«--Previous Post | Blog Index | Next Post--»

Will McCain Go Negative In Tonight's Debate?

That's the question of the day. The McCain campaign has decided to go negative on Barack Obama in the last month of the campaign, invoking Bill Ayers and Jeremiah Wright in recent days. It's easy, though, to raise attacks like those at a campaign rally filled with sympathetic listeners or in a newspaper column with one sympathetic listener. It's much harder to do so while standing face to face with your opponent, in front of a neutral crowd. It took a number of debates before Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John Edwards had the famous slugfest in South Carolina in which Clinton dropped the Rezko bomb and Obama taunted Hillary for her husband's antics by saying "I can't tell who I'm running against sometimes."

But McCain knows how to get rough. In a Republican debate in New Hampshire, he took the lead in a tag team assault on Mitt Romney, sticking the shiv in so many times that Romney was left pleading for civility, saying, "Senator, is there a way to have this about issues and not about personal attacks?"

McCain needs to fundamentally shift the state of the race. Fighting Obama to a draw, like he did in the first debate, simply won't cut it. And it appears that as long as the candidates stick to the issues, Obama rises in the polls. (Unnamed McCain strategist in the New York Daily News: "If we keep talking about the economic crisis, we're going to lose.") McCain may have no choice but to focus on issues of character, personal history, and personal associations tonight. That said, it is a path cluttered with landmines. If Obama hammers his talking points on the economy's dire condition and on health care (his campaign's current focus) while McCain launches attack after attack about men in Obama's past, McCain runs the risk of looking desperate, out of touch, and unfocused on the country's most pressing issues.

And that comes at a serious price. According to the latest NBC/WSJ poll, Obama's favorability among independents has shot through the roof, presumably because voters trust Democrats more on the economy and because Obama has shown a steady hand through the financial crisis. Two weeks ago, McCain had a higher favorability rating among indies, 51%-38%. Now Obama is up four, 42%-38%. With the Republican base shrinking and unenthusiastic, McCain simply cannot win without independents, who are famous for reacting poorly to partisan mudslinging. If McCain takes that route tonight, he may see his electoral prospects worsen.

Comments

I dont understand how working Americans can like either of them. Especially McCain. Juxtaposed to that walking cadaver, Obama looks like the next Jesus Christ. I suppose if I had to chose between the two (and I do due to our fair and unbiased electoral system) I would obviously have to pick Obama. Could someone tell my why people who like McCain who arent Bible-thumping or racist? The main argument I hear from white America is that they simply dont want a "Nigger in the white house" Nevermind Powell and Rice. But maybe thats just because I live in Iowa

Posted by: Sam on 10/07/08 at 8:32 AM Respond

I don't think that it will be that hard to remind people about all the left wing, anti- American people that obama has surrounded himself with..:-)

The Americna people have just kinda gotten used to the left wing giving "Domestic Terrorists" a pass, since they were from the wild 60's.

Maybe tonight, McCain will remind us of all the reasons that we are proud to be Americans, and all the reasons that obama hates America..?

Bill

Posted by: Bill Nigh on 10/07/08 at 8:34 AM Respond

Bill, I can't even believe you're real anymore.

Posted by: Bacon on 10/07/08 at 9:13 AM Respond

Yeah, and maybe Obama will remind McCain of all the anti-American crazies the Republicans have been allied with. Start with Saddam, who we replaced with Nouri al-Maliki and his Dawa party responsible for several bombings that killed Americans back in the day.

Posted by: smitisan on 10/07/08 at 10:15 AM Respond

I've been thinking about something that I've not heard anyone discuss. I think this election is VERY important to the neo-cons for one reason: presidential pardons. Just finished reading Vince Bugliosi's new book and it seems that Dubya & co. could be in some deep legal poop. According to VB almost any prosecutor in the country would have grounds to bring charges on several different fronts.

Posted by: Bob on 10/07/08 at 10:31 AM Respond

I think it's obvious now...Bill Nigh works for the McSame camp. Posting the Repub talking points on a regular basis has revealed who he works for.

Posted by: another lib on 10/07/08 at 3:12 PM Respond

Not even a campaign as lame as McCain's would hire someone with such a poor command of the language and complete lack of debating skills.

Besides, paying someone to campaign for McCain on Mother Jones would make about as much sense as the American Socialist Party paying someone to debate their positions on Stormfront.org.
A complete waste of money, and while Republicans are just as willing to waste MY money as the Democrats are, they're never eager to waste their own.

Posted by: another libertarian on 10/07/08 at 3:23 PM Respond

Nobody needs to teach the Democrats about underhanded tactics. They're just as capable as the Republicans. Plus the Democrats have the media generally on their side.

The racism card is unfair. It is entirely reasonable for voters to look at the policies of both candidates and conclude that McCain's free market approach on health care, his views on a US continuing military presence in the Middle East, his view on other issues such as drilling and nuclear energy. etc. are preferred over the Obama alternatives. Does anybody who doesn't agree with the liberal position on these issues automatically qualify as mentally impaired, corrupt or racist?

I am a loyal Mother Jones subscriber and have been for years. I very much enjoy the alternative views presented in Mother Jones and the dogged behind the scenes investigations of corruption by its reporters. But the dismissive and hostile attitudes of some of its columnists and readers is shameful.

There are many legitimate reasons to prefer McCain over Obama. It looks like Obama will likely win. Fine, that's the beauty of democracy. But the hostility and intolerance expressed on these pages is shameful. Start respecting others views. Where has civil discourse gone?

Posted by: RAW TRUTH on 10/08/08 at 1:08 PM Respond