No Nonsense
McCain's race baiting presidential bid
A majority of Americans, and the world outside, cannot wait much longer to see Senator Barack Obama's November 4 election victory. That is making his rival, Senator John McCain, visibly desperate.
The desperation is even unsettling many Evangelical pastors. Rev. Arnold Conrad -- past pastor of the Grace Evangelical Free Church -- recently said: "I would also pray, Lord, that your reputation is involved in all that happens between now and November, because there are millions of people around this world -- Hindu, Buddhist, or Muslim -- praying to their god that his opponent wins, for a variety of reasons."
"And Lord, I pray that you would guard your own reputation, because they're going to think that their god is bigger than you, if that happens. So I pray that you will step forward and honour your own name with all that happens between now and Election Day."
Columnist Andrew Greenly (October 15, Chicago Sun-Times) said: "McCain increasingly acts like an angry, befuddled cancer survivor, and treats his rival like [he is] just barely human."
Greenly's observations of McCain's attitude towards Obama are listed as follows: Who does he think he is? He has no right to run for president and McCain does. Hasn't he served his country all his life? Hasn't he traveled the whole world? Hasn't he been involved in every major event of the last four decades? Does he not know everyone who's worth knowing? And what does his rival have to offer besides intolerable arrogance -- black skin and glib language? Isn't Obama the one who is playing the race card?
Therefore, he must be exposed as what he is -- a pushy fellow with a glib tongue who has no right to challenge a great American like John McCain.
In his October 13 piece entitled "Vote for Obama" (Slate.com), conservative columnist Christopher Hitchen said: "McCain lacks the character and temperament to be president and Palin is simply a disgrace."
Richard Cohen (October 14, NYT) asked: "Senator McCain, you are 72 and have had skin cancer several times. Given that -- not to mention the usual exigencies of life -- how could you pick a running mate who is so dismally qualified for the presidency?"
Greenly aptly found a parallel of Sarah Palin in a play. He thinks "South Pacific" is a morality play for our time in which Sarah Palin is the Ensign Nellie Forbush -- an All-American girl as racist, this time a racist with her eye on the White House. She could stir up the crowds to shout "Kill him!" at the mention of the presidential candidate of the other party a couple of weeks before the national election.
As McCain, Palin and the surrogates unleash scurrilous attacks, Obama's poll rating bumps up. After each of the three nationally televised debates -- which Obama has won impressively-- his favourability rating kept piling up while McCain's nose-dived.
The following are some of the reasons why this war hero -- who is also a sixth time incumbent US Senator -- has become a fallen presidential candidate:
- Lack of coherent understanding of the economy, that failed to synchronise with the economically distressed middleclass Americans;
- Befalling of the ongoing cataclysmic financial crisis at a time when 12 million subprime mortgaged houses were foreclosed;
- President Bush's 71% negative job approval -- highest ever in Gallop's poll record;
- McCain's voting for the Iraq war which Obama opposed;
- Extreme position on abortion (refusal to make exceptions in cases of rape induced pregnancy, or when the mother's health is at risk);
- McCain's 95% voting record in the Senate supporting Bush's agenda;
- McCain's national health care plan is unappealing to the 47 million uninsured Americans. Obama's plan is clear cut -- even if unrealistic and unattainable any time soon;
- McCain failed to clarify how he would take the country in a new direction, away from conservatives' core views on tax cut for large corporations and the wealthy;
- Rightly or wrongly perceived -- McCain displays the mentality of a war hawk with a "cold war mindset."
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