Posted by
Andrews on Sunday, October 05, 2008 10:19:03 AM
I saw two other items which may be bad news for Obama.
First, there was mention on Fox news that the Ayers story has finally broken in the MSM. Of course, from the coverage I saw, the media seems to be presenting the Obama version, that he was almost a stranger to Obama, with whom Obama had almost no contact. No mention of Obama's role in funding Ayers driven education programs, no talk of the long-term ties and "mentorship", and so on. But it is a bad sign for Obama that the story is breaking at all. Once the name is out there, the public will be much more open to opposition information about Ayers.
Now if only the name Rezko could make its way back into the media.
The second is that Obama is changing focus from the bailout and crisis to health care. At the same time, McCain has said he is changing focus to background and character. The fact that both parties are moving away form the "crisis" suggests that they have realized what I have been proposing, that since it is not touching them, the middle class has by and large lost interest in the supposed collapse. They simply do not believe the economy is crashing around them when they can see no signs other than political horse trading and overheated news reports.
However, the choice of alternatives is telling. McCain has realized rightly that Obama is weakest when we look at his ever shifting beliefs and the shady cast of characters with whom he chooses to associate. Rather than attack him on his present nebulous stands, it makes much more sense to attack him on his very liberal record.
On the other hand, what is Obama thinking? I know he is young, but he is older than I am, and I am old enough to recall Hillarycare and the incredible lack of support that engendered. If he proposes anything like socialized medicine, he has guaranteed himself a loss among independents, and, combined with angry Demcorats, he is facing a clear loss.
On the other hand, if he promotes something more moderate, he can have troubles with his base. The new voters, the young who expect freebies from an Obama presidency, already upset by Biden's statement that he and Obama are not against the war in Iraq, or promises that Obama will send MORE troops to Afghanistan, are going to be even less delighted by anything less than fully socialized health care. If Obama turns too far from his hard left supporters, that block could evaporate quickly, and, though the polls may continue to show him winning, he can find turnout terribly low on election day.
All in all, despite the polls, these are not promising signs for Obama.
POSTSCRIPT
On an amusing note, on Fox news, a woman who was an advisor for the Clinton campaign very revealingly said, talking of campaign approaches, "character doesn't matter to me." Truer words were never spoken.