POLL: Is McCain Doing the Right Thing?
Thursday September 25, 2008
Now's Your Chance to Voice an Opinion: Vote Today!
Obama, after meeting with his team to develop a response, denied McCain's request to join him in Washington to work on President Bush's misguided bailout plan, and also denied McCain's request to postpone the debates until a deal can be hammered out.
Apparently, Obama reached out to the McCain campaign earlier in the day, about issuing a joint statement about the crisis. A statement that would basically do nothing, other than to say that they both agree there's a crisis on Wall Street. At 2:30 p.m., after he was done with his campaign stops for the day, McCain got back to Obama and said he would like to actually do more than just talk, or give a statement. He wanted to do something about it. In fact, my sources in Washington tell me McCain told Obama that he was going to suspend his campaign and head back to Washington. I'm told that Obama said he would consider doing it himself. To be fair, however, Obama was not aware of McCain's desire to postpone the debate, nor did Obama agree to anything over the phone.
But he knew about it.
I've already given my opinion about McCain's decision. What do you think? I'd love to hear what you have to say.
Cast your vote now and then use the comment link below to explain your answer. Photo © Mandel Ngan/Getty Images
Comments
I think that it is important no matter where you are on the spectrum of ideology to understand how Politics works and how campaigns work.
This move was calculated. That is just a cold fact. McCain did not just throw the presidential race to the wind to vote — he has not voted since April. It is not a coincidence that at a time when he has appeared weak on economic policy and when his campaign is coming under attack, that he is having his campaign go silent and doing everything he can do to appear to be involved with the issue. He met with his campaign advisors, they said things were bad, and that this is our best bet for improving the campaign (additionally we cannot afford to run more ads and need to save our money without looking desperate). It also gives Palin time to practice for her debate — a debate I do not think she is prepared to have — the campaign managers have done their best to keep Palin in scripted interviews because for all her gifts, coming across well to the public under fire is not one of them. This is something she can learn and will learn, but for now, it is a weakness.
The question is, will it be effective. My opinion is no. The move is very transparent. It is too obvious.
Quite frankly, neither of these candidates know much about economic policy, especially at this very deep and complex level. Neither has anything meaningful to contribute and both are likely to stall this bill or not change it at all by going to Washington.
What has alienated me is that this move appears very desperate and it makes his other moves questionable by comparison — I supported his Palin choice until he made this move because now it is making me worry that he used the same logic in choosing her. I do not like it. I miss the McCain that I know, the guy who does not advocate for conservative values but instead advocates for conservative economic policy.
In High School we had to pick a senator to write on, I wrote praise on McCain. I liked how he was a moderate, because to be honest, the far right and the far left both use the same line of thinking — and recently McCain is slipping into that line of thinking. This may be a result of him needing to appeal to the republican base, who he needs to keep enthused.
Regardless, I just do not like this move. It feels like a joke, like a cheesy charicature of what a hero would do rather than what a real hero would do. A real hero would just go to Washington without the attention grabbing ploy of suspending his campaign. Sadly, there are no heroes in politics.
Just politicians.
yeah … what David H said!
McCain doesn’t have a legislative or committee role on this issue. That means he has nothing to do with the work that is going on in DC. His presence there inject Presidential politics into the process. At a time when we need less politics we will have more.
McCain has had a back few weeks and now with Davis being linked to Freddie he is desperately trying to change the narrative. His advisors are likely telling him this is a make or break it week. If he can’t keep the Davis thing from hitting the presses and being the #1 story he loses.
I so much wanted to support McCain as a voice of integrity and reason. He has, however, lost my respect and instead of employing solid and principled positions now uses tricks and ploys.
His campaign is spinning out new stuff so fast that none of it sticks. They are imploding and the only thing they had left was suspending the campaign in the hopes that the media wouldn’t go supernova over the Davis connection to Freddie.
Sad end to a Hero’s political career. They should not have put Rove’s people, Schmidt, in charge of strategy.
Did you guys know that McCain co-sponsored legislation in 2005 that was blocked by Dems in committee that might have averted the Fannie and Freddie meltdown and consequently, this? I’m with Justin - country first. I think the defacto leaders of each of the parties needs to be present in Washington hashing out the bailout - or not.
I do think McCain has a chance to show leadership by responding only if he is clever for the American people. We are asked to bail out Wall Street while facing possible future bailouts for risky behavior. Most average Americans live paycheck to paycheck with the burden of rising expenses for daily living. I think the government is using fear to rush us in the wrong direction. At least Obama’s plan for the economy is focused on stopping jobs from going overseas. He could go further by lifting regulation and tax burden to make the U.S. attractive for job growth. There is room for leverage and it should be used toward helping the people who are asked to bail out Wall Street. At the same time McCain should debate Obama with the request they focus on economic issues.
Please spare us this military jingoistic “call to duty” crap.” Apparently you skipped the part of his autobiography in your nightly reading where he says it is ambition that drives him to seek the presidency.
He has recurring and inevitable cancer, suffers from an angry form of PTSD and wants to finish the Vietnam War. If you love him so then send him into his $100 million + retirement. If you love OUR country then send him into retirement because he is too ill for the rigors (spare me his momma’s still alive nonsense, women outlive men particularly when the mam has lived a stressful existence). Besides, do you want the know-nothing whiteneck woman in control?
So many are not sure what to do and wondering if they are not to late already.
I know several banks, check wikipedia, that borrowed billions last year to save themselves.
The bottom line is that thru bad congressional bill imposing the right of No Adult Left Behind American Dream gave an induced demand of the housing market like never seen before.
Now the demand runs out from the supply of cash not available. That cash must be restored and printing it or Federal Reserve will not work.
Now deflation has to go to value and the nature of economy will fight congress for or as long as it wants to contend.
So take your pick, keep inducing and fighting the very nature and essence of the economy or let it fall and start rebuilding.
Change you can trust, a slogan that could turn around McCain’s campaign?
Change you can trust contrasts beautifully with change you can believe in.
Everyone wants change, only with a team that we can trust to implement it.
If you’re in a tough spot, you want someone to come to help you that you can trust, not someone you believe may want to help you.
John McCain, polls show, is rated as highly qualified and highly trusted. This slogan, change you can trust, reinforces this message.
It can even be added on to John McCain’s current slogan. Country first, change you can trust. Or perhaps Change you can trust that puts Country first. Or how about Change you can trust that puts America first
It implies without directly saying it that the other side is perhaps a little less trustworthy.
It also reinforces the message that in a time we were facing battle with Al Qaeda worldwide and two conventional wars, John McCain is a commander in chief you can trust to lead us to victory.
There are 30 days left before Election Day. Sarah Palin’s debate performance was good, but it’s really up to John McCain to win.
CHANGE You Can TRUST
CHANGE You Can TRUST to put COUNTRY FIRST
CHANGE You Can TRUST to put AMERICA FIRST
CHANGE - TRUST
COUNTRY FIRST
John, are you listening???
http://strategicthought-charles77.blogspot.com/2008/10/change-you-can-trust-slogan-that-could.html
I don’t think that McCain is doing this
with wrong motives. Our Country is
having a crisis right now and I agree
with how he is handling it. I believe
that Senator McCain is putting things
in the right prospective. It shows me
that Senator McCain is more concerned
about our country right now and should be.