United Liberty

While the Mainstream Media has all but anointed Barack Obama as the next president, John McCain and Sarah Palin continue campaigning, albeit not too effectively. With polls consistently showing Obama leading McCain, and the election just over three weeks away, one wonders if McCain has any hopes of winning.

I believe that McCain lost a great opportunity. When the stock market dramatically fell, the approval ratings of the current Administration fell with the economic conditions. With the Republican hopes fading, the Bush Administration signed on to a terrible plan to bailout Wall Street investors. Initially, Republican House members opposed the plan, but enough pork was added to an already bloated bill so that the politician spirit ruled the day and these politicians caved and supported the bailout.

Had McCain opposed this bailout, he would have appeared the principled statesman and would have regained his ground. McCain’s support of the bailout made him appear as just another Republican hack and the grassroots, already upset with the Bush Administration, did not gravitate toward McCain.

But again, we ask, does McCain have any hope left for winning? Here in the fourth quarter, with McCain behind, I see still a glimmer of hope for McCain to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. How can McCain win?

1) Ignore the media!! This will be especially hard to do for McCain. Back in 2000, when conservatives supported Bush over McCain for the GOP nomination, McCain became the media’s favorite Republican. McCain began to support issues like campaign finance reform, embryonic stem cell research, make critical remarks of Bush’s court appointments, oppose the Bush tax cuts, etc. McCain appeared to respond to the media’s portrayal of McCain as a maverick. Now, when McCain is all that stands between the absolute media favorite, Barack Obama, and the White House, the media is focusing attacks on McCain.
John McCain needs to sidestep the news commentators and speak straight to the American people. McCain should ignore the criticisms he receives from MSNBC, CNN, ABC, CBS, and NBC. These people want Obama and will do whatever they must do to elect Obama. Responding to the media, much less seeking to curry favor with the media, will only dilute McCain’s message. Ignore the biased media!

2) Turn loose the dogs! McCain should learn the lesson of 2004. When President Bush was in deep trouble, an independent expenditure group produced the famous Swift Boat ads, which questioned Democratic nominee John Kerry’s wartime service. In 1988, George Bush (the daddy) was seriously behind, and an independent group ran the now infamous Willie Horton ads, which accused Democratic nominee and Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis of allowing a furlough for convicted criminal Willie Horton who committed a heinous crime while out on furlough, under Massachusetts’s liberal provisions for prison furloughs. After these ads ran for awhile, Bush soundly defeated Michael Dukakis.
McCain should not apologize for attacks that people make on Barack Obama. From the Bill Ayers connection to the Michelle Obama dissertation to the Obama funding from Middle Eastern sources, the anti-Obama contingent has plenty of ammunition to paint Obama into a left-corner of the political spectrum. At this point, Americans are weary with Republicans, but are not ready to elect a genuine leftist. Paint Obama as a leftist, and McCain might have a shot! Let the attack groups mobilize! Like it or not, negative campaigning works.

3) Let Sarah Speak! Few times, in modern US politics, has a Vice Presidential candidate taken the public by storm, as did Sarah Palin. The liberals don’t understand the appeal of Gov. Palin, just as they never understood the appeal of Ronald Reagan. Palin is the anti-Washington candidate and as the public believes that Washington is broken, Palin comes on the scene presented as the true candidate of the people. While the media’s attack has been relentless, the McCain campaign has seemed to recoil in their promotion of Palin. I believe that Palin should be given complete freedom to disagree with Bush and even McCain. Palin should be allowed to speak, gaffes and all. This woman could invigorate the conservatives, the independents, the working class, and even the Reagan Democrats. Let her say what she wishes and watch her build a following, energizing the support. States like West Virginia, Virginia, Ohio, and Indiana would be solidly in the fold with a heavy dose of campaigning by Sarah Palin.

4) In this Tuesday’s debate, McCain needs to be plain spoken on conservative principles. Draw a line in the sand and make certain that the public sees a difference. With no distinguishable differences, the public will vote for the Democrat. While the Democrats control Congress, the public sees the current crises of war and the economy as taking place on a Republican watch. McCain needs to present a cause to rally to by speaking forthrightly. Otherwise, the public will see him as a milquetoast version of Washington (which he probably really is).

5) Without being disrespectful, McCain needs to distinguish himself from President Bush. The Bush Administration is leaving office with record unpopularity. Frankly, McCain’s attitude on the bailout and the war make it nearly impossible to separate himself from Bush. If this can be done, he should do so.

Most conservatives I know are sickened with McCain’s performance. Most conservatives have no desire to vote for McCain. But the fear of an Obama presidency will force these same conservatives to vote for John McCain. McCain has a slim opportunity to move back into contention in this race. Already, the polls are slightly narrowing. This narrowing comes, not because of McCain’s ability as a candidate, but because of growing skepticism of Obama. McCain must rally his voters and persuade natural allies, such as working class voters who socially conservative. If not, we could wake up on November 5 with a Democratic House, a filibuster-proof Democratic Senate, and a President with the most left-leaning agenda in American history.