I have long felt that Senator Obama “should” win the U.S. Presidential Election. Today, I am convinced that he WILL win the election. Here are my ten reasons. What do you think?
10) Obama is the “For” Candidate – It’s hard to win elections with the line “Vote for me because I’m not him.” Voting for someone or something is a much stronger motivation than voting against it. Obama is the “for” candidate in this election. Obama has inspired his supporters to vote their hopes rather than their fears. As a result, the majority of Obama supporters are voting for him more than they are voting against McCain. The same cannot be said for most McCain supporters. McCain, due to his slipping poll numbers, may choose to continue to “go negative” and in the process solidify his status as the “against” candidate. It won’t work.
9) The Maverick Fallacy – John McCain has built a brand over the years of being a “maverick” politician, someone above party politics and populist pandering. However, on the most significant issues in this election (health care, tax policy, Iraq), there is barely any daylight between McCain’s positions and those of the current administration. This lack of differentiation simply makes McCain a run-of-the-mill Republican when the “Republican brand” is at its weakest point in years.
8) The Palin Factor – I like my friends to be “regular folk,” but I like my leaders to be exceptional. The same goes for my pilots, my doctors, etc. Gov. Sarah Palin has shown herself to be unapologetically uninformed regarding too many important issues to be a credible candidate for VP. I refuse to believe that 50 percent plus one of the American public, at this critical juncture of our history, will tolerate someone at the #2 who knows no more than they do about the economy, foreign policy, health care…shall I go on?
7) World View – I know we Americans do not generally give too much thought to how the rest of the world views our choices for the next “leader of the free world.” Such thought runs counter to the “rugged individualism” notion upon which our nation was built. However, America’s image has clearly taken a negative turn in the last eight years. It will be critical that we get more support than we currently enjoy from the rest of the world in order to address some of our world’s challenges. According to a recent Reader’s Digest survey, Obama is the “world’s choice” for U.S. President.
6) McCain’s Disposition – Does it appear that McCain is about to come completely unhinged or is it just me? Lately, McCain does not seem to have any use for common courtesy (referring to Obama “that one?”) let alone grace under pressure. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with passion, but passion “out of control” is dangerous. McCain has appeared to be out of control for the last several weeks precisely when, in his words, we need a “steady hand on the till.” By contrast…
5) Obama’s Cool – One of the hallmarks of a great leader is the ability to be calm in a crisis. As we all know. Obama is “as cool as a fan.” He is the candidate who has not allowed the news cycle to dictate his strategy for his campaign or his plans for the country. Obama just keeps on making thoughtful statements and taking productive action. If you were just reading about the candidates’ actions without knowing their bios or seeing their photos, it would be easy to conclude that Obama was the one with all the experience. But of course, we do have their photos. This leads me to…
4) The Look of Change - Senator Obama just “looks like change.” Seeing both men stand side by side at last night’s town hall debate, it was impossible to avoid the fact that one candidate looks like “yesterday” and the other looks like “tomorrow.” With an electorate desperate for change, watching the two candidates together was an extremely powerful visual.
3) Race Matters – As many of you remember, Dr. Cornel West wrote a book entitled Race Matters, a double entendre meaning both “matters regarding race” and “race is significant.” Race clearly matters in this election. Many people will cast their votes because of race, in both “for” and “against” votes. Call me naïve, but I believe that we as a nation will not allow race to be the determining factor in this election. I believe we are better than that. I hope I am right.
2) The Ultimate Litmus Test – In a 1980 presidential debate, Ronald Reagan posed a question that many politicians have repeated to great effect. “Are you better off than you were four years ago?” Today, the answer to that question for most people is a resounding “no.” This is bad news if you share the same party as the incumbent president. Payback is a “bear” and voters will be looking to pay Republicans back for the last eight years.
1) The Greatness of America – Like most Americans, I love America. In the history of our great nation, we have always risen to meet and defeat our largest challenges. We perform best at the biggest moments in our history. Today, we are living in one of those moments. McCain’s political path to victory has narrowed such that the only way he can win this election is to demonize Obama, to paint him as “the other,” “risky,” “un-American,” and “unfit.” McCain will ask us to choose fear over hope. I refuse to believe that the majority of our great nation will take this bait. At our core, we are not a fearful people. I believe we will choose hope over fear.
Posted By: Brian McClellan
Thursday, October 9th 2008 at 12:29PM
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