I'm of two minds about Senator McCain's suggestion that Friday's debate be postponed. I'm not conflicted over whether it's a good idea or not. Oh no, I think it's a terrible idea. I just can't decide if it (along with his decision to suspend his campaign) in well-meaning but misguided or crassly manipulative.
I managed to catch Senator Obama's statement later in the day and found that he was expressing the same reaction I had had to McCain's decision. In a time of crisis it's all the more important for the presidential candidates to be out there making their cases to the people. I remember a week or two ago I heard one of the TV talking heads, I forget who, in a rare moment of insight make the point that this election is more important than the current economic problems. The next president is going to be the one who's in charge of leading the country out of not only the economic troubles, but all the problems we've got ahead of us. There's not much time left before election day, it would be foolish of both the candidates and the electorate to waste any of it. Further, as Obama pointed out, a president is going to have to be able to multi-task effectively in office. There's no reason that the candidates can't continue to campaign and do their part to help with the current situation. I could see changing the topic of Friday's debate to domestic issues (since those are the issues at the forefront of people's minds), but cancel it? Don't be silly.
I suppose the real question now is will the electorate be impressed by McCain's choice or will it come back to haunt him.
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My reaction was very different. Although I'd bet anything that this is a crassly manipulative move, it does have appeal. (And the reason that I think it's crassly manipulative is that EVERYTHING he's done lately is in that vein, the sellout.)
ReplyDeleteIt makes a lot of sense to say that we should focus, for just a week, on addressing the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression/in our nation's history (depending on who's describing it) instead of stumping for election.
Obama's point is also valid, though. I don't see this coming back to bite McCain much. I think it was pretty smart.
Seriously, though, what's he going to do? Okay, he and Obama are meeting with the president and Congressional leaders today. Great. How does airing political ads in Ohio interfere with that? How does having a debate on Friday night interfere with that?
ReplyDeleteIt's a silly move. Now, perhaps the symbolism will work for him politically, but there's no practical reason for the move outside of politics.
No, there is a lot to do. This a huge issue, worthy of massive amounts of study and thought and debate with colleagues. This should be the highest priority of all congresspeople right now, until they make their decision on how to proceed. The campaign does take up a lot of time. Preparing for a debate of this level of importance is no joke. He has to be not only informed about all kinds of issues (which he already mostly is, probably), but also articulate and inspiring. That takes practice. Maybe he won't get it even with practice, but he sure as hell is going to try. Of course, that's all very reasonable; but I still don't buy that it's the reason he's asking for the delay. The real reason is that they've seen Palin off-script and are rightly scared. Biden is going to mop the floor with her. And McCain knows that he appears very Nixon-like next to Obama's Kennedy.
ReplyDeleteYes, preparing for a debate is a lot of work. Yes, there is a lot of work to be done on the financial crisis (as an aside, can we stop comparing the current situation to the Depression? It's nowhere near that bad, and while it could concievable get that bad if the situation is mishandled, alarmism and panic are not conducive to good decision making). However, as president he may very well have to deal with two, three, maybe even four crises at once. He's going to have to be able to multi-task. Beyond that, niether McCain or Obama are drafting the legislation or presiding over the Senate. They've both expressed their concerns with the plan's current form and a need to get this passed. McCain certainly has a role trying to corral members of his own party that are going to be resistant to this kind of government intervention. I'm sorry, but I just don't see John McCain's role in this as being so time consuming as to justify dropping everything.
ReplyDeleteIf the message here is that a sitting Senator can't do his/her job and run for president at the same time, then maybe we should just enact a law requiring any elected official to resign their position if they become a presidential nominee.