At least it wasn’t Joe Lieberman.
20 years ago (is it really that long) the first George Bush chose Dan Quayle as his running mate, primarily, it seemed and still seems, to avoid nominating anyone who could possibly be perceived as being better presidential material than himself. He had to look long and far, but he found someone. Secondarily, the condescending thinking was that Dan Quayle’s Robert Redford good looks (I’m not making this up) would cause women to flock to the ticket. Bush did a gross disservice to the country, but at least it was a result of his own personal insecurities, so it was understandable and almost forgivable, in a weird sort of way.
John McCain’s choice was not made out of insecurity. It is a product of a mix of personal ambition, desperation, cynicism, and contempt for the American people. It is not a stretch to say that, were she elected, she would be a very weak heartbeat away from the presidency, not to mention the real possibility that McCain’s Alzheimer’s may advance to the point that it can no longer be hidden.
We have heard nothing from McCain about Obama for the past several months that was not centered, in one way or another, on Obama’s lack of preparation to be “commander in chief”. McCain now all but announces that the talking point, which he will of course continue to use, lacks all validity by asking the country to install someone as president in waiting who has served as the mayor of a town of 8,000 and one year as the corrupt governor of the most corrupt state in the country.
If that’s all we knew about her, then one could still argue that she might make a good president. After all, the argument about experience is one made primarily by folks like McCain who have a long history of failure, which they trumpet as experience. But if this woman has any redeeming qualities, they are few and far between. Elected on a pledge to clean out the cesspool that is the Alaskan Republican party, she immediately settled in to the culture of corruption. She wants to teach creationism in the schools and she’s a darling of the fundamentalists.
No doubt the McCain campaign will dredge up a few “former Hillary supporters” who will say this confirms their decision to vote for McCain. No doubt, too, that the press will pivot from Obama to this story for a few days, and will hail McCain’s choice as a political masterstroke. One must wonder, though, whether McCain’s decision will stand even the short term test of time. But, according to our press corps, gimmick that it might be, it won’t matter after three days, so it could be a brilliant move:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DD_Ds_mWjQ[/youtube]
They sure do love them some McCain, don’t they. Had Obama done this we’d be hearing about the utter irresponsibility of such a daffy choice. But since it’s Maverick John, his contempt for the American people is irrelevant. It may work politically as long as needed, and after that- Who Cares?
