P.O.W., It's the New Teflon

As John Amato, from Crooks and Liars assiduously points out: Maureen Dowd, Steven Benen, Ana Marie Cox, and Ben Smith, among others have noted how John McCain is playing his war hero card - hard. (Newsweek's Howard Fineman even argues using this POW reference so frequently may backfire come RNC convention time.)

But I think that's a misread.

Here's why it works:

#1. If ever anyone were born with a silver spoon in the military, John McCain had one. He is the son of an admiral and for several years was held a as a prisoner of war, a POW, in Vietnam. While being the son of an admiral might qualify him as an elitist, this too ends up being a weak criticism to make. Why? Because McCain's been talking about 'his story' for years. Here's a clip for 1985. Does the lefty press really want to try to undo more than 20 years of PR in less than 3 months? It's a story McCain has been tweaking, with some variation, for many many years; critiquing it's overuse is too little, too late.

And #2. The American psychodrama unfolds something like this: Americans are afraid. They value what they perceive as courage. They value someone who will defend against the outsider, who will not turn his back on his country, who will do what needs to be done, who will do the hardscrabble, dirty fight and not look back. This is the role we expect from (war) heroes.

John Kerry's failure is a perfect example of this at play: Kerry served in Vietnam, he was not a prisoner of war, but was awarded medals for his service, which he gave back. In this clip, Kerry tells us he "took part in shootings in free fire zones..." Americans have a tough time with guilt and regret, for the reasons I've already listed above. Kerry was not able to distill and package his emotions in a way that made the public less afraid. The 'Swift Boat Veterans for Truth' were then able to step-in and tell his story for him. And so he failed.

So knowing that Americans are afraid and having done all this legwork branding himself as a POW, the McCain camp has only two things it need to do:

- Master the power of repetition. The more you say it the more it sticks. POW is not a bad thing to have stick.

- Exploit the power of fear

So while many veterans feel the sting and the complexity of their war stories, McCain is happy to go full throttle into pimping it for votes because he knows what works.

My grandfather lost his hearing in one ear from WWII. My brother earned a bronze star fighting in Iraq last year. Neither of them talk about their wars. They both hold a quite dignity about their experiences. I think this is more common of those who serve in the forces and defend us.

So what can Dems do? Dems can finally find a real package for 'safety' or 'security'. Perhaps as Maureen Dowd suggests, McCain is fighting Vietnam over and over again in his head, and if this is the case, Dems can argue: "We don't have to fight old wars." In the end, they have to find an antidote to fear. And you already know that is. It's courage.

(And I don't mean a "Red Badge of Courage"! I'm joking in the video above. I'm of course referring here to Stephen Crane's novel about the dilemmas facing a soldier fighting during the Civil War. The main character, after many troubles, finds out what courage is.)

Comments

[UltraClassic]

This reminds me of one of the great lines from "Tombstone."

"Well, are you going to do something or are you just going to stand there and bleed?"

Logan, stop your whining and deal with it. I for one am getting damn sick and tired of liberals and leftists whining about McCain's POW status. The fact is you people have shown much more sympathy towards the people locked up in GITMO than you have towards John McCain and what he went through in Viet Nam.

So deal with it Logan. I was a big time Hillary supporter. Me and other's like me got out "mania-d" by Obomania. We are dealing with it, we will vote Obama. But you guys picked this guy knowing what he would be up against and what his deficits are as compared to McCain.

[LeftRight]

Um..... I'm going to have to call Bulls**t on you here! I'm worried about the fact that we are TORTURING people, people who did NOTHING wrong, people who are being held WITHOUT CAUSE. I am just as concerned when that happens to US troops, but at least in THOSE cases the people being held are there for CAUSE!!

And before you try to come back on me, I am a veteran, and pretty much every man in my family (for the last 100 years) is/was a veteran! I understand the military life, and that's one of the risks you take. But to claim that he's immune from questioning because he brings up his own "heroism" and former POW status is WRONG!!

[UncommonSenz]

This type of defeatist strategy is exactly what dooms the Democratic party each election.

The question of whether McCain (and his economic adviser Phil "whiner" Graham) are out of touch with the reality faced by most Americans is valid. That question is NOT answered by his courage displayed as a POW.

So, to say, "I admire your service and sacrifice for country, but the economic crises of TODAY require someone who actually understands economics" is the right line of attack. Praise the past, show it has no bearing on the issue at hand, and contrast the future.

This way, the more he draws from the POW well, the more it exposes that tactic for what it is- a naked bid to avoid discussing the present and future.

[jeanrenoir]

The new Teflon indeed. Any stupidity can be forgiven, as with Reagan, because the American animals have made up their minds about McCain, as they did about Reagan, and no mere doltish comments or actions can change the public's affection for their "hero." Rush better thank his lucky stars for McCain, since no other Republican could possibly have won, given Bush's total failure, even with all those "hard-working, WHITE" racists out there in TV land.

[burndtdan]

isn't it a little premature to say something is "too little, too late" before the republicans even hold their convention?

i mean, holy crap, should they have started attacking him a year ago?

