Defining Obama

Some excellent articles on how voters don't know Obama that well (thereby making the election solely about his competence) and the serious danger that McCain will indelibly mark him as a Michael Dukakis/John Kerry elitist early on, with the added bonus of playing into racially-loaded code-memes for "uppity negro." I agree that Obama needs to go on the offensive, and the sooner the better, especially in linking McCain (who still has a residual public image as a "maverick") with the Bush Administration train wreck. He should resist urges to make him look more like a "regular guy." Obama trying to bowl looked exactly like Hillary downing shots: contrived and insincere. Obama is smart; he shouldn't play dumb. The voters can smell a phony coming from a long ways off.

UPDATE: Speaking of "racially-loaded code-memes," Ezra Klein has a great piece on white privilege and white resentment.

Decisions, Decisions

Not ashamed to admit that I am having a great deal of trouble deciding between Hillary and Obama. Hillary's bonuses in my mind are that she comes pre-attacked by the Right Wing Howler Monkey Media Chorus (what else could they accuse her of? Eating babies?) and she knows exactly how brutal, vicious and unscupulous they can be. Her negatives are that she is basically Bill without the charm or the politicul acumen. There might even be something to the suggestion that she is so loathed by the Right Wing that their turnout will increase in Pavlovian response (something like a Four Minute Hate). Obama's main positive is that he inspires people. A lot. In a battle for turnout (which John Kerry spectacularly lost in 2004), a dynamic candidate can make all the difference. And he seems well plugged-in to both money and people. He even has an office, with a staffer, here in Cleburne, of all places in the universe. On the downside, he strikes me as naive, both about the brutal realities of governing and about the buzzsaw he'll be wading into. His only campaigns so far have been in comfortably Blue Illinois, where he faced such electoral juggernauts as Alan Keyes. Already, the Howler Monkeys have gone from claiming he is a Muslim Manchurian Candidate to speculating that his parents must have been commies, because that's where all mixed-race couples met back then. Seriously. The McCain campaign, fortunately, is being advised to attack Obama essentially by screaming "liberal!" and running away. That, plus the fact that McCain is about as far off beam in terms of the public mood (both for foreign and domestic policy) as possible can only help whoever gets the nod. I just wish I could be more assured that Obama can both take it and dish it out. This campaign is going to be the nastiest (and most expensive) in recent memory; I want the leader of my party ready for it.

Meanwhile, Back In Iraq...

...the Bush Administration orders the US Army to abandon one of the soldiers it is so vociferously defending from that evil ol' liberal John Kerry. So, uh, where's the outrage? MSM? Right-Wing Blogosphere? Anyone?

This Moment of Feigned Moral Outrage Brought To You By...

Your liberal media at work again, as the MSM obediently parrots Right-Wing talking points about a Kerry comment that is clearly being twisted out of all resemblance to its original context, which was a cheap shot at George W. Bush. At least Kerry knows to fight back now. If this does nothing, it should remind Democrats of the vital importance of GOTV. Let's just recognize this artifical "controversy" for what it is, yet more evidence that the GOP's death throes.

Meanwhile, Senator George Allen (R-Wannabe Redneck) has graduated from tagging those who displease him with obscure West Africa French colonialist racial slurs to having his goons beat the crap out of them. The MSM had no comment.

UPDATE: Media Matters has a compilation of Your Liberal Media regurgitating the GOP line.

Thank God That Terrorist Appeaser Kerry Lost, Huh?

Putting aside all the jokes from the 2004 campaign about who had the highest college grades (which just went to prove my point that it was an election for student body president between the captain of the football team and the president of the chess club), it now appears Bush is actually cribbing notes from Kerry, cutting-and-pasting the Iran policy he mocked during the election.