The Myth of a Toss-Up Election

[De Selby]

Help me out here. 

The birth certificate flap goes directly to the heart of his eligibility to be president.  Why would questioning voters not question the assertion or why would there not be room for reasonable disagreement?  I don't see the need to shut down discussion of an honest question in a reasonable manner.

There is no birth certificate flap-the state of Hawaii already provided the evidence.  Continuing to believe that there's some legitimate dispute as to Obama's place of birth (and citizenship) is simply rumor-milling and conspiracy theorism that operates on certain, rather than ambiguous, facts.

It's not an honest question, that's why nobody is discussing it except for the folks who were never going to vote for Obama anyway.

[MicroBalrog]

I have long stated that basing the political narrative of the Right on "the Democrats are worse! The Democrats are worse!" will end up biting us all in the rear-end.

Here's why:

1.   At some point, a some election, there's going to be two, three percent of the Repub base that'll just say "hey, we heard this spiel a thousand times, we're not buying it anymore", and simply not buy it anymore, on an emotional level. It doesn't matter if it'll be true.

2.   By not trying to be BETTER than the Democrats, and competing on this level, you are encouraging the GOP leadership to rally behind blandly-moderate candidates because "Hey, what, are you going to vote for THEM now? We OWN your vote."

3.   By not trying to point out the issues on which McCain is better than Obama, you are forgoing the struggle over the issues, which is the entire point of the election.

McCain, is, in fact, significantly better than Obama on the following issues:

1.   Vouchers. Vouchers are originally a creation of the libertarian movement, a way for us to kill public education. We kill public education, and the Welfare State will crawl into a corner and slowly die. I'd rather kill it fast, but apparently most conservatives don't have what it takes to push the button.
2.   McCain will make the Bush Tax Cuts[tm] permanent. Most of those are merely quantitative achievements, but killing the Death Tax is a moral victory for the Administration. It must be preserved.
3.   McCain is slightly more likely to appoint better judges.
4.   The border. McCain seems to have gotten the point. He will secure it.

Why are we not arguing on that basis?

[longeyes]

Of course McCain is better--and for the reasons you say.

But can McCain get his message across?

Will the media let him get it across?

Are there enough good Americans left to elect him on those advantages?

This is what will determine the outcome of the election.

[FTA84]

I think that John McCain has some real image problems.  I don't know to what extent Americans care about content or appearances (my personal bet is most Americans just care about appearances, finding substance takes time and energy) but John McCain v. Barack Obama is all Obama on excitement.

Obama is an empty suit, he sounds exciting and says things in a way that they should sound meaninful (though they are just blubber much of the time).  On the other hand, everytime I watch McCain, his energy level tells me he is not talking about politics, but he must be mumbling to himself about which peanut butter to buy in the grocery store.

[Perd Hapley]

I have long stated that basing the political narrative of the Right on "the Democrats are worse! The Democrats are worse!" will end up biting us all in the rear-end.

No one is "basing the political narrative of the Right on 'the Democrats are worse! The Democrats are worse!'"  That seems to be commonly chosen to encourage people to vote against Obama, in this particular election, but that does not rise to the level of basing our "political narrative" on an anti-Obama footing. 

And secondly, we are already bitten in the rear end, by McCain's presumptive nomination, and by Bush before him.  The "vote against the Democrats" talk is a reaction to that, not a cause.  We heard plenty of "vote for this candidate" talk in the past year.  But it's too late for that now; the game has shifted.  We no longer have much chance of a conservative candidate we can vote for. 

Thirdly, thricely, and tertiarily, voting against the other guy worked to re-elect Bush four years ago.  It might work to fend off Obama this time.  We will have to see.

[roo_ster]

Any time a politician starts thinking they're a messiah, run for the hills.

Voting for McCain is like chewing glass.  But Obama would be swallowing the glass.  Either way, you're screwed.  Just a question of how much.

That first sentence is key.  Whatever his policies, BHO is a little too "cult of personality" for me.

[MicroBalrog]

hat seems to be commonly chosen to encourage people to vote against Obama, in this particular election, but that does not rise to the level of basing our "political narrative" on an anti-Obama footing.

Read the prominent conservative blogs, like Michelle Malkin or Kim Du Toit. Go back to the 2006 congressional election, or 2004. You'll see countless articles, not about how "the Republicans are better", but about how "the Democrats are worse."

Look, I am in agreement with you, the Republicans ARE better (nevermind here McCain is not the best candidate the Republicans could have fielded).

The problem is, I think, too much of what is being done is based on negative emotions - fear of the Democrats and fear of the zOMG ISLAMIC THREAT.

I think more should be done talking about the positive stuff about conservatism. You know, stuff like prosperity and freedom and tradition.

[Perd Hapley]

Maybe my different perspective is due to listening to Rush Limbaugh, who does indeed talk up the distinctives of the conservative point of view, the greatness of the country, etc. 

[longeyes]

Again...

McCain is no kind of answer.  He just buys us time to re-group and resist.  We might be able to find a way out of the cultural mess we're in short of gnawing on each other's necks.  Might.

Obama means a precipitous forcing of the issues, ignited by self-righteous hubris.  No good at all can come of that.