The Candidate We Still Don’t Know
So why isn’t Obama romping? The obvious answer — and both the excessively genteel Obama campaign and a too-compliant press bear responsibility for it — is that the public doesn’t know who on earth John McCain is. The most revealing poll this month by far is the Pew Research Center survey finding that 48 percent of Americans feel they’re “hearing too much” about Obama. Pew found that only 26 percent feel that way about McCain, and that nearly 4 in 10 Americans feel they hear too little about him. It’s past time for that pressing educational need to be met.
What is widely known is the skin-deep, out-of-date McCain image. As this fairy tale has it, the hero who survived the Hanoi Hilton has stood up as rebelliously in Washington as he did to his Vietnamese captors. He strenuously opposed the execution of the Iraq war; he slammed the president’s response to Katrina; he fought the “agents of intolerance” of the religious right; he crusaded against the G.O.P. House leader Tom DeLay, the criminal lobbyist Jack Abramoff and their coterie of influence-peddlers.
With the exception of McCain’s imprisonment in Vietnam, every aspect of this profile in courage is inaccurate or defunct.
While we’re at it, what did all of you think of that odd Q & A with McCain and Obama at Rick Warren’s Faith Forum? Odd because who is Warren that he gets this kind of power on national TV to make or break the candidates with a particular group of voters? And should religion play that big a role in a Presidential election?
“should religion play that big a role in a Presidential election?”
No
I thought it was odd that all the commentators were saying that McCain is going to be a lot tougher in the debates after this “faith forum.” Why wouldn’t the alleged conservative would do well at a christian right forum?
All McCain had to do was toe the party line. His answers didn’t really have any substance, he just said what they wanted to hear (I’m against abortion, I’m gonna chase Osama to the gates of hell, etc). I would have been very surprised if McCain hadn’t done well. Obama wasn’t in his element and he stuttered too many times, but he put a lot of thought into his answers.
>>And should religion play that big a role
>>in a Presidential election?
No.
I think the claim that the MSM are in the tank for McCain is preposterous. The MSM has given Obama a free ride since he started campaigning in the Democratic primaries vs. Clinton. Seriously, Frank Rich? I mean, how partisan can one get?
The idea that the MSM is treating McCain better than Obama is so patently absurd. Does anyone watch MSNBC? They might as well be on Obama’s campaign payroll. Journalists are, by and large, historically Democratic-leaning. Poll after poll has demonstrated that.
Obama’s not running away with the election (and he absolutely SHOULD BE this year) because he’s been playing it safe, and trying to be all things to all people. He’s trying to run out the clock, hoping that the anti-Bush-GOP sentiment in the country will be enough to carry him through. That’s a very, very dangerous game to play, and he very well could lose unless he actually starts articulating positions that don’t appear to be positions that sway depending upon which way the political winds blow.
Creating the illusion that there is a “race” and that the results are not predetermined is essential in a making the sheep believe they have a choice…
>>should religion play that big a role
>>in a Presidential election?
No need. It’s much more fun judging them by their incompetence. Since Obama is all flash and no substance, his poll numbers reflect how people are getting wise to this racist empty suit.
Ha you forget that the presidential race is that of a race to be class president, just on a larger scale. The machine has succeeded in dumbing down Americans.
#5 – Anti-Mustard
Quit stealing my formatting.
#7 – Quit stealing my formatting.
Do the letters FO mean anything to you?
I find it amusing that anyone needs to hear any more bull shit coming from either side of this election or the media. One is running as a traditional Democrat and the other is running as a traditional Republican. Who they are doesn’t even matter, if you believe in transitional Democratic philosophy, vote for the Democrat if you believe in the traditional Republican philosophy vote for the Republican. If you want to actually hear a useful debate on differences in the 2 philosophies forget it, the median wont’ provide it and neither will either side – all we will get from anyone from now until the election, is bull shit and lies based on polling data.
Why Isn’t Obama Far, Far Ahead In The Polls?
Because despite all of the Obama fanboi orgasms, he just isn’t that strong of a candidate.
And should religion play that big a role in a Presidential election?
Why not? The electorate is much bigger than a few snobby nosed atheists who think that their view of the world is the only one that counts.
Don’t get pissy because you’re going to get four additional years of the vast right-wing conspiracy to rule the world through illegal wars, oil manipulation and control, and Jewish bankers.
Everything has diminishing marginal returns, even Obama’s rock star persona.
#8 . Sorry, but that’s pretty lame.
Obama needs substance. Soaring rhetoric isn’t going to cut it when ordinary voters really start paying attention.
