With early voting set to start tomorrow here in Florida, this weekend saw a wave of endorsements for Obama from a string of newspapers across the state. The endorsements have come from papers located in areas that are critical to an Obama win. Today, ringing endorsements for Obama came from one end of the critical I-4 corridor to the other, including the Sarasota Herald-Tribune on the west coast, the Orlando Sentinel in the center, and the Daytona Beach News-Journal on the east coast, plus the Naples Daily News in the all-important southwest part of the state. These endorsements build on yesterday's key Obama endorsement by the Miami Herald. So much to cover!
Let's start with the I-4 corridor. As we've all discussed many times, the I-4 corridor in central Florida is considered THE key to an Obama victory in the state. So let's start on the west coast with the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The newspaper's editors believe that in many areas the two candidates are a draw, including - most notably - on the issue of "connections to unsavory characters" that McCain has tried to make the cornerstone of his campaign. "Obama has his Rev. Wright and William Ayers; McCain has his John Hagee and Keating Five," the Herald-Tribune notes. They criticize McCain for running an erratic campaign and changing wildly on the issues, and praise Obama for providing "thoughtful, sensible positions on domestic issues." For this newspaper, the decision came down to inexperience vs. temperament, and just as we have all been saying for months, the Herald-Tribune believes Obama is better-suited to be president:
Obama has displayed presidential temperament under the intense fire of a tough campaign. It's a leap of faith to support a candidate with so little political experience. But the leadership skills Obama has demonstrated and his ideas for improving on the last eight years -- which haven't worked very well, have they? -- pose the lesser risk and offer the greatest potential to the nation.
As I noted in my diary on Friday, Sarasota County is a traditional Republican stronghold that George Bush won by 13 points in 2004 and that hasn't voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since FDR. But some recent internal GOP polls have shown the presidential race to be a dead heat, so this endorsement can't hurt.
Heading east to Orlando, the Orlando Sentinel echoes the Sarasota paper's concerns about McCain's erratic behavior during the campaign, noting that he has been "all over the map" on how to deal with the economic crisis. The editors bemoan the fact that he is not the same candidate they endorsed in the primaries:
He has abandoned positions we admired. He has reacted inconsistently, even haphazardly, to events. In making the most important decision of his campaign, he showed shockingly poor judgment.
In terms of judgment, the Sentinel blasts - I mean blasts - McCain's pick of Sarah Palin to be his VP. The editors say she "often doesn't know what she's talking about" and that her "divisive style" makes her "ill-suited to be a heartbeat away from the presidency."
But the Sentinel notes that Obama deserves people's vote not because of McCain's flaws but because of all of his strong qualities. The long editorial practically gushes at all of Obama's strengths, so I can't even begin to pick a favorite line or two. But this bit says it all:
In contrast to Mr. McCain, Democrat Barack Obama has exceeded our expectations during this campaign. He has demonstrated sound judgment and grace under pressure. Because we are now more confident in his ability to steer America through the rough waters ahead, the Orlando Sentinel is endorsing Barack Obama for president.
As SemDem noted, the Orlando Sentinel is considered a conservative-leaning paper. With one exception (John Kerry) its editors have endorsed Republicans for president for the past 40 years, and it endorsed Clinton over Obama in the primary.
Over to the east, the Daytona Beach News-Journal repeats many of the other newspaper's key concerns about McCain, but in an even blunter fashion. In what is clearly becoming a constant theme, the editors blast McCain's temperament to be president, and link McCain directly to George W. Bush:
And here's a crucial point for voters to consider before casting their presidential ballot for the Nov. 4 election: America's had a shoot-from-the-hip maverick in the Oval Office for almost eight years. He took us hell bent to war in Iraq on faulty intelligence at best or on false pretense at worst. Sen. McCain, judging from his rhetoric and his votes supporting Bush, is a hair-trigger hawk as well, even if more seasoned as a warrior. More than once in the political debates, he couldn't contain his temper or repress a snide remark, costing him favor with viewers and points in the polls. By contrast, Obama was never riled, but maintained civility through harsh attacks then deftly pulled the rug out from under his opponent with on-point but nuanced responses. Which man do you think is likely to be more effective on America's behalf if seated across the negotiating table from wary or bristling foreign leaders? Not the maverick.
Ouch. The News-Journal also piles on against McCain's choice of Palin, noting that she "wouldn't know pre-emption doctrine if it were carved on a moose hide." But most of all, the paper appears to be truly inspired by Obama's hope for leading our country forward in the future:
Obama's ability to stay on message in the Senate and through an arduous primary campaign and the general election contest, his inspiring composure and civility throughout the debates and his penetrating analyses of both domestic and foreign policy issues convince us he not only "understands," he possesses the temperament, intelligence, integrity, moral clarity and skill to lead this country through crisis to new and greater horizons.
Now let's head down to the southwest part of Florida, which is home to a large senior population and is an area where the McCain campaign has admitted it's not doing as well as it should. As explained in zadarum's diary today, Naples and Collier County have have a 2-1 Republican registration edge and broke for Bush at the same rate in 2004 (65/34). Amid all this, the Naples Daily News declares that Obama has the "sharper vision on health care," a "brighter view on education," "more clarity and urgency on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan" and "has it more right on the economy."
But if one of the key themes running through all of these editorials is McCain's questionable temperament and erratic behavior, the other key theme running through all of these editorials is Sarah Palin. For the editors of Naples Daily News, McCain's pick of Palin was the deal-breaker:
While Senate veteran Joe Biden disappoints those who push Obama for change at every opportunity, McCain chose Sarah Palin to preside a heartbeat away.
A selection made by a maverick?
That, with McCain vowing "a new direction," was akin to praise for FEMA for a job well done on Hurricane Katrina.
That is our tipping point in this race. Forget what candidates say they will do if elected. The choice for vice president was their first clear indicator of how they will lead.
We can do better.
In the end, the Naples paper agrees with all the other Florida newspapers that Obama is the best-qualified candidate to lead our country forward today:
To the undecideds, we say we believe what’s best for America is a president who is bright, can listen, learn from mistakes of the past and lead us toward the change we need to make at home and abroad.
We believe the candidate to do that is Barack Obama.
Amen to that.