Mark Halperin is the new (original?) Joe Klein
Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 10:36:51 AM PDT
A usually highly intelligent coworker just forwarded one of the most crap pieces of "journalism" I've ever seen to the entire office.
The McCain campaign is staffed with savvy, experienced operatives who have closely watched the rise of Obama, and they have learned from Clinton’s failure to take down her Democratic rival.
Things McCain can do when running against Obama that Clinton has been unable to do well or at all:
- Play the national security card without hesitation.
- Talk about the Iraq War without apologies or perceived contradiction.
Hillary's vote was pretty clearly a mistake as is John McCain's current
desire to remain there for another hundred years. I think that is
something Obama can hit him hard on that Clinton can't. I think McCain
will end this election looking like a crazy old hypocrite no matter who
our nominee is, though.
- Go at Obama unambiguously from the right.
- Encourage interest groups, bloggers, and right-leaning media to explore Obama’s past.
You mean like all the great things he did as a community organizer, a law professor, and a civil rights attorney?
- Make an issue of Obama’s acknowledged drug use.
Yeah, since that worked so well for Billy Shaheen (or was it Andrew Cuomo), or even George H. W. Bush in 92.
- Allow some supporters to risk being accused of using the race card when criticizing Obama.
Great way to make the GOP a permanent minority(less) party, there!
- Exploit Michelle Obama’s mistakes and address her controversial remarks with unrestricted censure.
- Play dirty without alienating his party.
- Dismiss Obama’s brief national tenure from his own lofty platform of decades in the Senate – there will be no ambiguity about who has more experience as conventionally defined.
- Use his sterling war record to reinforce his image of patriotism and valor – and contrast it with his opponent’s.
- Emphasize Barack Hussein Obama’s unusual name and exotic background through a Manchurian Candidate prism.
Except that's one of the things people like about him. He's new and representative of the future of our country and he sure isn't as mean spirited as someone who would attack someone for a name.
- Employ third party groups like the NRA to hit Obama on issues that might turn off general election voters. Perhaps an ad such as this will run in Ohio: "So, what do you really know about Barack Obama? Did you know he supports meeting with the head of terrorist states? Do you know he wants to get rid of your right to own a handgun? Do you know he is calling for the repeal of the law preventing gay marriage? Do you know he is for a trillion-dollar tax increase? What do you really know about Barack Obama?"
- Face an electorate less consumed with "change change change" (the main priority for Democratic voters) and keenly interested in "ready from day one" as an equally important ideal.
- Link biography (experience/courage) and leadership (straight talk) to a vision animated by detail – accentuating Obama’s relative lack of specificity.
Straight talk? Are you kidding me? How are those lobbyists working for you Johnny?
- Give Obama his first real race against a credible Republican. (Clinton has always asserted that Obama would wilt before a fierce Republican assault.)
- Confront Obama with a united, focused campaign absent of second-guessing, which hits the same themes and message every day.
When half the GOP hates him? I gotta see that to believe it.
Note: This is analysis, not advice.
Why even forward such a ridiculously one sided argument? Either the guy is amazingly stupid or he's got some kind of an agenda with this. Regardless, he shouldn't be writing for a reputable news organization. This is why I rarely read dead-tree news anymore. They wouldn't know serious honest reporting if it hit them in the face.
"This is analysis, not advice."???? Are you fucking kidding me? If that's analysis, I should be qualified for the Supreme Court or something. I mean I did write a paper on the constitutionality of the Communications Decency Act once, that's gotta count for something right?
I think the original quoted Time article was ridiculously one-sided and
didn't discuss at all anything McCain could hit Hillary with or that
Obama or Hillary could hit McCain with. And Mark Halperin gets paid for
that tripe? Enough of that.
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