dominant themes that are forming voters’ opinions of the candidates.
“The more the New York Times and The Washington Post go after Sarah Palin, the better off she is, because there’s a bigger truth out there and the bigger truths are she’s new, she’s popular in Alaska and she is an insurgent,” Feehery said. “As long as those are out there, these little facts don’t really matter.”
‘The bigger truth’ is the narrative that the Republicans want to tell, and the facts are unimportant to their task. They don’t care…they explicitly don’t care, that the major newspapers and cable news programs are calling them liars. They even are so bold as to argue that getting called liars by the media helps them.
Now, a lot of people have been warning the Obama campaign not to get bogged down in an argument over Sarah Palin. They think it is a distraction and that it allows the Republicans to make the election about personalities rather then issues. That’s the wrong advice. The candidate does not need to talk about Sarah Palin, but his campaign does…relentlessly. Palin is McCain’s second greatest weakness, after the fact that he is a Republican. Public opinions about Palin are forming right now. If they see her as a scrappy Everymom with a maverick streak, she’ll emerge as an enormous asset to McCain. But if she is seen as a pathological liar who is afraid to face the people alone or the press at all, she’ll emerge as an anvil on McCain that can sink him in even supposedly safe Republican states.
The Obama campaign in on their heels right now because they are not sure how to deal with an unqualified female candidate that is spewing lies like she’s an assembly line. Here’s the answer: attack.
I just watched part of a McCain-Palin rally on CNN. They are still joined at the hip. Palin is still spewing bullshit. It’s weak, but at the same time they are very, very aggressive. That aggression needs to be met head-on. Paging Joe Biden.
On a different note, the McCain-Palin rallies have a distinctly Nationalist Front feel to them. They have the ‘COUNTRY FIRST’ signs in the backdrop and the crowds chant ‘USA, USA, USA’ at inappropriate times. The whole scene has the whiff of gas chambers about it. At the very least, it seems a more appropriate setting for a gathering of skinheads than fat, old, white people.
It’s time to take the gloves off. The McCain campaign has explicitly moved on to a new phase in the campaign where the facts don’t matter. In such an environment it would be irresponsible not to speculate about all kinds of things that sully the reputation of McCain and Palin. I know that my usual standards will drop for the remainder of this campaign. I am not coming to a gunfight armed with just a knife. If they want to appeal to White Nationalist sympathies and send out their Georgian thugs to scream overtly racist shit into the airwaves, then it’s time to grab our baseball bats and meet them in the center of the street.
We’re in the home stretch, and some kneecaps are going to get shattered.
Does the campaign have this in them? They have allowed McCain, with the help of his “base”(the media) to make this election about substance free minutiae.
We are in the 13th round of a 15 round fight. They fought through the early rounds, rope-a-doped through the middle and now find themselves being pummeled on the ropes at the tail end of the fight. And we all know that in a fight a strong finish has a more lasting impression than blows landed early on.
If the Obama campaign rolls through to November throwing counterpunches and playing largely defense like they have of late, they will most surely lose.
Game on. What weapons will they bring to the fight?
In fairness, the Democratic primary was a similarly substance-free election based on the candidates’ character and personality. Plus, the Republicans have been running this type of campaign for a while now.
So there’s no excuse for the Democrats not to be prepared for this.
This is not the year for a well-mannered and reasoned “change” argument. Righteous anger is the emotion the Democrats need to evoke. And now. They need to show the country what a disaster Republicans are.
But I don’t think they have it in them.
I’ve never really had a problem with “change” as an overall thematic thrust for the campaign, but I am just baffled that at this late point the campaign finds itself rocked back on its heels by the predictable type of GOP campaign that the McCain camp has chosen to run.
Certainly, the Palin choice was a winner as far as setting a narrative that puts the Obama campaign on the defensive. But hell, how could anyone not be prepared for a home-stretch of blistering, fact free, no-holds-barred personal attacks from the Republicans? They need a hell of a lot more than an angry Joe Biden. They’re fighting a machine that has been finely tuned to run at peak performance in the final 60 days of a campaign. The power of that, in addition a helpful assist from the corporate media, requires an overwhelming, almost nuclear response.
But Democrats are well practiced at “keeping their powder dry” for later use. Let’s hope that isn’t the case here.
