In a recent article online, Tom Pilla suggested that Senator Obama should engage in town-hall style debates across the country to get his message out. After thinking of this, I think this might actually be an excellent idea.
One of the largest problems that the Obama campaign has faced is getting his message out. The McCain campaign has embraced emotionism to draw people's attention away from facts and reason and instead to "feelings" and the like. This has proven to be a powerful weapon for the McCain campaign, with the lies and distortions forcing Obama off his message and instead warding off the emotional drama that got the Shrub elected in two Presidential campaigns.
McCain recently claimed that the lies and slander were necessary because Obama refused to town hall debates. McCain was using emotion once again, but this time it could hurt him, especially considering the venue he suggested: Town Hall debates, where voters ask questions of the candidates.
Now, Senator Obama is not exactly the best debator out there. His debates against Senator Clinton revealed that he is best when working from a prepared format, and that the chaos of unpredictable questions in debates could be a weakness for him. However, he has improved in this. His recent interview with O'Reilly resulted in O'Reilly having grudging respect for him, and Obama being exposed to some fairly tough questions that he didn't really have pat prepared answers for.
Town Hall debates would allow Obama and McCain to get their message across the nation. It would also destroy the emotionism that is McCain's most powerful weapon, for if exposed to emotionism, Obama can immediately respond and diffuse fears. The debates will likely deal with minutia and specifics, and with the current fears about the economy, Obama will likely show his own strengths while McCain's economic weaknesses will become more apparent. Also, it increases the likelihood for McCain to suffer a meltdown on the national stage. If he loses his temper in front of voters and has one of his infamous fits... he's lost.
It also takes away one more excuse for McCain's slanders and lies. If he continues with them despite the fact Obama is doing these debates with him, then it'll become far more obvious that McCain is just saying whatever he can in a desperate bid to gain power.
Thoughts?
Robert A. Howard, Tangents Reviews