McCain Vs. Obama: What Sticks.

06 Aug, 2008 by John Hawkins

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Last night, I was doing an hour long interview for a podcast show called Skewz (I will link when it’s up), and I was asked what I thought was a particularly interesting question.

I had remarked that the public wanted to put a Democrat in the White House because the GOP hadn’t done a particularly good job over the last few years, but that the election had turned into a referendum on Barack Obama because the American people are nervous about his inexperience, lack of judgment, and flip-flops.

Then the interviewer asked me why the election hasn’t turned into a referendum on John McCain given that George Bush is so unpopular.

Well, the answer to that is that the criticisms that the McCain campaign are making about Obama ring true. People are asking: is this guy ready to lead?

But, on the other hand, the Obama campaign’s attacks on McCain are weak. Here’s a guy who is famous for being a “maverick” who infuriates conservatives. So, does anyone think he is really going to be just another George Bush? Does anyone think McCain is really in the pocket of oil companies or that he is somehow going to keep us fighting in Iraq for 100 years? Those criticisms are all bogus.

The reason this election is turning into a referendum on Barack Obama, even in a year when the Democrats should be winning in a walk, is because there are some very serious questions about Obama’s competence that his campaign has been, so far at least, unable to answer.