John McCain has boasted that he knows how to win wars. Since he has chosen to make his military prowess a central part of his campaign, it can be exposed for the empty, dangerous bluster that it is with one simple slogan.
Democrats have feasted long and well on the McCain gaffe of 7 houses. Wasn’t it nice to have a consistent message for a while, one that both the public and the press understood? Well, now that the public’s eyes have been opened to just how far out of touch John McCain is, that this son of Naval aristocracy, who grew up being waited on by servantsand hasn’t given up on the habit, is the true elitist in this contest. An elitist, I fear, who will give little consideration to sending other people's chidlren to war. We need to keep the eyes of every American parent, grandparent, aunt and uncle open and focused on that issue and the 7 houses flap doesn’t have the legs to make it to November. Also, we risk coming off like Fredo Corleone "I'm smart! Not like everybody says... like dumb... I'm smart and I want respect!" if we use it too often. I want to make it clear that this discussion is about how McCain’s flaws should be exposed. I am in no way advocating that Barack should drop his message of hope in the affirmative case (an old debating term) for his presidency.
We Democrats need a simple message in our rebuttal case about McCain, one that the public and press can grasp just as easily and remember, a message that has long-distance legs. A possible candidate occurred to me when McCain repeated his oft-made boast at the Rick Warren Forum, that he would "follow Bin Laden to the gates of Hell." We all know that John McCain ain’t following anyone to the gates of hell, but he will be sending plenty of other people’s children there. While most Americans will accept the loss of life necessary to take out Bin Laden, they won’t tolerate the unnecessary carnage if McCain takes a Bush-style detour to do it. "Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran" is not a joke to families who’ve had loved ones in harm's way for years.
So, I came up with a slogan, a slogan that is also a question, a question that has rarely been asked of McCain, even when he makes boastful remarks like "I know how to win a war." Or most chillingly "wars" Imagine, that wherever he goes, McCain is confronted with this slogan, on signs and buttons, a four-word phrase which is at the essence of this presidential campaign:
How Many Lives John?
This slogan can apply to much more than the war (the ones we’re in and the ones that in McCain’s own words, he is hell-bent to get us into). It can also be used to challenge McCain’s stance that we should shift even more of our healthcare system over to the private sector. "An important part of his plan is to use competition to improve the quality of health insurance" As a person with an incurable and debilitating cancer, I have seen, first hand, the suffering and yes even lives that have been shortened, by the pursuit of profits in for-profit healthcare. Fit this slogan to any life and death issue (except of course the sacred fetus) and it is more likely than not that John McCain has taken a position without concern over, or indifference to, the cost in human lives.
If we adopt a clear and simple message that challenges McCain’s shoot- from-the-lip, "My staff will get back to you on that" method of policy-making, maybe we can expose the emptiness that is at the center of his plans for America. Such a simple message repeated with every button, sign and chant, might break through the haze, and reporters and voters might find themselves asking themselves the same question.
If you think McCain looked awkward in answering how many houses he and his wife own, imagine what he’ll look like when he’s pressed to answer how many lives he thinks it will take to accomplish his increasingly militaristic positions. Unlike a personal detail, like how many homes you own, a commander in chief should always know how many soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines are likely to lose their lives (the "Butcher’s Bill") when they are to be used as the solution for a problem. Espcially when those problems may have non-military solutions.