The Obama-McCain Strategy

Regardless of the outcome in Pennsylvania today, Barack Obama should begin to shift the focus of his attack from Hillary Clinton's fading star to John McCain's feisty Supernova.

Obama's people have downplayed the expectations for a victory in the PA race in an interview with The Washington Post, but this is an unwise strategy. This kind of speculation fuels the "horse race" gossip that the mainstream media thrives covering.

The media likes a rough and tumble, neck-to-neck race. They're used to it after eight years of covering Bush-Gore and then Bush-Kerry. Now, they've been covering Obama-Clinton for months, and their natural inclination is to turn everything into an 11th hour production.

Except, this isn't the 11th hour. This is that awkward moment at the Oscars when the old-timey actress stands stubbornly at the podium and shouts over the Orchestra that's been trying to play her off the stage for the past five minutes. Oh, she has every right to still be standing there, but the audience wishes she would just bow out gracefully for everyone's sake.

Even if Hillary Clinton wins by 12 points in Pennsylvania (a pretty generous conclusion based on some of the more recent numbers rolling out of the state) she'll only pick up 200,000, or so, in the popular vote. That's hardly a sign of a popular mandate. If Hillary wins, she can only hope to pick up some crumbs in North Carolina and Indiana before -- red-faced and winded -- she'll have to haggle, cajole, and threaten super delegates at the Democratic National Convention if she has a prayer of winning this thing.

Poorly managed from the start, and now broke, the Clinton camp is a train wreck. Insane Bill Clinton digs their grave a little deeper every day. Even stalwart supporters like James Carville seemed baffled during his appearance on Meet The Press when asked to explain the behavior of the normally calculating and politically flawless former presidential couple.

Barack Obama is ahead in the popular vote. He's won more states. He's won more delegates. He outraised Hillary 2-1 in March, and he did so with smaller contributions from more people (read: lots of real-life poor people like him).

That sounds like a popular mandate.

If Hillary wins Pennsylvania by more than 5 points, she'll most certainly present this victory as a resurgence - one in many that will fuel her unlikely comeback. But that is a fairytale. Clinton is finished, short of a party coup where the Clinton camp usurps the nomination from Obama in some kind of insane power grab, which don't get me wrong, would be awesome...like some kind of terrifically violent Benny Hill skit.

What Obama needs to do is present his Democratic nomination as an inevitability. He needs to shift the focus from Obama-Clinton to Obama-McCain even if she wins Pennsylvania. He needs to "rise above" the in-party squabbling and start focusing on the economy, Iraq, Iran, and more importantly, McCain.

John McCain, the man who has now confused Iran with Al-Qaeda more times than Charlie Gibson uttered the phrase "Flag Pin" in the ABC debates. John McCain, the old bastard, who presents himself as a political maverick, but who in realty is an elitist Beltway Expansionist, eager to "take on all comers" in a global fistfight, and whose version of idealism is keeping U.S. troops in Iraq for 100 years.

My point is: John McCain is ripe for examination. Barack Obama would be wise to start acting like a Democratic Presidential nominee and start placing himself in the public's mind as the guy ready to take on the Republicans.

Obama and Clinton's platforms are too similar - the rhetoric too stale - for this debate to go on any longer. The long nomination process has already taken its toll. An AP-Yahoo poll last week shows that McCain is evenly matched with Obama and Clinton, having closed the 13-point advantage the Democrats had over the Republicans a few months ago. However, the same poll also indicated that a clear majority of Democratic voters now think Obama has a better chance of defeating McCain in November than Clinton.

The best move for the Obama camp is to leave the old girl in the dirt and move forward. The first step should be a full-blown assault on McCain's gaffes that have transpired over the past months before the media collectively yawns and forgets they ever occurred in the first place.

Comments

[grendl]

In a strange way I almost admire the Hillary campaign for its sheer audacity.

Kind've the way I admire Goldfinger, and Dr. No in the James Bond films. I know they're doing wrong, nefarious deeds, like the race baiting and fear mongering tactics she's employed, unapologetically, but it's really a bit amusing to watch such ambition unleashed upon the party.

And its fun to watch her henchmen rally around her efforts as well, pretending they're the GOP, a new breed of tough Democrats, for a harsh new world order. I mean its disgusting, really, but on some level its wildly entertaining. As much as we detest the Gordon Gekko, Donald Trump, Simon Cowl, Daniel Plainview greed is good, I drink your milkshake Machiavellianism, its also that same spirit upon which this country was founded, competition.

