If I could pinpoint the moment that John Kerry's campaign for president imploded, it would be October 21, 2004, about two weeks before election day. That's when he deemed it necessary to buy a spanking new camouflage jacket and go goose hunting in Ohio. He clipped one but let someone else carry it for him -- apparently oblivious to the symbolism. The superficial and obvious attempt to seem like a "regular guy" didn't fool anyone, least of all the rural voters he hoped to sway. Instead, he came off as a phony.
Here we are again, two weeks before another presidential election. This time, it's the Republican candidate desperately trying to appeal to the Everyman.
John McCain based his final debate performance on the supposed tax plight of "Joe the Plumber," but regular Joes in the viewing audience didn't bite -- polls showed him losing the debate badly. Not deterred, he then kicked off a "Joe the Plumber" tour to convince voters that his tax plans would help the middle class. But recent polling show it's simply not working:
On taxes, for example, likely voters now prefer Obama over McCain by a margin of 8 percentage points. This is despite a concerted effort by McCain and running mate Sarah Palin to cast Obama as a tax-and-spend liberal who'd raise taxes on ordinary folks such as Joe the Plumber, an Ohio man whom McCain cited repeatedly in the last debate and since then in ads and on the campaign trail.
Voters don't see McCain as a credible fighter for the middle class who can solve their economic woes. As with Kerry, he simply comes off as a phony. Even the man he chose as the symbol for his last stand turned out not to be what he seemed. His campaign has imploded, and in a matter of days will be put out its misery. At least Kerry bagged a real goose.