John McCain has hijacked the headlines for political gain yet again. He has learned from the best, the very same people who ruined his chance for the White House in 2000.
Karl Rove is working in the shadows to make sure a Republican wins again, this time it's McCain. He's using every trick in his play book. One tactic that seems to be working well is to use every opportunity, whether politically correct or not, to gain poll numbers. After the Democratic Convention, Obama was riding high on a wave of hope and positive polling, so McCain announced his running mate. The choice of Sarah Palin was clearly a political maneuver. She has no experience, and as proven lately, is as dumb as a doornail. The choice wasn't based upon who was the most experienced and qualified, it was a play to the so-called "Hilary voters". Sadly, McCain thinks that the voters who wanted Hilary will also want Palin, who is the antithesis of Hilary Clinton. The only "Hilary voters" who would vote for the McCain ticket instead of Obama, are the rednecks who will never vote for a black man for President. Anyone who likes her for what she actually believes in, are true Democrats, and will vote for the Obama ticket. McCain succeeded in shaking things up, and has actually been enjoying a "surge" in popularity since announcing the Palin/McCain ticket. However, the bloom is definitely coming off the rose, as evident from Palin's interview with Couric yesterday. No wonder they try to keep her away from reporters, she's clueless.
The Republican convention, through some cosmic twist of fate, coincided with the unhappy anniversary of Katrina, and hurricane Gustav was rearing it's head. I can just see Rove, who is working on the McCain campaign, smiling ear to ear and sneering "I've got an awful, wonderful idea". And so, the headlines were all about McCain putting on his "American" hat, and putting the country first. More like putting the Campaign first. It was an obvious political maneuver, since months before he was nowhere to be found during the fires in California, or Hurricane Fay in Florida. Then, a week after Gustav hit, thankfully with less fury than anticipated, Ike rose up to strike Texas. Where was McCain then? Where was Pitbull Palin? Where are their "American" hats? I guess they put them away until another "rainy" day.
Enter the financial crisis which is affecting millions of people. We've known the economy was in crisis for some time now, while McCain touted the strength of the economy's fundamentals. Then Wall Street tumbled, and like a deer in headlights he tried to backtrack by saying the fundamentals are people...poor McCain, he's so desperate. This week he decided to take his "American" hat out of the closet and suspend his campaign. I would hope that someone who wants to be President would be able to do more than one thing at a time. Isn't that on the list of requisites? If not, it should be. Even Bush can read "My pet goat" to children while ignoring a terrorist attack, or celebrate his good buddy John McCain's birthday while Katrina blew out the lights in New Orleans.
The American people don't want the Presidential candidates to suspend their campaigns or cancel Friday's debate. The American people want to watch Obama kick McSame's wrinkled old ass. John's afraid, understandably, he knows he's no match for the much younger, more charismatic and eloquent Barack. He panicked and stooped so low as to politicize the very real financial crisis. He even dissed Letterman, telling him that he had to rush to Washington, ala Mighty Mouse, to save the day. Turned out he was next door taping with Katie Couric. Letterman is pissed, as I am. Even the ladies on The View see the McCain campaign ads for the fiction they are; pointing out that Obama never called Sarah a pig. The lies and obfuscation are piling up, Mr. McCain, and the American people are on to you...you better be afraid.