I don't want Goldfinger to bow out of this race. I wand James Bond to defeat her, totally and definitively, so as to impress upon the next villain his aptitude and cunning. No brushing off her attacks, but attacking back. Barack, stop being so fucking polite. We love it when you hit back.

[nazcalito]

"The best move for the Obama camp is to leave the old witch in the ditch and move forward."

I think the Obama camp is pretty smart about what to do. Attacking McCain in the primary is kind of pointless, since the vote is not between Obama and McCain.

[grendl]

I disagree.

He needs to vanquish Hillary here and now. This ignoring the enemy, playing the prevent defense, crawling to the finish line startegy is bullshit. If he sputters running on empty going into the national election he may well be defeated by McCain.

We've got to see his stand up to this Jason Vorhees, Freddy Krueger, and Terminator hybrid that Hillary has become. We don't want a pussy for president. We don't want a whiner, silently giving the finger brushing her off.

That's what Kerry tried to do, and Dukakis. This country will not tolerate someone who stands on the defensive taking a pounding. Gandhi god love him wouldn't stand a chance in today's political octagon of Death. Barack needs to come out and say ( its too late in PA of course ) " Yeah I said it. The American people are angry. If you don't agree vote for Hillary."

Too much niceness, too much vacillating, letting idiots like Hutchinson get to pretend they're tough guys. Letting a woman play the role of bully, really not a smart political tack. We do want a break from the GOP politics of old, but that doesn't mean going easy on an opponent who has done everything in her power to sink your campaign including race baiting and fear mongering.

[RickO]

Obama needs to not only begin acting like the presumptive nominee, but also like the front-runner against McCain. That does not mean a Clintonesque pretentious inevitability, but a defining of McCain as the aging cold warrior who has a) served with honor but now needs a good pasture b) whose policies are, of course, not acceptable to contemporary society and c) does not even occupy the moral high-ground. Cast him as complicit in the mess we're in, that bin Laden is still a threat, that the markets are melting down, on and on. Restate the original mission of the Iraq invasion as a pretext to declaring real victory, on that basis, and coming home, rather than surrendering our forces to the whim of a civil-warring Iraqi government as McCain is proposing.

[kappa08]

Agree and disagree... There is plenty of time to take the old man's legs out. What Obama can't do is take them both on. I realize he already is to some extent but not to the level he would have to if he goes all out on "shakes".
I think it's dangerous to just lower guard and avoid the Clinton world tour hate machine that is about as nasty I have ever seen a democrat be with a straight face. Judging by the last debate Obama doesn't or will not hit the pitches down the middle. Personally I would have filet"d her, her husband and even thrown in Chelsea for kindling. Especially when he tried to be the bigger person and opened the door for her to relate to the toll they both are enduring. She left him hanging like back stabbing "friend" that leaves you cold when bullied in the school yard.
"If" she wins by less than 6...then I say turn your back on the screeching Sybil and show her the back of your hand. If not pull out the sawed off shotgun and put her out of her misery. Get mean.
As for McCain...just lob some floaters his way and keep your finger near his eye. He will eventually snap and show how much of a flip-flopping, jellyfish, dick that he really is....

[heather11483]

Agreed. The guy's got to start looking forward to November, hopefully while Clinton is still attempting to sling mud at him and thereby looking even more desperate. And there is SO much to call McCain on that I sort of can't believe that neither candidate is properly having a go at him yet.

[izforever]

...should begin to shift the focus of his attack???

He's been the presumptive nominee since Texas. I've been telling David Axelrod for a month and a half that Obama should start acting like it.

The media conversation should be about Obama and McCain, not Obama and what's-her-name.

http://trueconservative.typepad.com/trueconservative/2008/03/hillary-its-ove.html

http://trueconservative.typepad.com/trueconservative/2008/03/pelosi-its-over.html

Is Axelrod an amateur?

Steve

[Fleisch]

Completely agree. It's time for Obama to start acting like the presumptive nominee. The media will be forced to move its focus to the McCain-Obama duel or risk losing "the scoop".

[pagebike]

Rumors of Hillary's demise are greatly exaggerated.

[NJOsprey]

Quick. Where is the garlic and the stakes?

[desmirl]

Maybe when all the creditors turn Hillary's overdue bills in for collection, she'll get the message that the stayed too long at the party.