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Congressional campaigns can be more volatile. That's true. But leads are sometimes illusory in both contexts. Only a few percent have to move from one column to other to close a gap.
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I came upon a barroom full of bad Salon pictures in which men with hats on the backs of their heads were wolfing food from a counter. It was the institution of the "free lunch" I had struck. You paid for a drink and got as much as you wanted to eat. For something less than a rupee a day a man can feed himself sumptuously in San Francisco, even though he be a bankrupt. Remember this if ever you are stranded in these parts. ~ Rudyard Kipling, 1891 -
He has an october surprise in his pants. The alaska investigation anal probe will reveal Palin threatened to kill the police chief unless he fired the trooper, which will raise her stock among horny men looking for an aggressive woman. McCain unfortunately is going to have to play the race card and say Obama is his lovechild with Starr Jones and then run ads saying 'Who's Your Daddy Now Barack,' which will appeal to enough UVA frat kids to turn Virginia red
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Originally posted by Wiglaf
He has an october surprise in his pants. The alaska investigation anal probe will reveal Palin threatened to kill the police chief unless he fired the trooper, which will raise her stock among horny men looking for an aggressive woman. McCain unfortunately is going to have to play the race card and say Obama is his lovechild with Starr Jones and then run ads saying 'Who's Your Daddy Now Barack,' which will appeal to enough UVA frat kids to turn Virginia red
And indeed there will be time To wonder, "Do I dare?" and, "Do I dare?". t s eliotComment
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Why can't he resign BEFORE the election? I smell a rat.Originally posted by Victor Galis
Well, he could still get my vote by dumping Palin, replacing her with Bloomberg, then pledging to resign the day after inauguration. Short of that...
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How could he resign an office he hasn't actually won yet?Originally posted by Zkribbler
Why can't he resign BEFORE the election? I smell a rat.
Tutto nel mondo è burlaComment
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He could try to forfeit the nomination and hand it to Bloomberg. The RNC might have issues with that, though."Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and finds himself no wiser than before. He is full of murderous resentment of people who are ignorant without having come by their ignorance the hard way. "
-BokononComment
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I think the best McCain can do now is solidify himself with the base, using Palin as the motivator to get those folks angry and out to the polls. That would instantly neutralize the youth vote. Meanwhile, he needs to reinforce his indy cred constantly and pound away relentlessly, hoping to swing the undecideds his way. He needs to spring something big at the last debate, and he needs to be more aggressive.
Palin as attack dog seems to be the technique in play, and it can help. But changing messages (from "We're the mavericks" to "Barack = cronyism w/nasty associates") is not helping. But continuing "not one of us" references will maximize the Bradley Effect.
Even a pre-election assassination would be disastrous. The suddenly-credible Biden would get swept into office with Hillary as Emergency VP.
I just don't think they can pull it off against such well organized and well funded opposition. This ain't your passive Kerry-Gore-Dukakis punching bag they're facing.Apolyton's Grim Reaper 2008, 2010 & 2011
RIP lest we forget... SG (2) and LaFayette -- Civ2 Succession Games Brothers-in-ArmsComment
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Especially since Bloomberg made a very public point of quitting the Republican Party.Originally posted by Ramo
He could try to forfeit the nomination and hand it to Bloomberg. The RNC might have issues with that, though.Tutto nel mondo è burlaComment
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All the more reason to like himOriginally posted by Boris Godunov
Especially since Bloomberg made a very public point of quitting the Republican Party.
Plus it would solve the running for a third term issue."The purpose of studying economics is not to acquire a set of ready-made answers to economic questions, but to learn how to avoid being deceived by economists."
-Joan RobinsonComment
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I tend to agree that, barring an incredibly major development, McCain will not turn the tide in this election. That said, if I were really gonna make a go at it:
1) Stop the character attacks. They're going to raise his negatives more than they hurt Obama's numbers. I also agree that he should turn on the GoPers going for the nasty ads. It will boost his "maverick reformer" cred.
2) Reformulate the economic policies and launch an ad campaign with specific examples of how he plans to reform and regulate Wall Street.
3) Stop playing up the foreign policy angle. It's the economy, stupid. Voters don't care right now how many obscure foreign hot spots you've visited.
4) Take a page from Obama's book: fight on the issues. And do it (reasonably) truthfully. Nobody believes you (besides your base, and that doesn't help) when you say that Barack Obama wants to raise taxes, especially when he gets up right after and gives specific numbers that disprove your claim. By extension, John McCain needs to...
5) Come up with a real healthcare plan. It needs to be one that big names can actually get behind. Stop listening to the AEI. They're a bunch of morons.
Of course, he should have been doing these things from the beginning, and it's probably too late to turn it around now, but at least his rep might be salvaged. People will remember this election (fair or unfair) for the negative tone set by John McCain. If he wants to do anything further politically, he needs to reverse that."Beauty is not in the face...Beauty is a light in the heart." - Kahlil Gibran
"The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves" - Victor Hugo
"It is noble to be good; it is still nobler to teach others to be good -- and less trouble." - Mark TwainComment
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There still is potential here for a Dewey-Defeats-Truman scenario here, of course. Obama's edge in the states he needs is still within the margin of error. Moreover, he's not polling above 50% in any of those states, and I have a feeling that remaining undecideds are going to go for McCain, big time (undecided votes tend to break for The Devil You Know). A move by McCain to grab those undecideds could pay off big-time."I have as much authority as the pope. I just don't have as many people who believe it." — George CarlinComment
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...and don't forget the Bradley Effect.
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McCain's going to have a terrible time grabbing independents when he's out polled by 22 points on the issue that's the biggest concern to 70 odd percent of voters. Any grab for those voters is going to have to be creative and dramatic, and is going to have to make sense to moderates. That's something the McCain campaign has yet to achieve."Beauty is not in the face...Beauty is a light in the heart." - Kahlil Gibran
"The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves" - Victor Hugo
"It is noble to be good; it is still nobler to teach others to be good -- and less trouble." - Mark TwainComment
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It's too late at this point. Nothing he does will get him any closer to office. Only mistakes will get him further away.
He should quit now and give the election to Obama in good faith, instead of making the republicans look worse.be freeComment
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To be honest, if he came up with an amazing economic plan now, he could still swing things back. I doubt he can."The purpose of studying economics is not to acquire a set of ready-made answers to economic questions, but to learn how to avoid being deceived by economists."
-Joan RobinsonComment
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