Agreed on “change” being an appropriate theme. I just wanted a more forceful (dare I say angrier) tone than the change “we can believe in” and overall hopiness tone.
Yep. I know what you mean. If the campaign finds themselves a little short on anger I’d be more than happy to give them some of mine to use. I’ve had a hell of an abundant supply for at least the last 8 years.
Good Advice.
When the Republican squealing gets to such a high decibel the Democrats must be on to something. And when I see the David Broders, David Brooks and Clive Crooks of the world “advising” the Democrats to appeal to this fictional, non-reality based “Middle-America” on the same terms that the Republicans do, I know the opposite should be done.
They need to keep pounding McCain’s strength, which bizarely enough, is this fictional characterization of the Republican ticket as representing “middle-Americans” and strong on defense while the Democrats represent “elites” and are weak on defense. The best way to do this is to keep attacking McCain’s symbol of all this–Ms. Palin. And of course to simply keep pounding the truth into the public’s head.
Booman, I am ready to kneecap these liars. It is time to air out ALL of John McCain’s and Sarah Palin’s dirty laundry. Every single American voter should know what John McCain did to his first wife and how he really treats women.
Not Biden. Someone lower and less important. Always attack from the lower ranks. Obama should not lower himself. Biden’s job is attacking McCain.
Clinton, if she values her future, should do it. Or Barbara Boxer, or Amy Klobushar, or Jan Schandowski, or someone else like that. Kathleen Sibelius too, but she probably can’t offend her base in KS.
It would be even better to get a non-politician, someone who is a real PTA mom. Palin deserves no respect, so attack her with a pawn, not a bishop.
Democrats need to stop worrying about the criticism and just get down to fighting. Of course the Republicans will scream and whine and complain. And the media will listen to them. But the Democrats have to stand their ground and keep on fighting even though it seems to be going against them.
Look what happened to Wes Clark for saying the truth about McCain’s credentials to be Commander in Chief. Moderate Dems didn’t even want someone as low as him to criticize McCain. And his criticism of McCain scored a direct blow (if only the Democrats would get that out there).
So yes, get attack dogs out there but let them do their work. Don’t undercut them! Including Biden.
Obama and the Dems have to stop doing the Republicans’ bidding and taking out their own allies. I don’t care if someone said something inappropriate. The response is to support that liberal. Maybe Obama can say he would have worded something differently but he needs to support that attack dog and to support the underlying message. He has to stand up for the MoveOns the Wes Clarks and all of his attack dogs–not retreat in the face of the GOP and media counter attack. And Biden should be the lead attack dog.
I’m sorry but you’re acting like a battered spouse. You’re too worried about the reaction to standing up for yourself.
Acting like a battered spouse? For suggesting that we use low-level players to attack Palin?
No, not so. that’s standard approach to fighting. You never attack a player with a player of equal rank. You bring them down to your level by attacking from below. If Obama attacked Palin, that elevates her status. We need a minor player, because that in and of itself is an attack – she is so unimportant that i can use Jan Schandowski as my hit person.
But attack for sure, and attack all the time.
And I certainly agree that we need to be team players. Democrats are often way too concerned about fairness.
My motto: Just win baby.
Sometimes taking a lessor player with your Queen (Biden) is the best, most efficient, and effective approach.
Plus, Biden is her equal. They are both Queens. She is going to be attacking him and Obama and you would rather send in a pawn to fight a Queen rather than have it be between Queenies.
You want to handicap Biden when Biden will be engaging directly with Palin. That’s not winning baby. That’s more of the same–sending Joey the Shark in to fight the Baraccuda while he’s got one fin behind his back (thought I would mangle my metaphors for you).
Anyway, my point is Democrats have to stop worrying about all this. Let’s strategize and pick our fights–sure. But I’m sick of all this advice to keep pulling punches. We’ve tried that and it’s been an a abysmal failure. They need to attack. I don’t care who it is. But they need to do it and they need to stand their ground when the inevitable counter attack comes.
But the way I see it:
Obama sets the table
Biden attacks McCain
Someone else attacks Palin
In your formulation, Biden attacks Palin. I say that this takes him off his primary target, who is McCain. Plus Obama can then do some attacking – a little, not a huge amount, since that diminishes the king.
