No Dice to a President Who Loves to Roll Dice

Last night Barack Obama said, "If John McCain wants to have a debate about who has the temperament, and judgment, to serve as the next Commander-in-Chief, that's a debate I'm ready to have."

This morning John McCain confirmed the problem to which Obama alluded. His choice of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate is precisely the impulsive, risky sort of gamble that is a McCain trademark. He saw himself as losing, especially after the Democratic National Convention went so well. So he decided to roll the dice by choosing a woman--any woman, no matter how inexperienced and unknown.

The issue at this point is not about Gov. Palin, about whom we don't know enough to be too critical. The issue is about what choosing her says about John McCain.

Don't criticize the choice; criticize the chooser. He shoots first and asks questions later.

The VP choice is of a piece with McCain's quick, decisive, simple answers to Rick Warren's questions at the recent religious forum.

Even more, it is of a piece with Sen. McCain's readiness to go to war--with Iraq, with Iran, with Russia--don't talk, attack!

When it comes to picking the person who will have his finger on the nuclear button, we don't need a gambling man who loves to play craps--not when we are the stakes he is gambling.

No dice to a candidate who is so ready to roll the dice.

Read more reaction from HuffPost bloggers to John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate

{Historian Robert S. McElvaine is Elizabeth Chisholm Professor of Arts & Letters at Millsaps College. His latest book is Grand Theft Jesus: The Hijacking of Religion in America .

Comments

[JenniferInMO]

Speaking of rolling the dice, I read an article a while back which talked about McCain's love for the game of craps. Some of his aides apparently keep him from gambling on the campaign trail, but the article said he gambles 10 hours in a row and spends thousands. I wish I could find that article and it would be interesting to know more. If he gambles as much as the article indicated wouldn't that tick of his core base again?

[elroybug]

great blog. thanks for the reminder to criticize the chooser. The emperor has no clothes!

People are fed so much baloney by the republicans and the MSM that they begin to question their first instincts, what they know and their reactions. To begin to even consider this hype is just what Rove did with the village idiot Bush. We all know that this woman is simply nowhere near qualified to hold the second highest position in the land. Trust yourselves.

[BBackSoon]

I don’t know what I think about the Palin choice just yet.

But I get the impression that McSame doesn’t run his own campaign. Remember, he doesn’t speak for his campaign. Anyone that thinks that the Bushco Power people are going to go down without a fight are kidding themselves. The Power is going to do everything too keep control. Remember they only need to keep things within a few points in a handful of battleground states. As long as it is close enough all the Voter suppression, voter misinformation and rigged voting machines will make the difference. I think she is a pretty puppet.

Also what happens when McSame has some kind of health problem that causes him to step down. Does she take over? I was expecting a young good looking unknown, I just didn’t pick up on the Woman part. A somewhat reasonable talking Republican woman might be tough to beat.

[FullChat]

I'd say that the selection of a VP is a President's first Commander In Chief moment. The score:
Obama 1
McCain 0

[EvasDaddy]

Thank you for the apt analogy. This move appears to be a total rolling of the dice. I am an Obama supporter who went to bed last night with a great feeling about my candidate and my party. I had one reservation, and that was McCain's VP pick, which was promised for today. I truly worried that he may succeed in strengthening his position, and moving ahead in the race. I feel now that I worried for nothing.

[Pupadup4oBama]

Love the analogy!
I guess this means he actually picked her himself without the help of KR.

[MrTessier]

I bet KR is furious over this pick. He has to try to defend it. It seems that they have been frustrated by McCain's campaign all along. He finally does as they say, attack relentlessly, and he starts to pull even. Then he makes this choice?! I can almost feel KR's pain! (And it feels good!)