Next

The GOP's introduction of Gov. Sarah Palin onto the campaign has drastically changed the terrain. The Huffington Post recently posted an article with the title, "Bush with Lipstick," referring to the VP pick. They elaborated on the many intricacies of her policies and how they correlate to the present President Bush's. Though, each of those are revealing, she is possibly most revealing through her similarities of campaign style (potentially not even their own but the similarities of those around them). 

There is an odd position that Republicans are able to take that on a national level, Democrats have repeatedly failed to do. Republicans are generally able to become the people they represent--a true representative, one for one. Democrats on the other hand embody a more, "I will act in your place," separating themselves from the people as qualified and elite. Sen. Obama has been able to represent the people for a large part of his campaign, but since Gov. Palin began to define the Republican campaign, he has come to be identified as separate from them. The GOP has driven a partisan wedge between people similar to the one we saw in 2004. 

The attacks on the Democratic campaign have become more nuanced. With "just like me" on their side, the GOP has put the Obama campaign into a corner. He needs to refute certain attacks while agreeing with others. Sen. Obama needs to include more policy where people have complained it was missing while also standing up to say, "I totally support small town values!" Those two attacks, especially when teamed together, stretch the Democratic campaign. It has to somehow discuss complex policy about economics and foreign affairs and still come off as jus' folk. For the majority of the presidential campaign, Sen. Obama has controlled the field, but now he is in a defense position. 

What I think needs to happen next is broad media blitz. Before, through, and after the RNC, the McCain campaign has been the center of the discussion on almost every media outlet. The results have shown. RealClearPolitics put Sen. Obama up by only .8 a full five points down from before the convention. Getting air time could counteract a lot of this. 

With the particular line of attacks that are being heaved at Sen. Obama, I think a little contortion is going to be needed. There will certainly be much bending and stretching to answer it all, but the unseen upside to Gov. Palin is that we're not on unfamiliar ground. The campaign looks amazingly like 2004 so Sen. Obama can just take out that old keynote speech and lift lines from it. I think it would be infinitely helpful to remind people that, yes, we have gay friends in the red states and that, yes, we worship an awesome God in the blue states. There isn't a red America, nor a blue America. There is only the United States of America and these united states are suffering from horrible mismanagement that Sen. McCain helped create and hopes to continue. The divisive wedge of old politicking stops November fourth because on that day things will change. On that day, these states will choose to reclaim their rightful unity.