McCain Apologizes For His Campaign But Not For the GOP

I saw the footage of McCain correcting an audience member regarding Obama being an Arab. His response was to correct the error but not to address the issue. Being an Arab means being a terrorist to a portion of the GOP. Granted it's hopefully still a mere fraction but never-the-less isn't it important for the party to distance itself from xenophobia and racism? When you stop to consider the GOP-created wedge issues, their problems in electorate become pretty obvious.

GOP politics has identified and delineated the following groups: Hispanics with border policy; Blacks with its handling of not only Katrina but Rev. Wright; Gays with marriage/rights issues; Women with abortion rights and equal pay policy; Workers with union busting; Arabs, Muslims and immigrants with terror-mongering; Christians on the opposite side of the abortion issue and with evangelical overtones as basic as the "war on Xmas" or referencing the "end of days;" and Nationalists with flag-burning, pledge of allegiance minutiae.

The opportunity is that these are all (mostly) strategies to attract single-issue voters. Why the Democrats haven't figured out the Venn diagram to negate this tactic is beyond me. These issues overlap. Within the realm of importance most of them are trumped by the economy as evidenced in the past few weeks of polling. While Democrats have ridden that angle they seem to have their work cut out for them. They need to take a big tent approach to the wedge issues. Divide and conquer only works when you have enough wherewithal to fight every divided battle. In this election the chinks in the GOP armor are apparent. They cannot fight all these issues. Their wedges are not aligned properly which may be a reason why you see McCain's damage control apology-on-Friday is not even beginning to address the larger issues. There is no attempt to attract any new voters -- only to retain/appease the base.

The GOP is fractured. The likelihood of their winning this election is near-nil but the new problem on the forefront is what to do with Sarah Palin. She's unimpressive to the mainstream for all the things that endear her to the isolated and myopic GOP base. This pitbull is far more likely to do damage to the owner. The question is whether the GOP base will allow the party to give up the new pet.

Comments

[Pdubya]

The GOP has shrunk because its true base is near gone. The neo-cons have highjacked the republican party, much like the neo-liberals have the democrat party. There aren't many true liberals on the Hill, either. Only 32% of the populace votes after you cull out all the extraneous numbers.

Its a plutocracy. True conservatives have supported www.campaignforliberty.com who has also attracted many independents and even anti-war, democrats.

nader, mckinney, baldwin, barr, and paul all agreed on four american principles:

non-intervention foreign policy
end the fed
restore civil liberties
change electoral and voting process

third party, even fractionalized, IS the majority in the U.S. we must hit them from the far right and far left and disassemble the plutocracy.

www.votepact.org

paleoconservatives are ashamed the council on foreign relations have put forward mccain. we are amazed that the liberals have put so much faith in obama when researched, shows his money comes from the same puppet-mas­ters....th­e international bankers, lobby, wallstreet, and crooked congress.

W. prepped the constitution. Obama will sell us the New New Deal and the New World Order.

If you don't understand history and the meaning of sound money, then you will be in for a rude awakening in a few years.

[BarackMarley]

McCain's campaign has hit an all time low. John Lewis, one of three people, McCain said he would confide in if made president has accused him of sowing hatred and division and compared his campaign to George Wallace. He wasn't that far off.

John Lewis Vs. John McCain. Why Lewis was Right.
http://current.com/items/89403633_john_lewis_vs_john_mccain

[PDinCA]

"isn't it important for the party to distance itself from xenophobia and racism?"

No, they're trying to shore up their base!

[PDXKevin]

They have figured it out. "It's the economy, stupid!"

Although for some reason, some people still vote against their own economic self-interests.