Two things occupy most of my time these days: politics and playoff baseball. My beloved San Francisco Giants, and President Obama, were both hitting lows over the weekend. The Giants had lost two games at home to the Cincinnati Reds, and were facing elimination going to Ohio for the final three games. Obama was starting to sink a bit in the polls due to his poor debate performance.
But something happened with the Giants this week. They didn't listen to the naysayers, they didn't give up, and they didn't bow to conventional wisdom. They came out relaxed for Games 3, 4 and 5 in Cincinnati. They were themselves: clutch hitters, solid starting pitching and a dominant bullpen. They didn't panic when they got down in Game 3 by a run, or in Game 4 when the Reds knocked out their starting pitcher in the 3rd inning. It all paid off in Game 5, when the Giants won 6-4 and advanced to the NLCS.
Obama needs to follow the Giants lead this week. He needs to go out and be at his best, which is as a cool, collected warrior on behalf of the middle class. He needs to use the pressure of his previous debate performance to motivate him in the next debate. He needs to put the pressure back on Romney by making him defend his 47% remarks, and his reverse Robin Hood agenda. And he needs to forget about his previous debate performance, and focus on showing how Romney's policies will hurt the lives of working Americans.
Sports metaphors for politics are overused. But the moment Sergio Romo struck out Scott Rolen yesterday to end the game, one of my first thoughts was that this was the feeling I wanted to have next Tuesday.