Before he became the Republican presidential nominee, John McCain suffered through five and a half years as a POW and eight years of the Bush Administration. Sadly, these horrific experiences eroded his mental faculties and when the Arizona Senator finally took the stage at the St. Paul Republican Convention he...

As the 2008 presidential campaign enters its final two months, there are several "elephants in the room," big issues being ignored. One is race; the fact some Americans won't vote for Barack Obama because of his skin color. Another is John McCain's health; the reality he's likely to become senile...

As Democrats left Denver, there was an overwhelming consensus that the 2008 Convention was extraordinarily successful. Dems united behind Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Here are a few final thoughts about the week.

Hillary Voters: While we met a number of Democrats who had been supporters of Hillary Clinton, none...

Thursday - The fourth night of the Denver Democratic Convention was the night Democrats had been waiting for. Each night had a theme: Monday's was that Barack and Michelle Obama are uniquely American. Tuesday's was Unity when Hillary Clinton implored Dems to support Obama. The theme Wednesday night was...

Wednesday - So far, all of the Democrats' Denver convention objectives have been met: the convention logistics have been flawless; Michelle Obama's speech argued effectively that she and her husband are Americans, "just like you"; Hillary and Bill Clinton gave Obama the resounding support required to unify the Party; and...

Tuesday - As she took center stage at the Denver Democratic convention, there was a huge amount of pressure on Hillary Clinton. She followed not only the keynote address of former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, but also the unexpectedly dynamic oration of Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer. And many Dems felt...

Monday - Much of the opening night of the Denver Democratic convention was devoted to a reintroduction of Barack Obama. If you're a loyal Dem or one of the millions who've read his autobiography, Dreams From My Father, you probably don't need to be told who he is and what...

Sunday - As Democrats trooped into Denver, they breathed a collective sigh of relief. After a roller-coaster week, the collective wisdom was that Barack Obama's campaign had gotten back on track. And that the selection of Delaware Senator Joe Biden had greatly strengthened the ticket.

"We're about to blow it...

Over the last six weeks, John McCain's campaign has gotten its act together. The latest Pew Research Poll indicates the 2008 presidential contest has tightened and Barack Obama's lead is now within the statistical margin of error.

On July 2nd, Steve Schmidt - trained by Karl Rove...

It's said our primeval ancestors had a simple arithmetic system: "One, two, three, many". That describes the focus of many 2008 voters, whose concerns are the economy, energy prices, Iraq, and "those other problems." As we get closer to the presidential election, most Americans aren't worried about global warming. Maybe...

Three months before the 2008 Presidential election, we know the parameters of the contest. McCain's fear campaign will be relentlessly negative. Both sides will spend obscene amounts of money. Roughly half the states will be in play. And, the frames will be simple: age, continuity, and scope of vision.

In...

Once upon a time, John McCain merited his reputation as a maverick politician, a "truth teller." Reporters fought to get on his campaign bus, "the straight talk express," because they expected to hear the Arizona Senator spew uncensored opinions on a variety of subjects. Alas, those days are over. Three...

During the week of July 20th, Barack Obama visited Afghanistan, Iraq, and several other countries, strengthening his claim to be commander-in-chief material. John McCain spent the same period firing off a barrage of negative ads and comments: "Obama would rather lose a war than an election." The Arizona Senator fears...

Five weeks after Barack Obama clinched the Democratic nomination, the parameters of the 2008 presidential contest have been established. The battle will be waged in roughly 33 states and cost more than a billion dollars. The central issues will be gas prices, the economy, and Iraq. And, despite John McCain's...

Barack Obama's 2008 campaign strategy (PDF) aims for more than winning the presidency. If he holds the twenty states John Kerry won in 2004 and adds Ohio, Obama will have a majority of the electoral vote. But he's not satisfied with that: Obama will...

Democrats have a 51-49 majority in the Senate that depends upon the support of independents Joe Lieberman and Bernie Sanders. However, Lieberman supports John McCain for President, which suggests the Connecticut Senator may vote with Republicans in a new Congress. Therefore, if Democrats want to increase their majority to 60,...

It's the price of oil, stupid! The most recent Gallup Poll shows three issues dominating the 2008 presidential election: "energy, including gas prices," "the economy," and "the situation in Iraq." Oil connects these concerns and also the prospect of global climate change. To win in November, Barack...

Four months out from the 2008 presidential election, it's obvious that Barack Obama and John McCain offer a stark contrast on their positions on the key issues, their personalities and, most tellingly, their worldviews.

Obama is 47 and mixed-race, the product of a lower-middle-class background. His personal...

Now that Barack Obama has finally secured the Democratic nomination for President, it's time for a candid assessment of his chances. To defeat John McCain in November Obama must respond to three challenges.

The first is the legacy of sexism. Recent polls indicate Obama trails McCain by...

After Barack Obama secured the Democratic nomination for president, his campaign immediately segued into the general election. Before we're totally submerged by Obama-McCain comparisons, it's informative to consider turning points in Obama's brilliant campaign: three critical endorsements.

Two came near the beginning. The first was by Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill....