We've all seen the ads. You know the ones, John McCain bashing Barack Obama for being inexperienced, blaming him for high gas prices, accusing him of being - gasp! - popular. You know, this one. We've seen those ads, we've heard the analysis on TV and in print, we've even written our own outrage here and elsewhere. It seems that the biggest beef we have is that these ads (this one in particular) seems vaguely racist to a lot of us. I don't know that they were particularly racist. They idea behind this ad is that Barack Obama is similar to Britney Spears and Paris Hilton: he's a vapid celebrity that's famous for being famous. The fact that anyone can make such a comparison with a straight face to a man who was president of the Harvard Law Review and professor of Constitutional Law at University of Chicago Law School proves not that that man is a racist trying to inflame fears of "the other" or that "the black man is coming for your pretty white daugher," but that that man is attempting to trivialize the very office he seeks to hold.
John McCain in recent weeks as launched an increasingly negative, low-brow strategy designed to detract from the wild popularity of his opponent. Indeed, in the best traditions of Rovian campaigning, attacking what he sees as his rivals greatest strength. The campaign ad in the introduction, title "Celeb," attempts to paint Barack Obama as a vapid celebrity with nothing to offer the country except throngs of adoring crowds and pretty speeches. Other ads and statements from the McCain camp have reinforced this narrative, most notably, this ad.
The ad, titled "The One" openly mocks Obama's popularity and by suggesting the the junior Senator form Illinois is indeed the Messiah, come to Earth at her hour of greatest need and, somehow, uses that as a reason to vote against him. The issue with these ads is not just that the make no sense and are blatantly offensive to a number of ethnic groups (including, but not limited to, the evangelical Christians McCain needs to win in November), but that they ignore the reasons that Barack Obama is popular in the first place. Many of us remember a time not long ago when we were yelling at our TV screens that Barack Obama was not a political unknown. Anyone who saw the 2004 DNC knew who he was and both of his books were New York Times #1 Bestsellers. Six months ago, the presumtive Democratic Party nominee for President was not, as John McCain charges, "the biggest celebrity in the world." Barack Obama rose to the top of his profession on a wave of grassroots support generated by his message of hope and change, his image as a new kind of politician, a self-made man raised by a single mother and his grandparents who worked his way through Harvard Law School and turned down big-money Federal Court Clerkships to use his expertise to help those less fortunate on the South Side of Chicago. That is why he is famous; people see in him the promise of what was and the hope of what could be again. When people look at Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, they see vapid, insignificant tarts who don't deserve either their money or their international notoriety (reminds you of a certain candidate's wife, does it not), and that is hardly a fair comparison.
Also this week John McCain began mocking Barack Obama's stances on policy. Issuing tire gauges engraved with "Obama's Energy Policy" for a mere $25 donation to the McCain campaign. To anyone not making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year this sort of political stunt ought to be absurd to the point of offensive. Firstly, it suggests that the only point in the Obama Energy plan is a suggestion that Americans keep their tires properly inflated (not to mention that proper automobile maintenance does in fact increase fuel efficiency). Secondly, why is it that John McCain would be offering to his donors for $25 something that a.) has his opponents name on it and b.) they could pick up at any gas station or auto parts store for less than a dollar? Truly he must believe what Phil Gramm says about America's "mental recession" (more on that piece of work in a moment). McCain has also taken to calling his opponent "Dr. No" on energy policy (a reference only baby-boomers and Bond Junkies would understand, and considering the context makes absolutely no sense), in reference to Obama's opposition to offshore drilling and nuclear energy as well as his unwillingness to commit hundreds of millions to one particular electric car project in California. The joke is a cute message for the TV cameras but it betrays a profound flaw in McCain's candidacy: he is unwilling to accept that anything outside his platform might be a viable option. Indeed Barack Obama is opposed to offshore drilling, but his plan is designed to ween the United States off oil generally, not find new sources to feed our addiction, and is designed to invest in new forms of energy for the future.
The overall affect of these tactics by John McCain is to trivialize the campaign, his opponent and indeed the office of the Presidency itself. By making the official stance of his campaign one of sarcasm and snark, making fun of his opponent, McCain has reduced the importance of the race he is currently engaged in. He has changed the election from that of President of the United States to the of President of the High School Class of 2008. In short, he has made the office of the Presidency one of childish insignificance. This of course begs the question: why would one seek to demean the office to which he wishes to be elected?
The answer, in the opinion of the author, is two fold. Firstly, McCain knows that he is a woefully inadequate candidate, especially when compared to his opponent. He is weak on policy (especially concerning the top issues of this election), the ability to articulate that policy and the ability to generate excitement among the electorate. He himself acknowledged his weakness on the economy and continues to employ the sound counsel of Phil "Nation of Whiners" Gramm on economic issues. He opposed the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2002 until, in a pandering performance worthy of the record books, he decided such a stance would hurt him with the conservative base of the Republican Party. His energy policy is comprised of long-term band-aids not designed to provide any sort of relief for American consumers, but to line the pockets of big-money special interests and to alter the "psychology" of the current economic situation (Gramm's particular brand of "voodoo economics"). McCain is additionally out of step with the majority of Americans with regard to foreign policy, particularly the Iraq War, and seems to draft his policy to appease the Bush dead-enders who have a hard time deciding if they ought to even vote in this election. And on the issue of healthcare, well, one would have to ask that someone, anyone, show them what McCain's healthcare policy actually is. With all of this in consideration, McCain's only hope is to turn Obama into a punchline. While Americans lose their homes and their lives, McCain's only chance is to get everyone making jokes about Britney Spears and Paris Hilton as the two relate to his opponent. And to watch the network news and look at the daily polls, this strategy appears to be working.
So what does the Obama camp do about this? Well, as noble as the high-road is it rarely wins elections - particularly national elections against a right-wing smear machine so well tuned after decades of negative campaigning. The answer, as you may guess, is to fight fire with fire. Not necessarily drafting advertisements comparable to McCains, but attacking the Republican nominee more substantively. Paint John McCain as Bush III as much as possible. The more pictures of the two of them together, the better. Point out the staggering number of votes John McCain has missed in the Senate while he was campaigning (a good reference, the only Senator who has missed more was in the hospital after a brain hemorrhage). Run ads that are continuous loops of John McCain flip-flops and gaffes; fill a full 30 second spot with his uncomfortable facial contortions after being asked a simple yes-or-no question, followed by the text "John McCain: Really?" Compare his abysmal class standing at the Naval Academy with the academic record of Barack Obama. And finally, cut loose the 527's. Let groups like MoveOn.org call McCain old, senial and dangerous with no reference to Obama at all. Let it be known that John McCain has more in common with Abe Simpson, C. Montgomery Burns and Walter Mathau in "Grumpy Old Men" than he does with Teddy Roosevelt and Barry Goldwater. The only way to win this battle of ideas is hit back and hit back hard. Allow John McCain to be insulted and let his temper do the rest.