[DrFitz]

McCain became a bad joke a long time ago. He's so overboard now that you have to conclude he's forcing us all to think over and over in our heads that he's become a Giuliani clone. Biden doesn't have to even say it, but it's clear that for some bizzare reason McCain wants him to. Their campaign's sense of strategy boggles the mind.

[cynicism101]

Boggling Strategy?

You're suggesting the strategy on the other side is good?

Let's see, shun a candidate that collects 18M votes (including the primary demographic you need), carries all the big battleground states - in favor of a guy who can deliver you three delegates you already had. Sure, she's on record of saying you're not qualified ... but so is the guy you selected.

Then you give her center stage at your convention so she can plant the seeds for 2012,
then let her husband be the prime focus the following night. Ie, 50% of your convention focus is being given to a has-been, and an also-ran. The first 25% was dedicated to your wife, who you've spent months telling us to leave alone, that she's not part of this.

Yeah - now there's some strategy ....

[LeftRight]

How exactly has she been "shunned"? She had fewer of the only votes that matter: delegates. This means that she lost. Then, Obama was going to vet her for veep, and she said that she would only be vetted if they could guarantee that she would be the veep! Now she's coming out and saying that Obama IS the nominee, and that we should all support him! And to make matters worse (or better, from my perspective!) SHE was the one to stop the roll call and ensure that Obama was declared the nominee by acclamation!!

[morselofthought]

In recent years, the media has been holding less and less sacred. I think the RNC is a little too soon for Americans to get tired of the POW card. But people know him as such, and with repetition from the RNC, and using it at the drop of a hat, every time he doesn't want to answer a question, will make people tired of it. When reporters ask him a tough question, and all they have to report on is that he mentioned his ex-POW status, I have confidence people will see through the ruse.

[MyGuyO]

John McCain is going past the ridiculous. He can't say something smart so he always falls back on his POW past.

We Phoenicians know better about McCain.

Yesterday McCain spoke before the American Legion Convention held in PHX.

Here are a few of the comments published in the AZ Republic Newspaper this morning:

"Retired Brig. General John Adams, a Dem delegate from Tucson, said that it has been McCain's judgement -- not Obama's-- that has been faulty on foreign affairs. Adams pointed to McCain's comments in the wake of the terrorist attacks of Sept 11, 2001, when he fanned the flames for possible military retaliation, but also Iraq, Syria and Pakistan. Obama opposed invasion of Iraq, Adams, a 30-year Army veteran who spend time in both Irqq and Afgthanistan in 2004, said Obama's position has proved correct. Barack Obama has been right about Iraq, said Aams."

[cynicism101]

Yes, he likes to state that he always opposed the war. Problem was, it was not an issue being addressed by the Illinios State Senate. He can *say* he opposed the war, but of the 156 votes cast against that resolution ... well, not one of them belong to him. So, what he *says* he would have opposed ...see, that just doesn't matter.

Case in point. He spent a lot of time telling us all how he opposed the FISA legislation. He told us he would not vote for it. Funny thing happened on the day the issue came to a vote - All those things he *said* he would do ... well, he chose a 'safer' path.

Thus, exactly why am I to trust that he would not have voted to authorize military force just because he *said* he was against it? Didn't the mate he just selected also vote "yea"???

The FISA vote casts solid doubt to his convictions and suggests he would have just followed that crowd and voted "yea" ... or tried his old IL senate trick of voting "present"

[LeftRight]

And yet it DOES matter! I was ALSO opposed to the war before it started! By your logic that means that it doesn't matter that I opposed it, since I wasn't a representative or Senator at the time!

[JamesInDenver]

McCain has overplayed his POW card. I think we all assume, because of McCain's military background, that he is liked and supported by all veterans. This turns out not to be true. Here's an interesting video of the 1990's Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs.

(The video unfortunately starts with a clip of McCain's "Bomb Bomb Iran" joke, the interesting part starts after that.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoZ3BPqXrq0&feature=related

[cynicism101]

James,

Those of us who have served are well aware there is nothing shocking to your epiphany. The military is built from all walks of society. To suggest that everyone who is, or was in the military will automatically gravitate to others from the military is a naive simplification.

[LeftRight]

The real answer to the question is "I was in a POW camp for 5 and 1/2 years!"

Seriously, though, I am a veteran. My father is a veteran. My brother is a veteran. Both of my uncles are veterans. My grandfather was a veteran. His brother was a veteran. Do you know how many war stories that I heard growing up? NONE. Not a single one. NEVER. I heard stories about life in the military, but never once did I hear a "war" story. I'm friends with MANY vets over at the VFW near my house. We all sit around talking about our friends in the military, where we went on liberty, what we did to the poor saps who came in after us, and what was done to us by the bastards who came in before us. NOT ONCE have I heard any of them tell a "war" story.

That John McCain is so callous as to come out swinging with this EVERY time that he's asked an uncomfortable question..... Well I must say that I have NO respect for him as a veteran anymore!

[SaltySaltillo]

Well said. My grandfather was a marine in the south pacific for 3 years during WWII. I know from my own research where he was and what may have happened to him and what he may have done. But I never ever heard him tell war stories.

[bethinCary]

MCCain= NOPE.
Obama= HOPE

we've been voting NOPE & fear for over 40 years now.
this year will be different..