Right now, I’d give McCain a 65% chance at winning the general election.
I’m concerned as well that Obama, while being the most popular thus far, is not leading by more.
If I had to guess, I’d say Americans generally shy from change. You couple that with GOP fear tactics (ie. “you don’t know Obama”) and this is what you get.
The way Obama will win is to get the young people to vote their future. They are more optimistic, unafraid of change and progressive. I hope this happens and I hope more people with grayer heads also set aside their fears or stop playing to the GOP fiddle.
If the Media told the TRUTH – That Obama and the Dems will SWAMP McBush and THE REPUKES IN NOVEMBER, no one would watch TV, and the Candidates wouldn’t ADVERTIZE MUCH ON TV ANY MORE !!! And the Media can’t have that !!! They look forward to COLLECTING THEIR “BROADCAST EXTORTION” EVERY ELECTION CYCLE !!! Follow the money !!! So, they want to keep the kettle boiling for as long as they can to MAXIMIZE THEIR TAKE !!!
“Why Isn’t Obama Far, Far Ahead In The Polls?”
Simple, after months of “Hope & Change” he finally had to start presenting some type of plans.
He went from ahead to even in the polls. Why? His “plans” showed no reason to hope that there would be change if he was elected.
#11 dallas – “Sorry, but that’s pretty lame.”
You could be right but how petty do you have to be to whine about borrowing someone’s formatting on a blog?
To the question in the headline. “Why Isn’t Obama Far, Far Ahead In The Polls?’.
Because he is black. There is a number around 50% of the population that isn’t going to vote for a black guy. It may surprise you that some of that number are black themselves. The Gallop daily tracking poll has them at a 44% dead heat and I will bet that some of the Obama votes that show up there will disappear come election day either by not voting or pushing the McCain button because the spouse or child won’t be in the voting booth to see who they vote for like they can if they are sitting around the kitchen table when Gallop calls.
The negative ads have worked, as usual. McCain will be tougher to beat than people think – he has some sort of weird populist appeal that many like. He also contrasts well with Obama’s long winded, college professor style which he has in debates and forums.
I’m not a big McCain fan, but Obama has that classic liberal style which grates a lot of voters. If McCain keeps up the attacks and plays up the “folksy, cranky, decisive” image then there could be a surprise in November. The whole Russian mess in Georgia will also help McCain.
The big pluses I see on the Obama side are money, better organization, and the polling numbers may not reflect his real support.
BTW, Rick Warren’s forum was the best place for Obama to come out say “I’m not a Muslim”. Expect a lot of Christian messages at the Dem’s convention.
I can’t wait for the debates. An articulate black guy versus a senile and confused old white guy. It should be hilarious in a cringe inducing way.
“If McCain keeps up the attacks and plays up the “folksy, cranky, decisive” image then there could be a surprise in November.”
Maybe John should run? 😉
#21
On the other had, the GOP positions this as follows:
A young, black, teenage, rapper, Muslim whose name rhymes with Osama VS the Wise, steady, white, known, religious (the good kind) and ex-military grandpa.
Who do you want when the bad guys come?
Is it possible that the media is “very desirous to see a black figure excel”? Of course it is. Obama seems like a nice guy and is an extremely engaging figure. He also gives those with white guilt a vehicle by which to apologize. I’m amazed he isn’t winning by 20 points, too.
chalk it up to oliandy. the mainstream press is trying to portoise mccain as a real contender.
Did it ever occur to anyone that the reason Obama isn’t leading by more in the polls is that people *have* heard what he has to say and don’t like it? The idea that people do not favor him because he is proposing change is nonsense. It far more likely it is because of the changes he is proposing.
“Why Isn’t Obama Far, Far Ahead In The Polls?”
Closet bigots that cannot break themselves of years of ingrained prejudices. Fearful of the smooth speaking educated black man that will subjugate all white people.
The repukes feed these fears and therefore narrow the margin.
Now I’m gonna go watch Blazing Saddles again.
Could it be the closeness in the polls is due to the fact the youth vote is a cell phone nation and the only people being polled are the older folks in the population with land lines? I see much more enthusiasm for Obama in the under 40 crowd and they are voting this time!
whites that won’t vote for Obama=bigots
blacks that won’t vote for McCain=enlightened citizens
ya gotta love it
#26 . Yes. I gave it a 5 millisecond thought and quickly decided that *people* not only don’t care what politicians have to say, they don’t know what’s even good for them.
Get real. We are largely a society of apathetic ding bats. As measured by what is now common knowledge: most have no clue how our form of gov works, believe everything they see on TV and don’t know the long term issues of this country.