I’ve been watching the “Maverick†Senator from Arizona make his Patton like March toward the presumed nomination for the Republican Party over the past couple of weeks. And though some would liken his forward momentum on the Straight talk express similar to an addictive gamblers first win, or the reliability of a snowball careening down a hill (after it’d been pushed for years and years UP one) I’d more likely refer to it as the title of Meatloafs most beloved album - Bat out of Hell.
He has come back from nowhere, not by any doing of his own of course, but through the split vote of a fractured right wing party.
He saw it, and took advantage of the situation, for that I have to give him a kudos to his wisdom of sticking it out.
Hopefully his wisdom stretches beyond the bounds of his common sense however. McCain has been known to court the media at every stop, reaching across the aisle, joking, making deals and trying to get on their good side which predictably ended much like the unintended finale of the Siegfried and Roy show.
For those not keeping up, a couple of months ago McCain pleaded and cajoled the New York Times to NOT release a story regarding him and a female lobbyist back in the day. The story, as it turns out, is really is a non – issue (but a hit piece nonetheless), but McCain flexing those “relationships†he has built with the media in front of him got his reprieve…well for a little bit (at least until they could sneak around to the back of him, dagger in hand).
As was said from talking head to talking head from coast to coast, McCain would get the “love†from the MSM (Mainstream Media) right until he became the presumptive nominee. At that point the guns would be loaded and pointed directly at the Senator in order to ensure the left side of the aisle would have their king (or queen).
Of course that’s what happened.
With the lock on the Presidential nomination all but ensured, the NYT has leveled attack after attack after attack. Everything from his relationship with a lobbyist, to if he is eligible to run for office because he was born out of the U.S. (making all soldiers and active military wonder about their status as Americans I wager).
Funnily enough, this gives Obama and McCain some common ground.
Obama has spoken extensively in platitudes and buzz words with as much specificity as the 5 year old that explains Star Wars. Cute, but nonetheless painting in broad strokes what should be defined in nuanced detail.
He’s constantly said that he will engage the world stage in order to tackle problems around the world, and for the most part it seems that the world is ready for him to do so.
Unfortunately, much like McCain it seems that he doesn’t realize that the World stage plays itself a lot like the New York Times. They will be looking for a puppet (or a voodoo doll) to pull around. The ire that America has stirred up (in my opinion rightly so) will be taken out by way of accusations and calls for reparations against a President who’s platform seems to be spent on being liked. And Obama, so desperate to look for EVERYONE’s approval will no doubt take his less than nuanced spinelessness to work fixing allll the evils that we have wrought. (I’m reminded of the soldiers testament – Impartiality is a virtue only in small men)
Unfortunately the world stage will not end its barrage of attacks just because there is a new president. But they will hold off attacking him until he lays his hand on the Bible, then, much like the sound of guns loading at the New York Times but on a far grander scale, we shall see a costly and potentially dangerous volley fire our way, one that a broad smile and the “hope†of people’s “good†nature can’t deflect.
