The Republicans are always so good at taking a Democratic candidate's strengths and framing it as a liability. Here are a few ideas for ads from Obama that can liven up our perspective on McCain/Palin. Someone with more video talent than me could post these on youtube. Thanks.
The Republicans are always so good at taking a Democratic candidate's strengths and framing it as a liability (so what is so wrong with being popular? And even being liberal and concerned with the well being of the country and even in favor of helping the most needy could be considered virtues in some circles). Anyway, my idea for a new ad from the Dems would be to highlight McCain's experience: John McCain was a prisoner of war in 1970, her has served in Washington for 26+ years, he was a central figure in the Savings and Loan Crisis in 1980, he has been a big supporter of the expansion of casino gambling in the 1990's.... John McCain's experience with the world of the past century is noteworthy. But is her ready for the complex problems of the 21st century? The world we face today is vastly different from past--a globalized economy, the transnational threats of terrorism, rising economic power in China and India, the possibilities and problems raised by the internet...Only one candidate is ready to lead the country with a vision for the 21st century. Vote for Barack Obama. (Overlay this with some good old footage of McCain, some newspaper headlines from the Keating scandal, a quote of his about not using email or googling...A bit biting, yes, but this is the kind of framing the Reps are so good at to undermine Dems).
This can follow up on the Palin celebrity ad: She is the second biggest celebrity in the world. But does she have the experience to lead? She has been to less foreign countries than Britney Spears or Paris Hilton. Or Koby Gordon, age 10, or Alice Strong, age 8, Joey Casey, age 4, Sarah Smith, age 3, Billy Kyle, age 7....(do this with cute pix of little American kids who have traveled at least twice overseas and you have a good laugh about foreign policy experience).
One more idea: How about using McCain's quotes about Obama raising spending, raising taxes, and how this will hurt the economy, and split screening this with Bush campaign quotes of the same about Gore and Kerry, and Bush, Sr quotes about Clinton, etc. and then the same quotes about cutting taxes and cutting spending and putting money back in the taxpayers pockets. This might show that the Republicans just pull out the same playbook every time, with the same horrid results. A few background shots for this with economic data from the Bush Admin vs the Clinton Admin and how Republican spend and deficit somehow is less economically successful than fairer taxation (and that the shell game tactic of promising to cut spending as a way to balance the budget hasn't worked under Bush or Reagan and wont work with McCain (even if his pen is newer)).
One last idea for Barack--when McCain talks about cutting taxes and cutting spending, you could bring up the idea of balancing the budget and how this improves the economy (and did so under Clinton)--I think Americans have forgotten that balanced budgets matter and empty promises of cutting taxes and cutting $18 billion of earmarks isnt exactly a recipe for budgetary responsibility or economic viability (but certainly can sound simple and good to a non attentive public). \PS As much as you might not want to mention Sarah P, when McCain says for the 4th time you asked for $900+ million in earmarks, you could maybe bring up that Palin got a few million for her little town of Wasilla and took a good $200+ million just for the bridge for which she said no thanks.