I also want more players on the table. Where are our surrogates? We have a deep bench.
Where is Wes Clark? I think that Obama made a huge mistake by not pulling him into the convention. Wes Clark would be very effective out there, and some more of that “POW does not qualify for president” stuff would be very welcome.
Obama cut him off at the knees for making a very reasonable statement about McCain’s qualifications that Clark had abundant qualifications to say. This was a major error by Obama. Clark was in a unique position for a Democrat to attack McCain on national security.
I can see the motivation for Biden to go after Palin (and, in my opinion, it should be on his list of campaign duties). However, I can also appreciate the idea of keeping both on McCain. In fact if Biden is going to rip anyone it should his good colleague from the State of Arizona. That’s where the gloves come off. If McCain is complaining about sexism, send out Biden to wonder aloud what McCain meant when he called his wife a cunt? Or the Clinton jokes. Or the gorilla/rape joke.
If they are going to make “experience” a serious issue, then the whole linear expression of McCain’s (and Biden’s) experience is fair game. Keating 5!?!?!? WTF?
BTW, notice how the word “insurgent” was used.
Dunno how the word insurgent was used in this context, and don’t have time right now to find out. However, the word insurgent has certainly been misused when it was applied to Iraq. The people who rose up against Saddam in 1991 (and were subsequently crushed with active assistance from the United States military) were insurgents. There are no insurgents in Iraq since 2003.
With all due respect, it is the actions and ideas of at least some of those fat old white people that has given rise to the skinheads. And frankly, in the last few days, I have seen amongst my “peers” (which include some fat old white people) racism more clearly than ever before. And this is amongst good, suburban folks. < cough, cough > It isn’t surprising that the rallies have this appearance.
And I hate those racists bastards with every fiber of my being.
Sorry to disagree.
They need to attack but they need to attack McCain, not Palin.
He’s at the top of the ticket.
Boo I think your advice the day Palin was picked is still valid. Ignore her. She will reveal herself all by herself.
Put the attention on McCain. He’s the boob on the ticket, and she becomes just the eye candy on his arm (to match the blond trollop on the other arm).
I don’t mean that literally, but in the eyes of the voters McCain has to be made un-presidential. Instead he is wrapping himself in the flag and an portraying his administration a the good ‘ol American independent contrarian American we all love.
a lot of people agree with you, but I don’t. Palin is the make or break for McCain. If she succeeds in her effort to portray herself as tough, mavericky, and All-American-apple pie-mom, then we lose this election.
Palin is the key to McCain. She is the strength of the ticket right now, so if she can be damaged then the whole rotten corpse collapses. Say what you like about Rove, but this aspect of his thinking is totally correct. You find the strength, and attack there by finding the hole in the strength. And Palin is a TARGET RICH ENVIRONMENT. We just need the right approach to take her out.
I just hope no one underestimates her. She has done very well, and that in and of itself is another component to her story. People admire her for her spunk and sass and all that crap.
We need to seriously damage her, but with satire and snarky little things.
Like maybe someone should record a funny song about her. or get someone telling very funny jokes.
What did the Daily Show do for most of GW’s first term? Make every attack on McCain. Attribute any idea she might accidentally utter to him. For example, “John McCain and his running mate believe that the invasion and occupation of is a mission from God. I don’t know about your God, but my God doesn’t condone lying the way that Bush, McCain and Cheney lied to start this war.”
I would repeat this line about 20 times a days until Election Day.
Also, in the background, I would play the Sam Roberts song “Bridge to Nowhere.”
Obama was right tonight. Palin is the lipstick on the McCain pig.
Obama responds today to lip stick crap.
http://thisweekwithbarackobama.blogspot.com/2008/09/obama-says-spare-me-phony-outrage-vide0.html
could.not.agree. more.
time to accuse John McCain of being in bed with child molestors.
it’s time for some of those women who are for choice to be able to put their faces to ads calling out Palin for being against abortion in the cases of rape and incest. Yes, it’s time for us to find some rape and incest victims willing to go on camera.
it’s time to call McCain out as a prisoner of the religious right.
it’s time to question the patriotism of a woman who gives speeches in front of a secessionist group and has been married to a man who belonged to it for 7 years.
It would be irresponsible not to speculate.