I just watched John McCain give a speech that was carried live on cable news. I came in late so it took me a minute to realize that his rhetorical construct was “it’s the future and here’s what I did in my first term.” He was saying things like “the economy is robust and people are confident” and I thought he was on another planet at first. But once I figured out his approach I had to admit he was rolling out a very strong general election strategy. Basically, the speech could have been delivered just as easily by Barack Obama. Aside from a few examples of policy difference, McCain’s speech focused on the policy outcomes (ending the war, improving the economy) that almost everyone agrees on.
I am comforted that this election has the potential to be great. Great not because my favorite candidate is guaranteed to win, but that we might be able to finally have a substantive discussion about how to solve the big problems. I know many of my colleagues in the progressive blogging community have little nice to say about McCain, but if there’s still a little bit of “McCain 2000” in him instead of just “Crazy 2007 Base-Pleasin’ McCain” he’s about the best Republican candidate the country could get. I look forward to the discussion. So, for chrissakes, could we stop talking about which wealthy U.S. Senator has a Vulcan mind meld with white people who don’t have a college degree and start talking about the issues? (Hint: that’s what blue collar workers want to hear about, anyway).
What I like about this primary season is that any candidate who got the least bit negative got hammered by the voters. The two likely candidates, Obama and McCain, are the two who were able to take the high road most often, and rarely got negative. (Though there were a couple blunders down that path, they were quickly corrected.) The only candidate who has chosen to use a lot of negativity and who was able to hang in has been Hillary. It’s why I started out in the Hillary camp but migrated to Obama.
Like you, Aaron, I see the potential for a campaign this summer and fall that truly discusses the issues. Obama and McCain have the potential “high road” approach that could be very exciting. I fervently hope this indicates a major change in our voting public away from the Republican “values” malarky to a thorough consideration of what really matters, and a change from the perspective that we are electing the equivalent of a prelate rather than a king.
A very welcome change in our politics indeed!