Yes, we’ve been a bit at each other’s throats, but just as we were in early January — proud to have two such formidable candidates seeking to lead the ticket — so I think we are becoming again. The winner was not anointed and did not acquire the nom as a consequence of some early-primary fluke such as Candidate X screaming yee-haw in Iowa. The winner was not the beneficiary of some scandal such as adversary Candidate Y turning out to have plagiarized a speech. Both candidates remained valid and serious contenders and the battle for “who is best for this slot” has been fought between registered voters participating in the primary-season process, far more than by the media enshrining or decapitating someone.
A lot of people (on the board and in the general thoughtstream) have opined that the Dems tearing each other up is mostly to the benefit of the Republican candidate, John McCain. But have you heard much McCain coverage? Has McCain given the public a solid reason why he is a better choice than whatever the Democrats have to offer? It’s been a two-edged sword in that respect: McCain has not known for sure who he’d be running against, and has had to tack cautiously. Meanwhile, the media has mostly ignored the guy anyhow, in favor of covering the still-suspenseful Democratic nom process.
Because of the long primary season, the key issues of the Democratic Party have gotten more than their usual attention. Even though they mostly differ in the details of “how they’d do it”, I think more people than usual are aware of what the Dem candidates will do to change the status quo if elected. McCain has it harder — he has to explain what he, too, would do to change things despite being of the same party as the current administration. Mostly he’s been painted as “same party, guy with more integrity, bit of a conscience, not stupid for a change, same policies”.
Because the two Democratic candidates are pretty close on policy issues, combined with the long primary season, I think there’s a sense going into the nationals that we had a choice of two types of leadership styles and/or public personalities, if you will, and that the winner will have been chosen after serious consideration of the alternative. There has been, and will be more of, lots of analysis about why that style of leadership is what people really want. McCain doesn’t get that treatment: the continuing story, if anything, is that the Republican rank & file are holding their nose and will vote for him, if they do, simply to keep the party in power. There is no sense of “why McCain triumphed”, it’s more “who the hapless Republicans ended up wtih”. No one says McCain won because of his policy proposals or his persona; the line seems to be that he won because Giuliani and Romney didnt’, and Thompson didn’t catch fire and Huckabee did so too late. And on the whole persona issue, the consensus seemed to be that he was at his peak of inspirational maverickness and stand-for-somethingness 8 years ago…not now.
Let us assume for now that the nominee will receive the enthusiatic public support of the primary Dem rival. I very strongly believe such will be the case. McCain will be trying to take away from a candidatew who is now being endorsed by the person who has been covered in the media as their foremost detractor. True, he can say a few things that the Dem rival did not, but of such things, what is likely to have much traction? It will have the appearance of 2 against 1, the two Dem candidates having been built up so much and now allied.
I am feeling more sanguine than usual going into this election.
[Disclaimer]I am not (yet) a Democrat, been an ‘Independent’, but I’m about to change that. The Republicans of this era have come to stand for everything wrong and adhere to nothing that’s right.[/Disclaimer]
[Disclaimer]I am a Clinton supporter. I do not at this time anticipate she will win the Democratic nomination, but those of you who noticed neutral language are correct, I am not conceding the possibility just yet. Be that as it may, I’ll happily support either as the Democratic nominee[/Disclaimer]