Something has been bothering me since the Al Smith dinner where I first saw the candidates themselves mixing comedy with politics. I was amused by some of the comments but I also had a disturbing feeling about something not being quite right about the whole thing. I like and admire people who are able to not take themselves too seriously and have a thoughtful wit to see humor in situations, however, it bothers me when the candidates poke fun at their own positions that they have previously been asking me to take seriously.
McCain's appearance on Saturday Night Live last evening was humorous but I also found it to be bothersome that he would allow himself to be in a skit that poked fun at the whole William Ayers mess. How do you spend so much of your valuable time and effort trying to make a case about how serious Obama's association is with William Ayers and then make a joke of the whole issue after it failed to work?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
How do you allow yourself to be in a skit that shows a faux Palin mugging for votes in 2012 (but wait until after Tuesday)? Worse yet, how do you joke about different tactics you will use to get elected, one of which you describe as doing anything anyone tells you just to get elected? This just hits too close to home to what you have been doing, doesn't it? It makes for great comedy, but the joke is on you and that is not good for someone trying to become President of the United States when the country is in such a dire financial disaster.
McCain's one early effective ad was to pin the celebrity tag on Obama after his speech in Germany. It appears to me that McCain is the one who wants to be the celebrity. He's the one who has taken cameo appearances in movies and loves to get his mug on camera as much as he can. He as much as admitted to this in his backstage SNL interview right after the opening monologue last night. It seems that he is jealous of the attention that Obama is getting and feels abandoned. He so desperately wants the media attention back that he is willing to allow himself to be embarrassed on SNL and to make a joke of his presidential run. It is pathetically childish behavior that only continues to reinforce that McCain is not capable of being President. He just doesn't have the maturity or temperament for it.
I think something from last night's SNL accurately sums up McCain's 2008 run for President -- "The Sad Grampa Campaign".
Sad for:
- Despicable attempt to smear opponent for his limited associations with others (reminiscent of McCarthyism).
- Making an early somewhat credible argument about experience and then picking one of the most unqualified people ever nominated for VP.
- Constantly using the tired Republican tactic of painting your opponent as unpatriotic and un-American. I really thought you were better than this John McCain.
- Trying to politicize the financial crisis by "suspending your campaign". One of the saddest campaign tactics ever attempted.
- Joe the Plumber -- enough said.
Grampa:
- You are pretty old aren't you? Thankfully, you have picked a qualified VP to take over should something happen...oops.
- "Get off my lawn"